Giuseppe is a 'pasticcio' oratorio, meaning it incorporates music from various composers, including Mayr himself, Gaetano Donizetti, Gioachino Rossini, and Vincenzo Bellini.
Recording & Production
This recording of Mayr's Giuseppe is a world premiere recording.
Album & Artwork
The album cover features 'Joseph in Egypt,' a painting from 1517-18 by Jacopo Pontormo, reflecting the oratorio's biblical subject.
Compositional Technique
Mayr's Giuseppe expands on its source, Étienne-Nicolas Méhul's opera Joseph, by adding grand arias, duets, a cavatina, and a final chorus, offering everything expected of an Italian opera of the time.
Composition History
Johann Simon Mayr composed the oratorio Giuseppe in 1829 for the graduation concerts at his music school, the Lezioni Caritatevoli in Bergamo, where students could showcase their talents.
Interpretation
Concerto de Bassus, the ensemble on this recording, performs on period instruments and engages young musicians keen to play music from the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries according to historical performance practice.
Performer Biography
Markus Schäfer, the tenor singing Giuseppe, is a GRAMMY Award winner for his performance in Bach's St Matthew Passion with Nikolaus Harnoncourt.
You might also enjoy...
Glass: The Poet Acts (From "The Hours")
Entre parenthèses
Schwartz: Music for Orchestra / Music for Six Voices / Music for 12 Cellos / Music for Five Stringed Instruments
Elgar: Sospiri, Op. 70 (Arr. for Vioiln and Orchestra by Eleanor Alberga)
Realms
Clémence de Grandval: Mazeppa
Michael Hersh: Zwischen Leben und Tod
Andrew Downes: The Marshes of Glynn & Song of the Prairies
Reicha: Complete Symphonies, Vol. 1
musica viva - vol. 52 Mark Andre – Nikolaus Brass – Karlheinz Stockhausen
Dream Archives
Beethoven: Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 61 (Arr. for Accordion by Viviane Chassot)
Sunstone: II. ...a single presence like a sudden song...
Dawn Avery: Àkweks Katye
Glass: Etude No. 5 (Arr. for 7 Celli by C. Thomas and L. Francisco)
