Martin Luther, continued

I. 1517: Mitten im Leben (Calmus Ensemble/Lautten Compagney/Wolfgang Kaschner). Carus CD 83.477.

The new project by Calmus and the lautten compagney Berlin to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation.

The Calmus Ensemble and the Lautten Compagney embark on a musical journey into the 16th century: Using Martin Luther’s paean “Mitten wir im Leben sind” as its starting point, the musicians paint a lively picture of life during the Reformation era. In both the sacred and secular works we encounter joyful delight and high-spirited merriment just as much as never-ending distress and grievous misery. The apparent parallels with the present time cause us to smile quietly, while statements to themes such as nature and home cause us to be pensive. In addition to the many original compositions, a whole series of new arrangements – which make the 16th century songs swing – have come into being through the collaboration of the two ensembles.

II. Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott: Luther and the Music of the Reformation (Vox Luminus/Lionel Meunier). Ricercar CD RIC 376.

A two-CD set devoted to the Lutheran liturgical repertory from Martin Luther himself to Heinrich Schütz.

The first disc comprises compositions specific to the Lutheran liturgy: Deutsche Messe, Deutsches Magnificat, Deutsche Passion (the first German polyphonic Passion, by Joachim von Burck) and even a reconstruction of a Deutsches Requiem drawn from polyphonic works that set the same texts as those Brahms was later to use for his Deutsches Requiem.

The second disc presents a selection of motets arranged according to the liturgical calendar, from Advent to Trinity. These polyphonic pieces were written by a wide range of composers including Martin Luther, Andreas Hammerschmidt, Michael Praetorius, Joachim von Burck, Christoph Bernhardt, Heinrich Schütz, Thomas Selle, Melchior Franck, Caspar Othmayr, Michael Altenburg, Samuel Scheidt, Johann Hermann Schein and Johann Walter. The organist Bart Jacobs completes the programme with a few organ pieces by seventeenth-century composers.

III. Sebastian Knüpfer: Veni Sancte Spiritus (Weser-Renaissance/Manfred Cordes). CPO CD777 884-2.

In 1657 Sebastian Knüpfer succeeded Tobias Michael as the choirmaster at the St. Thomas School in Leipzig. As his almost twenty years in this post would demonstrate, he was the right man for the job. His fame quickly spread and also brought him invitations from other cities, where he was able to demonstrate his command of the musical craft. A circle of respected musicians gathered around him and earned Leipzig renown as an important music center. Knüpfer became a leading musical personality in Central Germany, and the design of some of his works pointed to the future. Contemporaries received his works, and later generations were interested in his multilayered compositions. His fame is based on the outstanding quality of his sacred works. Working with a full orchestral apparatus, he pulls all the stops in colorful tonal scoring and knows how to form contrasts in a manner similar to Praetorius. For his brilliant and contrapuntally finely crafted compositions, Knüpfer chose Gospel and Psalm texts and joined them together in a concertizing combination. In the laudation following his death it was stated, »Knüpfer’s choice meant salvation for Leipzig’s music life and a blessing for the post of choirmaster at St. Thomas.