Heinrich Schütz Music Festival Opening Concert: Deep Hopeful Blue
Ælbgut (ensemble in residence) & CONTINUUM / Music by Heinrich Schütz and a commissioned composition by Annette Schlünz with texts by Ulrike Schuster
Ælbgut
Isabel Schicketanz, soprano
Marie Luise Werneburg, soprano
Stefan Kunath, alto
Christopher Renz, tenor
Martin Schicketanz, bass
CONTINUUM
Jesús Merino Ruiz, violin
Lorena Padròn, violin
Friederike Otto, cornett
Anna Schall, cornett
Liam Byrne, viola da gamba
Mirjam-Luise Münzel, viola da gamba
Juan Gonzalez, alto trombone
Bärbel Leo, tenor trombone
Tural Ismayilov, bass trombone
Adrian Rovatkay, dulcian
Christine Sticher, violone
Jonas Nordberg, lute and theorbo
Lola Mlacnik, percussion
Elina Albach, organ and harpsichord
In a nutshell: Composer Annette Schlünz in conversation with Dr. Maik Richter, scientific director of the Heinrich Schütz House in Weißenfels
Soloistic perfection fused into a lively, transparent ensemble sound – the Ælbgut ensemble has earned this reputation at an impressive speed since its founding in 2018 with extraordinary concert projects and highly acclaimed CD recordings. Soprano Isabel Schicketanz, countertenor Stefan Kunath, and baritone Martin Schicketanz have established themselves as an expert ensemble for 17th- and 18th-century music, performing alongside distinguished colleagues in Germany and abroad. Their ideal of performing Baroque music as vividly and authentically as possible, and therefore close to the original, is making the young ensemble increasingly sought-after as a partner for projects that push or transcend repertoire and stylistic boundaries.
Together with the instrumental ensemble CONTINUUM—one of the leading formations for the innovative presentation of early music, under the direction of harpsichordist Elina Albach—Ælbgut is taking on a special challenge asartist in residencefor the Heinrich Schütz Music Festival: With the commissioned workTiefhoffnungsblau (DeepHope Blue), composer Annette Schlünz and poet Ulrike Schuster have created nine movements that oscillate between questions about the world of faith and life in Schütz's time and answers to the present-day longing for something satisfying and protective that is greater than the human imagination.
Tiefhoffnungsblau combinesa selection from Heinrich Schütz'sSymphoniae SacraeIII, published in 1650: the Kapellmeister at the Saxon court compiled these sonorous and effective works in what was (for the time being) his last opus number – probably also conceived as a summary of the breadth of his compositional work. The concerts' strong connection to the text, which affects both the structural characteristics of the language and the deeply felt religious content, makes Heinrich Schütz's music accessible even after almost 400 years, underscoring the relevance of cultural heritage, especially when viewed in the context of contemporary poetry.