¡Feliz Navidad! - Mexican Baroque Music for Christmas Kölner Akademie & Michael Alexander Willens

• Ignacio Jerusalem (1707 - 1769): Rompa la esfera:
• 1 Jerusalem: Rompa la esfera 06:02
• Manuel de Sumaya (ca. 1678 - 1755): Albricias mortales:
• 2 Sumaya: Albricias mortales 07:26
• Ignacio Jerusalem: Quem terra pontus sidera - Hymn for the Matins for the Virgin of Guadalupe:
• 3 Jerusalem: Quem terra pontus sidera - Hymn for the Matins for the Virgin of Guadalupe 03:23
• Francisco Corselli (1705 - 1778): Dixit Dominus:
• 4 Corselli: Dixit Dominus 02:30
• Dixit Dominus:
• 5 Corselli: Dixit Dominus: Juravit Dominus 02:23
• 6 Corselli: Dixit Dominus: Gloria Patri 00:57
• 7 Corselli: Dixit Dominus: Sicut erat in principio 01:43
• Ignacio Jerusalem: Elegi et sanctificavi - Responsory No. 6 from Matins for the Virgin of Guadalupe:
• 8 Jerusalem: Elegi et sanctificavi - Responsory No. 6 from Matins for the Virgin of Guadalupe 03:55
• Manuel de Sumaya: Celebren, publiquen, entonan y canten:
• 9 Sumaya: Celebren, publiquen, entonan y canten 06:56
• Ignacio Jerusalem: Quae est ista quae ascendit - Responsory No. 2 from Matins for the Virgin of Guadalupepe:
• 10 Jerusalem: Quae est ista quae ascendit - Responsory No. 2 from Matins for the Virgin of Guadalupepe 03:42
• Manuel de Sumaya: Angélicas milicias:
• 11 Sumaya: Angélicas milicias 05:43
• José de Nebra (1702 - 1768): Polychoral Mass in G:
• 12 Nebra: Polychoral Mass in G: Kyrie eleison 01:52
• 13 Nebra: Polychoral Mass in G: Christe eleison 02:17
• 14 Nebra: Polychoral Mass in G: Kyrie 01:19
• 15 Nebra: Polychoral Mass in G: Gloria 02:01
• 16 Nebra: Polychoral Mass in G: Et in terra pax 00:23
• 17 Nebra: Polychoral Mass in G: Laudamus te 02:17
• 18 Nebra: Polychoral Mass in G: Domine deus 01:28
• 19 Nebra: Polychoral Mass in G: Qui tollis peccata mundi 02:41
• 20 Nebra: Polychoral Mass in G: Quoniam tu solus 01:35
• 21 Nebra: Polychoral Mass in G: Cum Sancto Spiritu, Amen 01:58
• Total Runtime 01:02:31

Info for ¡Feliz Navidad! - Mexican Baroque Music for Christmas

Christianity in all its forms is characterized by high adaptive abilities. We encounter one of the most fascinating chapters of adaptation in Latin American Catholicism, which developed in the "New Spanish" colonies. Not least the veneration of the Virgin Mary met a particularly receptive genius loci here, whose musical disposition soon married with the conception of art that was the non plus ultra for the rulers of the Old World. For many a musician, the transatlantic regions were therefore so appealing that they left their ancestral home. One of them was the Italian Ignacio de Jerusalem, who worked at the cathedral in Mexico City; he was joined by the Mexican "home-grown" Manuel de Sumaya and two Spanish musicians who were only known and loved by note in the land of the Aztecs - the result is an excellent mixture for Christmas.

Elena Harsanyi, soprano
Caroline Marcot, mezzo-soprano
Andre Cruz, tenor
Thomas Bonni, bass
Die Kölner Akademie
Michael Alexander Willens, conductor

Michael Alexander Willens
music director of Die Kölner Akademie, studied conducting with John Nelson at the Juilliard School in New York, where he received B.M. and M.M. degrees. He has also studied with Leonard Bernstein at Tanglewood, as well as choral conducting with Paul Vorwerk. Willens’ broad experience has given him an unusual depth of background and familiarity with performance practice styles ranging from baroque, classical and romantic through to contemporary as well as jazz and pop music.

Mr. Willens has conducted concerts at major concert halls and festivals in Europe, South America, Asia, Iceland, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Israel and the United States, receiving the highest critical praise:

“The success of the whole owed in large measure to the uncommonly precise, yet never affected gestures of Michael Alexander Willens”.

In addition to the standard repertoire, Michael Alexander Willens is dedicated to performing works by lesser-known contemporary American composers and has conducted several world premières, many of which have been broadcast live or filmed for television. He is also keenly interested in re-discovering music from the past and has released over 40 CDs featuring this repertoire. Several of these recordings have been nominated and received awards. They have all received outstanding international reviews, : “Willens achieves an impeccably stylish and enjoyable performance.” (Gramophone ) ,,…conductor Michael Alexander Willens exploits every bar of the score to fullest expressive effect. (Fanfare)

He has guest conducted orchestras in Germany, Poland, the Netherlands, Brazil and Israel in addition to his commitment to Die Kölner Akademie.

The Kölner Akademie
takes you on a journey through classical music: expressive, virtuosic, and exact in every detail. From the baroque to the present, the broad repertoire of this unique ensemble, under the artistic direction of its internationally renowned conductor Michael Alexander Willens, has been awarded numerous prizes.

Known and lesser known composers are impressively represented by this period instrumental ensemble.Performances at international festivals, live television and radio broadcasts in connection with their highly acclaimed CD recordings have made the Kölner Akademie well-known far beyond their national borders.

Apart from works by Bach, Beethoven and Brahms, the ensemble shows their broad musical scope in full detail, especially with their series of world premiere recordings by lesser known composers.

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