Vivaldi: Gloria in D Major, RV 589 / Bach: Magnificat in D Major, BWV 243

Featuring

Alison Browner
Gillian Fisher
Harry Christophers
Lynda Russell
Ian Partridge
Michael George

The Sixteen
Antonio Vivaldi
Johann Sebastian Bach

Did you know?

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Compositional Technique

Bach's Magnificat differs from his church cantatas by avoiding recitative and da capo arias, and by reintroducing opening thematic material in the final chorus, giving it a cyclic character.

Compositional Technique

Vivaldi's Gloria in D major uses swift changes of mood and a kaleidoscope of instrumental and vocal coloring, inspired by Venetian church architecture.

Composition History

Bach's Magnificat in D major was originally in E-flat and included four additional pieces specifically for Christmas, but these were later removed to make it suitable for any church festival.

Recording & Production

The album combines works by Bach and Vivaldi, highlighting the difference between Bach's complexity and Vivaldi's effectiveness, despite often similar instrumentation.

Performer Biography

Harry Christophers, the conductor, founded The Sixteen and is also Artistic Director of Boston's Handel and Haydn Society and Principal Guest Conductor of the Granada Symphony Orchestra.

Composition History

Vivaldi, though known for concertos, also composed around forty-five operas and significant church music, including his best-known sacred composition, the Gloria in D major (RV 589).

Performer Biography

The Sixteen, the ensemble on this recording, is recognized as one of the world's greatest ensembles and won the Classic FM Gramophone Artist of the Year Award in 2009.