![Monteverdi-Chor Februar2012](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Monteverdi-Chor_Februar2012.jpg)
The Monteverdi-Chor Hamburg is a
mixed choir
A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...
in
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
, utc_offset1 = +1
, timezone1_DST = Central (CEST)
, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
, the chamber choir of the
University of Hamburg
The University of Hamburg (german: link=no, Universität Hamburg, also referred to as UHH) is a public research university in Hamburg, Germany. It was founded on 28 March 1919 by combining the previous General Lecture System ('' Allgemeines Vo ...
since 1961. Founded in 1955 by
Jürgen Jürgens
Jürgen Jürgens (5 October 1925 – 4 August 1994) was a German choral conductor and academic teacher. He founded and directed the Monteverdi-Chor Hamburg, a pioneering ensemble for Monteverdi's music.
Biography
Born in Frankfurt am Main, Jür ...
and directed by him until 1994, it is one of Germany's most famous concert choirs. The choir is well known for its interpretations of Baroque and Renaissance music,
but covers choral music from the Renaissance to contemporary music. Since 1994, the conductor has been
Gothart Stier.
History
The choir was founded in 1955 as the "Chor am Italienischen Kulturinstitut" (Choir at the Italian Cultural Institute), but renamed the same year after
Claudio Monteverdi, then a largely unknown composer.
Since 1961 it has been the chamber choir of the
University of Hamburg
The University of Hamburg (german: link=no, Universität Hamburg, also referred to as UHH) is a public research university in Hamburg, Germany. It was founded on 28 March 1919 by combining the previous General Lecture System ('' Allgemeines Vo ...
, where Jürgens worked as a director of music from 1961 to 1993.
After four years of intensive preparation, the Monteverdi-Chor won first prize at the international choral competition ''Concorso Polifonico Internazionale "Guido d'Arezzo"'' in
Arezzo, Italy, in 1959. In 1962, it won first prize also at the international competition in
Lille
Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France region, the prefecture of the N ...
, France.
The choir became famous by collaboration with
Gustav Leonhardt,
Nikolaus Harnoncourt,
Frans Brüggen
Franciscus ("Frans") Jozef Brüggen (30 October 1934 – 13 August 2014) was a Dutch conductor, recorder player and baroque flautist.
Biography
Born in Amsterdam, Brüggen was the last of the nine children of August Brüggen, a textile factory o ...
and
Eduard Melkus, among others, recording for
Teldec
Teldec (Telefunken-Decca Schallplatten GmbH) is a German record label in Hamburg, Germany. Today the label is a property of Warner Music Group.
History
Teldec was a producer of (first) shellac and (later) vinyl records. The Teldec manufacturing ...
and
Archiv Produktion
Archiv Produktion is a classical music record label of German origin. It originated in 1949 as a classical label for the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft (DGG), and in 1958 Archiv was established as a subsidiary of DGG, specialising in recording ...
.
The choir recorded rarities. In the 1960s it recorded Bach cantatas, with soloists and players who later became famous in the field of
historically informed performance, such as tenor
Kurt Equiluz
Kurt Equiluz (13 June 1929 – 20 June 2022) was an Austrian classical tenor in opera and concert. He was a member of the Vienna State Opera as a tenor buffo from 1957 until 1983, remembered for roles such as Pedrillo in Mozart's ''Die Entfüh ...
, bass
Max van Egmond, violinist
Jaap Schröder
Jaap Schröder or Jaap Schroeder (31 December 1925 – 1 January 2020) was a Dutch violinist, conductor, and pedagogue.
He studied at the Amsterdam Conservatory and at the Sorbonne in France. In the 1960s he was a member of the Dutch early music ...
, recorder player
Frans Brüggen
Franciscus ("Frans") Jozef Brüggen (30 October 1934 – 13 August 2014) was a Dutch conductor, recorder player and baroque flautist.
Biography
Born in Amsterdam, Brüggen was the last of the nine children of August Brüggen, a textile factory o ...
and organist
Gustav Leonhardt, among others. In 1990 works by
Max Reger including his ''
Requiem'' were recorded in collaboration with the choir of
St. Michaelis, soloist
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (28 May 1925 – 18 May 2012) was a German lyric baritone and conductor of classical music, one of the most famous Lieder (art song) performers of the post-war period, best known as a singer of Franz Schubert's Lieder, ...
and the
Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg
The Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg (Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra) is an internationally renowned symphony orchestra based in Hamburg. As of 2015, Kent Nagano has been General Music Director (''Generalmusikdirektor'') and chief c ...
, conducted by
Gerd Albrecht
Gerd Albrecht (19 July 1935 – 2 February 2014) was a German conductor.
Biography
Albrecht was born in Essen, the son of the musicologist Hans Albrecht (1902–1961). He studied music in Kiel and in Hamburg, where his teachers included Wilhel ...
. The choir was invited to music festivals at home and abroad, to almost all countries of Western and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, the United States, Central and Latin America, Southeast Asia, China and Australia.
After the sudden death of Jürgen Jürgens in August 1994, Gothart Stier from Leipzig, a former concert singer, became artistic director.
The choir has about 60 singers.
Stier has continued the tradition to focus on
a cappella music. He also performed
classical and
romantic choral music including
Verdi
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...
in cooperation with the
Staatskapelle Halle, the Mitteldeutsches Kammerorchester, the
Neues Bachisches Collegium Musicum, and members of the
Gewandhausorchester
The Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra (Gewandhausorchester; also previously known in German as the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig) is a German symphony orchestra based in Leipzig, Germany. The orchestra is named after the concert hall in which it is bas ...
.
On 16 October 2010, the choir performed Monteverdi's ''
Marienvesper'' in the
Berlin Cathedral
The Berlin Cathedral (german: link=yes, Berliner Dom), also known as the Evangelical Supreme Parish and Collegiate Church, is a monumental German Evangelical church and dynastic tomb ( House of Hohenzollern) on the Museum Island in centra ...
with the
ensemble amarcord and the
Lautten Compagney. In 2018,
Antonius Adamske has been elected as new principal conductor.
Recordings
* Felix Mendelssohn: ''
Paulus'', Stephanie Stiller,
Christa Bonhoff,
Christoph Genz
Christoph Genz (born 1 March 1971 in Erfurt) is a German tenor in opera and concert.
Career
Christoph Genz was a member of the Thomanerchor. He studied music at King's College, Cambridge, where he was a member of the King's College Choir. He s ...
,
Siegfried Lorenz,
Staatskapelle Halle, cond: Gothart Stier
998
Year 998 ( CMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* Spring – Otto III retakes Rome and restores power in the papal city. Crescenti ...
Ambitus 97942.
* Felix Mendelssohn: ''
Elias
Elias is the Greek equivalent of Elijah ( he, אֵלִיָּהוּ ''ʾĒlīyyāhū''; Syriac: ܐܠܝܐ ''Eliyā''; Arabic: الیاس Ilyās/Elyās), a prophet in the Northern Kingdom of Israel in the 9th century BC, mentioned in several h ...
'', Stephanie Stiller,
Annette Markert
Annette Markert (born in Kaltensundheim, Thuringia) is a German classical mezzo-soprano and alto.
Career
Annette Markert studied voice at the Leipzig School of Music and was engaged at the Halle Opera House in Halle, Saxony-Anhalt from 1983 to ...
,
Martin Petzold
Martin Petzold (25 June 1955 – 19 April 2023) was a German classical tenor who performed internationally in opera and concert. He was for decades a member of the Leipzig Opera, performing more than 80 roles such as Pedrillo in Mozart's ''Die ...
, Siegfried Lorenz,
Staatskapelle Halle, Gothart Stier
996
Year 996 ( CMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Japan
* February - Chotoku Incident: Fujiwara no Korechika and Takaie shoot an arrow at Retired Em ...
Ambitus 97941.
*
Max Reger: ''Orchesterlieder'',
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (28 May 1925 – 18 May 2012) was a German lyric baritone and conductor of classical music, one of the most famous Lieder (art song) performers of the post-war period, best known as a singer of Franz Schubert's Lieder, ...
, St. Michaelis-Chor,
Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg
The Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg (Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra) is an internationally renowned symphony orchestra based in Hamburg. As of 2015, Kent Nagano has been General Music Director (''Generalmusikdirektor'') and chief c ...
, cond:
Gerd Albrecht
Gerd Albrecht (19 July 1935 – 2 February 2014) was a German conductor.
Biography
Albrecht was born in Essen, the son of the musicologist Hans Albrecht (1902–1961). He studied music in Kiel and in Hamburg, where his teachers included Wilhel ...
990 Orfeo
Orfeo Classic Schallplatten und Musikfilm GmbH of Munich was a German independent classical record label founded in 1979 by Axel Mehrle and launched in 1980. It has been owned by Naxos since 2015.
History
The Orfeo music label was registered ...
209901.
* Claudio Monteverdi: ''
Vespro della Beata Vergine
''Vespro della Beata Vergine'' (''Vespers for the Blessed Virgin''), SV 206, is a musical setting by Claudio Monteverdi of the evening vespers on Marian feasts, scored for soloists, choirs, and orchestra. It is an ambitious work in scope and i ...
'',
Barbara Schlick, Ine Kollecker, John Elwes, Wilfried Jochens, Holger Hampel, Christfried Biebrach, Gustav Hehring, Camerata Accademica Hamburg, cond: Jürgen Jürgens
987 Ambitus 383826.
* Marco da Gagliano: ''
La Dafne
''La Dafne'' (''Daphne'') is an early Italian opera, written in 1608 by the Italian composer Marco da Gagliano from a libretto by Ottavio Rinuccini. It is described as a ''favola in musica'' (fable set to music) composed in one act and a prologu ...
'', Norma Lerer,
Barbara Schlick, Ine Kollecker,
Nigel Rogers
Nigel David Rogers (21 March 1935 – 19 January 2022) was an English multilingual tenor, music conductor, and vocal coach, who sang in over seventy classical music album recordings in German, French, Italian, Latin and English, mostly of earl ...
,
Ian Partridge
Ian Partridge (born 12 June 1938) is a retired English lyric tenor, whose repertoire ranged from Monteverdi, Bach and Handel, the Elizabethan lute songs, German, French and English songs, through to Schoenberg, Weill and Britten, and on to conte ...
,
David Thomas,
Berthold Possemeyer, Camerata Accademica Hamburg, Jürgen Jürgens
977 Deutsche Grammophon
Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family of ...
437074-2.
* Claudio Monteverdi: ''
L'Orfeo
''L'Orfeo'' ( SV 318) (), sometimes called ''La favola d'Orfeo'' , is a late Renaissance/early Baroque ''favola in musica'', or opera, by Claudio Monteverdi, with a libretto by Alessandro Striggio. It is based on the Greek legend of Orpheus, and ...
'',
Ian Partridge
Ian Partridge (born 12 June 1938) is a retired English lyric tenor, whose repertoire ranged from Monteverdi, Bach and Handel, the Elizabethan lute songs, German, French and English songs, through to Schoenberg, Weill and Britten, and on to conte ...
,
Nigel Rogers
Nigel David Rogers (21 March 1935 – 19 January 2022) was an English multilingual tenor, music conductor, and vocal coach, who sang in over seventy classical music album recordings in German, French, Italian, Latin and English, mostly of earl ...
,
John Elwes, Camerata Accademia Hamburg, Jürgen Jürgens
974
Year 974 ( CMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* Battle of Danevirke: Emperor Otto II defeats the rebel forces of King Harald I, who ha ...
Deutsche Grammophon 002894428723.
* Henry Purcell: ''
Dido and Aeneas
''Dido and Aeneas'' (Z. 626) is an opera in a prologue and three acts, written by the English Baroque composer Henry Purcell with a libretto by Nahum Tate. The dates of the composition and first performance of the opera are uncertain. It was com ...
'',
Tatiana Troyanos
Tatiana Troyanos (September 12, 1938 – August 21, 1993) was an American mezzo-soprano of Greek and German descent, remembered as "one of the defining singers of her generation" (''Boston Globe''). Her voice, "a paradoxical voice — larger ...
,
Barry McDaniel
Barry McDaniel (October 18, 1930 – June 18, 2018) was an American operatic baritone who spent his career almost exclusively in Germany, including 37 years at the Deutsche Oper Berlin. He appeared internationally at major opera houses and fe ...
,
Sheila Armstrong,
Patricia Johnson, Margaret Baker, Margaret Lensky,
Paul Esswood
Paul Lawrence Vincent Esswood (born 6 June 1942) is an English countertenor and conductor. He is best known for his performance of Bach cantatas and the operas of Handel and Monteverdi. Along with his countrymen Alfred Deller and James Bowman ...
,
Nigel Rogers
Nigel David Rogers (21 March 1935 – 19 January 2022) was an English multilingual tenor, music conductor, and vocal coach, who sang in over seventy classical music album recordings in German, French, Italian, Latin and English, mostly of earl ...
, chamber orchestra of the
NDR, cond:
Charles Mackerras
Mackerras in 2005
Sir Alan Charles MacLaurin Mackerras (; 1925 2010) was an Australian conductor. He was an authority on the operas of Janáček and Mozart, and the comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan. He was long associated with the Engli ...
967 Teldec
Teldec (Telefunken-Decca Schallplatten GmbH) is a German record label in Hamburg, Germany. Today the label is a property of Warner Music Group.
History
Teldec was a producer of (first) shellac and (later) vinyl records. The Teldec manufacturing ...
8573-81141-2.
* Johann Sebastian Bach: ''
Laß, Fürstin, laß noch einen Strahl, BWV 198
''Laß, Fürstin, laß noch einen Strahl'' (Let, Princess, let still one more glance) is a secular cantata composed as a funeral ode by Johann Sebastian Bach, first performed on 17 October 1727. In Wolfgang Schmieder's catalogue of Bach's works ...
'', ''
Der Friede sei mit dir, BWV 158'', ''
Wer weiß, wie nahe mir mein Ende? BWV 27
' (Who knows how near to me my end?), 27, is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed it in Leipzig for the 16th Sunday after Trinity and first performed it on 6 October 1726.
History and words
Bach composed the cantata in his fou ...
'',
Rotraud Hansmann,
Helen Watts
Helen Watts (7 December 19277 October 2009) was a Welsh contralto.
Early life
Helen Josephine Watts was born in Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire, Wales. Her father was a pharmacist, Tom Watts and moved to live above his shop at 26 Market Street, Ha ...
,
Kurt Equiluz
Kurt Equiluz (13 June 1929 – 20 June 2022) was an Austrian classical tenor in opera and concert. He was a member of the Vienna State Opera as a tenor buffo from 1957 until 1983, remembered for roles such as Pedrillo in Mozart's ''Die Entfüh ...
,
Max van Egmond,
Concerto Amsterdam, Jürgen Jürgens
967 Teldec
Teldec (Telefunken-Decca Schallplatten GmbH) is a German record label in Hamburg, Germany. Today the label is a property of Warner Music Group.
History
Teldec was a producer of (first) shellac and (later) vinyl records. The Teldec manufacturing ...
4509093687-2.
* Claudio Monteverdi: ''Vespro della Beata Vergine'', Rotraud Hansmann, Irmgard Jacobeit,
Nigel Rogers
Nigel David Rogers (21 March 1935 – 19 January 2022) was an English multilingual tenor, music conductor, and vocal coach, who sang in over seventy classical music album recordings in German, French, Italian, Latin and English, mostly of earl ...
,
Bert van t'Hoff,
Max van Egmond,
Concentus Musicus Wien, Leitung: Jürgen Jürgens
967 Teldec 4509-92175-2.
*
Georg Philipp Telemann
Georg Philipp Telemann (; – 25 June 1767) was a German Baroque composer and multi-instrumentalist. Almost completely self-taught in music, he became a composer against his family's wishes. After studying in Magdeburg, Zellerfeld, and Hild ...
: ''Der Tag des Gerichts'', Gertraud Landwehr-Herrmann, Cora Canne-Meijer,
Kurt Equiluz
Kurt Equiluz (13 June 1929 – 20 June 2022) was an Austrian classical tenor in opera and concert. He was a member of the Vienna State Opera as a tenor buffo from 1957 until 1983, remembered for roles such as Pedrillo in Mozart's ''Die Entfüh ...
,
Max van Egmond,
Concentus Musicus Wien, cond:
Nikolaus Harnoncourt 966 Teldec 9031-77621-2.
* Johann Sebastian Bach: ''
Schleicht, spielende Wellen, BWV 206'', Irmgard Jacobeit, Wilhelmine Mattès, Tom Brand,
Jacques Villisech
Jacques Villisech was a French bass-baritone in opera and concert. He was an early specialist singing Baroque music in historically informed performance.
Career
Villisech was an actor and singer in the theatre company of Jean-Louis Barrault. ...
, Amsterdamer Kammerorchester, cond:
André Rieu
André Léon Marie Nicolas Rieu (; is a Dutch violinist and conductor best known for creating the waltz-playing Johann Strauss Orchestra.
Rieu and his orchestra have turned classical and waltz music into a worldwide concert touring act. He r ...
962
Year 962 ( CMLXII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Byzantine Empire
* December – Arab–Byzantine wars – Sack of Aleppo: A Byzantine e ...
Teldec
Teldec (Telefunken-Decca Schallplatten GmbH) is a German record label in Hamburg, Germany. Today the label is a property of Warner Music Group.
History
Teldec was a producer of (first) shellac and (later) vinyl records. The Teldec manufacturing ...
8573-81141-2.
* Anton Bruckner ''Music of the St. Florian Period'', Jürgen Jürgens, Monteverdi-Chor Hamburg and
Israel Chamber Orchestra
Israel Chamber Orchestra (abbreviation ICO, Hebrewהתזמורת הקאמרית הישראלית (''Hatizmoret hakamerit'') is an Israeli orchestra based in Tel Aviv. Primary funding comes from the Israel Ministry of Education and the Tel Aviv-Yafo ...
984
Year 984 ( CMLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* Spring – German boy-king Otto III (4-years old) is seized by the deposed Henry II ...
BSVD-0109, 2011 (Bruckner Archive Production)
* Anton Bruckner ''Music of St Florian Period (II)'', Jürgen Jürgens, Monteverdi-Chor Hamburg and Israel Chamber Orchestra
984
Year 984 ( CMLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* Spring – German boy-king Otto III (4-years old) is seized by the deposed Henry II ...
BSVD-0111 (Bruckner Archive Production)
Awards and prizes
*1976:
Johannes Brahms Medal
The Johannes Brahms Medal (german: Johannes-Brahms-Medaille, links=no) of Hamburg is a music award established in 1928, named after the composer Johannes Brahms who was born in Hamburg.
The medal is given irregularly by the to artists who contri ...
of
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
, utc_offset1 = +1
, timezone1_DST = Central (CEST)
, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
References
External links
AllMusicOfficial siteSt. Petersberg Academic Philharmonic 2012
{{Authority control
German choirs
Musical groups established in 1955
1955 establishments in West Germany
Musical groups from Hamburg
Claudio Monteverdi