Martha von Castelberg: Songs & Motets

Featuring

Estelle Poschio
Susannah Haberfeld
Remy Burnens
Äneas Humm
Judit Polgar
Jakob Pilgram

Larynx Ensemble
Martha von Castelberg

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Compositional Technique

Around 1930, Martha von Castelberg expanded functional harmony, using harmonies as color values and incorporating surprising harmonic shifts and remote keys in her compositions.

Composer Biography

Martha von Castelberg (1892-1971) was musically gifted, receiving private violin lessons from Joseph Ebner, a teacher at the Zürich Conservatory.

Composer Biography

Despite her talent, Martha von Castelberg's father opposed her studying music, though she later received a valuable master violin from Michele Deconet.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Martha von Castelberg, raised in a strict Catholic family, composed many sacred songs and motets, and co-financed the Church of St. Martin, which became her spiritual home.

Recording & Production

This album was recorded at SRF Studio Brunnenhof, Zürich, in July 2019, and is a coproduction between Solo Musica and Radio SRF 2 Kultur.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Martha von Castelberg taught herself piano and enjoyed improvising, later seeking advice on composition technique from figures like Erich Schmid, a pioneer of twelve-tone music in Switzerland.

Performer Biography

The larynx Vokalensemble, founded in 2005, specializes in chamber-music interpretations of little-known but historically significant vocal works and received the Culture Prize of the Canton of Basel-Landschaft in 2012.