Anders Muskens leads the international ensemble Das Neue Mannheimer Orchester along with Canadian soprano Elisabeth Hetherington in a concert showcasing symphonies and opera from the golden age of the Mannheim court during 1750–78. The then-famous Mannheim orchestra and its school inspired generations of composers, including a young Mozart who travelled there in 1777. “Army of Generals” comes from a quote by English musicologist Charles Burney, who visited Mannheim and Schwetzingen (the summer residence of the court) in 1772 and wrote: “There are more solo players and good composers in this, than perhaps in any other orchestra in Europe; it is an army of generals, equally fit to plan a battle, as to fight it.” We seek to revive this often neglected repertory and explore what made it so captivating for eighteenth-century audiences; and certainly also modern ones. This concert and recording are by the Canada Council for the Arts, Gemeente Amsterdam, Gemeente Deventer, and the Adriana Jacoba Fonds.
PROGRAM
Franz Ignaz Beck (1731–1809): Overture to L’isle déserte
Niccolò Jomelli (1714-1774): Aria "D'an van timore d'un vanti moreil freno" from L'arcadia conservata (Schwetzingen 1775)
Johann Stamitz (1717-1757): Symphony in A major
Gian Francesco de Majo (1732-1770): Aria "Mio ben, ricordati" from Alessandro (Mannheim, 1766)
Intermission
Anton Fils (1733-1760): Simphonie périodique a piu stromenti No. 8 in G major
Anton Schweitzer (1735-1787): Aria: "Zwischen Angst und zwischen Hoffen" from Alceste (Schwetzingen 1775)
Christain Cannabich (1731-1798): Symphony No. 51 in D major.
FEATURING
Anders Muskens: Kapellmeister and harpsichord
Elisabeth Hetherington: soprano
and Das Neue Mannheimer Orchester
CONCEPT
While Mannheim today is a relatively typical industrial city in southwest Germany, as the former capital of the Electorate of the Palatinate, it was regarded in the 18th century as a new vertiable “Athens on the Rhine.” This was due in part to the efforts of its ruler, Carl Theodor, who, unlike his many contemporary rulers who invested their treasury in war-making and territorial expansion, invested heavily in arts, culture, and sciences in this new golden age. Karl Theodor's orchestra was comprised of excellent virtuosos who performed as soloists in Europe’s musical capitals. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart namely sought employment in Mannheim based on its legendary reputation, but was ultimately unsuccessful at securing a position. Leading figures such as the concertmaster Johann Stamitz popularized the Mannheim style, and he was later succeeded by his student Christian Cannabich upon his death in 1757. The cellist Anton Fils, a fine symphonist who died extremely young, brought out in his works the fine qualities of the orchestra, renowned for its coordinated effects and discipline. Franz Beck was another student of Stamitz who later enjoyed a long career in France. Anton Schweitzer’s successful opera Alceste saw its best performances in Schwetzingen, as part of Carl Theodor’s encouragement of theatre in the local vernacular: German. However, this did not curb Mannheim’s reputation as a centre for Italian opera: Niccolò Jommelli, a celebrity during his lifetime, was played frequently in Mannheim, and Arcadia conservata is a pasticcio compiled after his death by Ignaz Holzbauer: the Kapellmeister of the court. Other important opera reformers like Gian Francesco di Majo were also commissioned to produce their operas at Mannheim. Overall, such a flourishing of cosmopolitan artistic output is worthwhile to explore today not only for its own artistic merits, but for the inspiring story it represents.