The album Passio is dedicated to Passiontide, a time of calm and expectation, and combines Renaissance and Baroque choral works with a newly commissioned piece by Kevin Hartnett.
Composition History
Kevin Hartnett's De profundis was commissioned by the Zurich Chamber Singers and premiered on March 19, 2016, in the chapel adjoining the Grossmünster church in Zurich.
Composer's Artistic Vision
The album meditates on themes central to Christian faith, sacred music, and Western culture, such as humanity's plea for aid, hope for redemption, and the victory of good over evil.
Recording & Production
This album, Passio, is Christian Erny's debut CD as a choral conductor, recorded with his ensemble The Zurich Chamber Singers for the label ARS Produktion.
Performer Biography
The Zurich Chamber Singers, founded in 2015 by conductor Christian Erny and musicologist Emanuel Signer, consists of eighteen young singers from the Zurich area dedicated to professional choral music.
Composer Biography
Thomas Tallis, a composer from the English Renaissance, worked as a church musician through significant social, political, and ecclesiastical changes, including the Reformation and the re-deposition of Catholicism in England.
Interpretation
The Zurich Chamber Singers perform Henry Purcell's Funeral Sentences in the version used for Queen Mary II's royal funeral, not the more commonly heard version from Purcell's own funeral.
