Joseph Haydn's late oratorio The Seasons (1801) occupied second place after The Creation from 1798 for a long time, not only in terms of composition date, but also regarding critical and public appreciation.
However, this was not due to Haydn's music, but rather shortly after the premiere there was controversy surrounding the text by Gottfried van Swieten (even Haydn himself would not always have been happy with the original) and the subject matter, which was considered too worldly, causing the work to resemble a popular singspiel rather than a grand oratorio. Nowadays this is viewed in a more differentiated light, as The Seasons and The Creation are each masterworks of the oratorio genre in the late Viennese classical period and share a close spiritual bond with each other while The Creation depicts the formation of the world according to the Book of Genesis, The Seasons concerns its existence and the cyclical becoming and passing away of nature over the course of the year.
With its vivid descriptions of nature, this musical journey through the year is one of the composer's most important sound creations. In his ingenious late work, Haydn often draws on formal elements from The Creation, but continues them in an independent and refreshingly creative way. Beyond the wealth of musical inspiration, there is a remarkable diversity of musical form, which offers the listener a high degree of variety.
Under the direction of Marcus Creed, this recording with the Orpheus Vokalensemble, the renowned soloists (Ilse Eerens, soprano; Werner Güra, tenor and André Morsch, bass) as well as the excellent orchestra Concerto Köln follows the new critical edition of the work by Carus-Verlag.
- Title: Joseph Haydn: Die Jahreszeiten
- Artist: Ilse Eerens, Werner Güra, Andre Morsch, Orpheus Vokalensemble, Concerto Köln, Marcus Creed
- Label: CARUS, DDD 2021
- Medium: 2 CD
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