Extravagantes Seicento: Sonatas for Violon and Viola da Gamba at the Habsburg Court

Featuring

Esther Crazzolara
Teodoro Baù
Federica Bianchi
Ignazio Albertini
Giovanni Antonio Pandolfi Mealli
Johann Caspar von Kerll

Johann Heinrich Schmelzer
Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber
Samuel Capricornus

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Composer Biography

Samuel Friedrich Capricornus, a Kapellmeister in Stuttgart, worked in Vienna for a short period and his extensive work of four hundred titles shows a strong Italian influence.

Compositional Technique

Heinrich Ignaz Biber, building on the experiments of Schmelzer and Italian composers, expanded the possibilities of scordatura (alternative tunings) and left-hand technique for the violin.

Historical Context

The Viennese court attracted Flemish, German, and primarily Italian musicians due to its powerful and open environment, especially under Ferdinand III.

Recording & Production

This recording was made possible by crowdfunding, with acknowledgements to numerous individual supporters.

Historical Context

Emperors Ferdinand III and Leopold I actively participated in court music as composers and instrumentalists, reflecting their education in philosophy, religion, and music.

Historical Context

The Austrian Imperial court in the 17th century, under Emperors Ferdinand III and Leopold I, became a primary reference point for arts development in Europe.

Composer Biography

Ignazio Albertini, a composer for Dowager Empress Eleonora Gonzaga-Nèvers, dedicated his only collection of sonatas to Emperor Leopold I, but it was published posthumously after his violent death.