Johann Joseph Fux: Ave Regina Accentus Austria

• Johann Joseph Fux (1660 - 1741):
• 1Ave Regina caelorum, K20805:00
• 2Sonata à 3, K36704:01
• 3Alma Redemptoris Mater, K18505:10
• 4Sonata à 3, K36903:36
• 5Ave Regina caelorum, K20603:21
• 6Sonata à 3, K37904:54
• 7Ave Regina caelorum, K20706:50
• 8Sonata à 3, K37703:48
• 9Pia Mater fons amoris, K17607:38
• 10Sonata Pastorale à 3, K39703:19
• 11Ave Regina caelorum, K20504:13
• 12Sonata à 4, K34602:08
• 13Alma Redemptoris Mater, K18703:20
• Total Runtime57:18

Info for Johann Joseph Fux: Ave Regina

Johann Joseph Fux served for many years as the imperial court’s Kapellmeister in Vienna, and is one of the best known and most important composers of that period. In times of the most fervent religious faith, during which the Habsburg Emperor considered piety the foremost virtue of a ruling sovereign as well as indispensable as the basis for organizing society, the roles of the Kapellmeister and court orchestra were of essential importance. Fux composed many sacred works for public church services that functioned as a visible sign of the close connection between church and state. In addition to Masses, Requiem Masses and Vespers, Marian antiphons and sonatas for performance at the Gradual took on special importance. Known for the precision of its historically informed performances, Accentus Austria and its conductor Thomas Wimmer have selected a musically absorbing and diverse program of sonatas and antiphons by Fux for this CD. The works by Fux featured on this disc are never monotonous – in fact, they surprise the listener with their musical refinement and wide-ranging tonal language. This new release includes wonderful Ave Regina antiphons in outstanding performances by soprano Hana Blažíková.

Hana Blazikova, soprano
Accentus Austria
Thomas Wimmer, conductor

Accentus Austria
Fascinated by the multi-cultural substrate, out of which the music in the eastern Habsburg Empire in the 16th and 17th century arose, the ensemble Accentus austria made vocal and instrumental music of Austria and its neighbouring countries its main concern. For to bring to light the manifold treasures of rarely and unknown music and for to work out the uniqueness of the style, both the sight into the own art-music and popular music as well as the look across the borders to the West and to the East are necessary. Even to the other end of Europe “looks” Accentus austria: many years of occupation with Spain’s Early Music have led to the development of a repertoire that hence extends from orally transmitted Sefardic Romances, by the way of the sumptuous and manifold polyphonic music of the 16th century to the soloistic baroque music of the late 17th and the beginning 18th century.

Accentus austria appears as an ensemble of variable composition, the number of musicians ranges from three to seventeen according to the specific programme. For realising an intense interpretation of vocal music, high value is set to singing in one’s mother tongue. In recent years Accentus austria has appeared in each of Austria’s important concert halls, in all European Countries as well as in Maroque, Egypt, Dubai and Israel. In 2006 Accentus austria performed the scenical stage production “The Lament of Arianna” in the Teatro Apollon at Patras/Greece (European Cultural Capital 2006) and has recorded a lot of CDs with Sefardic, Spanish and Austrian music. At present the ensemble started a CD-series devoted to rarely performed or unreleased Austrian baroque music for the label SONY - Deutsche Harmonia Mundi.

Booklet for Johann Joseph Fux: Ave Regina