28.07.2024

MARIE-SOPHIE POLLAK at the RheinVokal Festival in the Middle Rhine

The Nine German Arias, composed in London between 1724 and 1727, are unique in the oeuvre of George Frideric Handel, who otherwise devoted himself to far more opulent and virtuoso vocal compositions. The nine arias, on the other hand, breathe the spirit of enlightenment and sensibility both in their text (Barthold Heinrich Brockes) and musically - they manage to do so without breakneck colouratura and dizzying high notes. At the same time, they achieve an extraordinary level of sonority, sensuality and frugality, which makes these pieces absolute masterpieces in their supposed simplicity...

Marie-Sophie Pollak, Max Volbers and harpsichordist Wiebke Weidanz embed Handel's nine gems in virtuoso and contemplative music from the London surroundings in which they were written.

Works by G.F. Handel, John Eccles, Giovanni Bononcini, Francesco Geminiani, Giuseppe Sammartini and others.