Hyperion: Michael Haydn — Requiem & Missa in Honorem Sanctae Ursulae, Robert King (2 CD)

Brand new! Factory packaged! As pictured! Buy with confidence!

Product Details:

• Product Type: Audio CD
• Brand / Label: Hyperion
• Composer: Michael Haydn (1737–1806)
• Soloists: Carolyn Sampson (soprano), Hilary Summers (alto), James Gilchrist (tenor), Peter Harvey (bass)
• Ensembles: Choir of The King's Consort, The King's Consort, Robert King (conductor)
• Catalog Number: CDA67510
• UPC: 0034571175102
• Release Year: 2006
• Genre: Classical
• Style: Classical-era sacred choral

Product Features

• Format: CD
• Discs: 2 (two discs for the price of one)
• Total duration: 83:50
• Contents: CD 1 — Requiem (40:12); CD 2 — Missa in Honorem Sanctae Ursulae (43:38)
• Recording: DDD
• Booklet: notes in English, French and German
• Made in France
• Award: Gramophone Editor's Choice
• Condition: Factory Sealed (New)

Overview

Michael Haydn lived his whole career a little in the shadow of his older brother Joseph, but on the evidence of these two works he deserves far more than that. This pair of sacred masterpieces, recorded by Robert King's forces, makes the case as persuasively as anyone could wish.

The Requiem "pro defuncto Archiepiscopo Sigismundo" was written in 1771 on the death of Michael Haydn's patron, the Archbishop of Salzburg — and it left a deep mark on the teenage Mozart, who knew it well and remembered it when writing his own Requiem twenty years later. You can hear why: it is dramatic, dark and deeply felt, Classical poise shot through with real grief.

The Missa in Honorem Sanctae Ursulae is the sunnier companion, a festive, brilliantly scored mass that shows the celebratory side of Salzburg church music. The solo quartet here is outstanding — Carolyn Sampson and colleagues — and the King's Consort plays with period instruments and great refinement. Fanfare called it a truly great recording and begged readers to obtain it; BBC Music Magazine said lovers of Mozart and Joseph Haydn's church music could hardly fail to enjoy it. Two discs for the price of one, and a Gramophone Editor's Choice. Essential for collectors of Classical sacred music.

Interesting Facts

• Michael Haydn's Requiem in C minor (1771) was written for the funeral of Archbishop Sigismund von Schrattenbach, his and Mozart's Salzburg patron.
• The young Mozart knew this Requiem intimately, and it is widely seen as an influence on his own unfinished Requiem of 1791.
• Michael Haydn was the younger brother of Joseph Haydn and spent most of his career as a church musician in Salzburg.
• The Missa in Honorem Sanctae Ursulae is a large, festive setting, sometimes nicknamed the "Chiemsee Mass."
• The recording won a Gramophone Editor's Choice and was issued as a two-disc set sold for the price of a single CD.
• The solo quartet — Sampson, Summers, Gilchrist and Harvey — are among Britain's most sought-after early-music and oratorio singers.

Track Listing

• CD 1: Requiem pro defuncto Archiepiscopo Sigismundo — 40:12
• CD 2: Missa in Honorem Sanctae Ursulae — 43:38

Publishers

Released 2006 by Hyperion Records Limited, London, England. Made in France. Booklet notes in English, French and German. Label code LC 7533.

Have this set? A short review helps other Classical sacred-music collectors.