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Zelenka - Missa Divi Xaverii, Litaniae de Sancto Xaverio | Accent ACC24301

Zelenka - Missa Divi Xaverii, Litaniae de Sancto Xaverio

£14.51

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Label: Accent

Cat No: ACC24301

Barcode: 4015023243019

Format: CD

Number of Discs: 1

Genre: Vocal/Choral

Release Date: 4th March 2016

Gramophone Editor's Choice

Contents

Artists

Collegium 1704
Collegium Vocale 1704

Conductor

Vaclav Luks

Works

Zelenka, Jan Dismas

Litaniae de Sancto Xaverio, ZWV156
Missa Divi Xaverii, ZWV12

Artists

Collegium 1704
Collegium Vocale 1704

Conductor

Vaclav Luks

About

After highly acclaimed recordings of his Requiem and Responsoriae, Czech conductor Václav Luks and his Collegium 1704 present two major compositions by Zelenka for the feast of St Francis Xavier, Apostle to the Indies, in Dresden 1729. Missa Divi Xaverii, ZWV12, was composed to be heard on 3 December; similar in its scope and aural brilliance, the companion work – Litaniae de Sancto Xaverio, ZWV156, for 9 December.

Missa Divi Xaverii, one of Zelenka's most lavishly orchestrated scores, has had a long wait to be rediscovered. Nearly three centuries passed before the work could shine in its original splendour. Zelenka experimented here, particularly in the scoring of unusually large orchestral forces which include the brilliance of four trumpets, transverse flutes, oboes and bassoon.

Collegium 1704 is a Czech early music orchestra and choir founded in 1991 by the Czech conductor, harpsichordist and horn player Václav Luks, formerly horn soloist of the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin. The Collegium specialises in Baroque music, in particular that of Zelenka, Bach and Handel. All the performers are virtuosos, and often perform with other early music ensembles.

Reviews

soprano Hana Blažiková adding a beautiful sheen through her solos … this feels like a major addition to the Bohemian composer’s discography in typically searching performances.  Andrew McGregor
Record Review (BBC Radio 3) 12 March 2016
Collegium 1704’s blithe performance conveys a radiant mood in the opening strains of ‘Kyrie eleison’; the solo quartet’s plea for mercy carries through to a shapely choral response adorned by four relaxed trumpets. Hana Blažíková’s limpid singing produces a gorgeous dialogue with a violin and oboe d’amore in ‘Benedictus’, and her duet with Kamila Mazalová in ‘Domine Deus’ is a charming pastoral featuring two bubbling flutes. Lucile Richardot’s rapt ‘Agnus Dei’ is accompanied gently by delicate solo flute and pulsing strings.  David Vickers
Gramophone June 2016
The Missa Divi Xaverii is a scintillating D major piece for soloists, choir, trumpets, drums, flutes, oboes, bassoon and strings. Listeners will immediately be struck by Zelenka’s distinctive and colourful deployment of instruments: in the pastoral Domine Deus II, soprano and alto soloists are accompanied by limpid flutes with unison violins ... Performances are uniformly satisfying under Václav Luks’s sensitive and experienced direction, with strong contributions from Hana Blažíková, Lucile Richardot and the instrumental obbligato players.  Nicholas Anderson
BBC Music Magazine July 2016

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