Most Celebrated Concerto Köln & Clara Blessing

• George Frideric Handel (1685 - 1759): Concerto in G Minor, HWV 287:
• 1 Handel: Concerto in G Minor, HWV 287: I. Grave 02:44
• 2 Handel: Concerto in G Minor, HWV 287: II. Allegro 01:47
• 3 Handel: Concerto in G Minor, HWV 287: III. Largo moderato e cantabile 02:08
• 4 Handel: Concerto in G Minor, HWV 287: IV. Allegro 01:50
• Minuet in G Major, HWV 422:
• 5 Handel: Minuet in G Major, HWV 422 00:40
• Minuet in G Major, HWV 423:
• 6 Handel: Minuet in G Major, HWV 423 00:47
• Concerto in D Major, HWV 338:
• 7 Handel: Concerto in D Major, HWV 338: I. Vivace 02:43
• 8 Handel: Concerto in D Major, HWV 338: II. Adagio 02:13
• 9 Handel: Concerto in D Major, HWV 338: III. Allegro 01:55
• Partenope, HWV 27:
• 10 Handel: Partenope, HWV 27: Voglio amare 05:41
• Giovanni Battista Sammartini (1700 - 1775): Concerto grosso in E Major, Op. 6 No. 3:
• 11 Sammartini: Concerto grosso in E Major, Op. 6 No. 3: I. Andante 05:38
• 12 Sammartini: Concerto grosso in E Major, Op. 6 No. 3: II. Minuet spiritoso 03:05
• Giuseppe Sammartini (1695 - 1750): Concerto in C-Dur, Op. 8 No. 4:
• 13 Sammartini: Concerto in C-Dur, Op. 8 No. 4: I. Andante - Presto 05:24
• 14 Sammartini: Concerto in C-Dur, Op. 8 No. 4: II. Presto - Allegro assai - Andantino 05:05
• George Frideric Handel: Alcina, HWV 34:
• 15 Handel: Alcina, HWV 34: Ah mio cor 10:24
• Aria in F Major, HWV 410:
• 16 Handel: Aria in F Major, HWV 410 04:23
• Giovanni Battista Sammartini: Sinfonia in G Minor, JC 57:
• 17 Sammartini: Sinfonia in G Minor, JC 57: I. Presto 01:44
• 18 Sammartini: Sinfonia in G Minor, JC 57: II. Andante 02:54
• Sinfonia in G-Moll, JC 57:
• 19 Sammartini: Sinfonia in G-Moll, JC 57: III. Allegro 03:41
• Total Runtime 01:04:46

Info for Most Celebrated

We are in London in the early 18th century. George Frideric Handel is the celebrated composer, opera entrepreneur and concert organizer there. The world-renowned early music ensemble Concerto Köln and the oboist Clara Blessing tell the story of George Frideric Handel, the brothers Giuseppe & Giovanni Sammartini and the development of the oboe on the album "Most Celebrated".

One day, Handel's orchestra in London gets a new member: the oboist Giuseppe Sammartini, who has just immigrated from Italy to the European music metropolis on the Thames. He had already achieved a certain fame in his home country, but in London he revolutionized oboe playing and helped the instrument to achieve its breakthrough. Handel composed for him and Sammartini himself created several works for his instrument that are still important today.

The music historian John Hawkins described the talent of the oboist Giuseppe Sammartini with the words: "Before his time, the sound of the instrument was coarse, even in the hands of the most skilled musicians, hard and unpleasant to the ears; through intensive practice and playing and through a special preparation of the reed, he succeeded in producing a sound that was closer to the human voice than anyone else." The specialist in historical instruments Clara Blessing is described in a similar way: Her playing is "full of emotional warmth," writes the Kölner Stadtanzeiger, "it touches and inspires audiences and the press in concert halls and at festivals around the world." Clara Blessing has a long-standing friendship and collaboration with Concerto Köln.

For the album "Most Celebrated" they have now recorded two concertos by Handel, two of his minuets, and three arias, and juxtaposed them with an oboe concerto by Giuseppe and two works by his brother Giovanni Sammartini. In addition to the oboe, the horns also play a key role in some pieces. This instrument also became increasingly popular and frequently used at the beginning of the 18th century. Woodwinds and brass instruments alternate and increase the enjoyment of the music with breathtaking coloraturas. "Sometimes I play solo, sometimes in a team with the second oboe, then as a clear counterpart to the first horn," explains Clara Blessing in the album booklet. "This mediating role, this flexibility, this quick jumping from one costume to another, that is the core of oboe playing for me."

Once again, Concerto Köln proves how much passion lies in each individual member of the ensemble. For more than 30 years, the orchestra with its unmistakable sound has been one of the leading ensembles in the field of historical performance practice. Firmly rooted in Cologne's musical life and at the same time a regular guest in the world's music metropolises and at renowned festivals, Concerto Köln stands for outstanding interpretations of early music.

Clara Blessing, Oboe
Concerto Köln

Clara Blessing
has earned an excellent reputation as a specialist in historical instruments in recent years. Her playing, "full of emotional warmth" (ksta), touches and inspires audiences and the press in concert halls and at festivals around the world.

The oboist can be heard in a wide variety of formations, and it is precisely this versatility that she particularly loves: she regularly appears as a soloist in Johann Sebastian Bach's oboe concertos, for example, plays chamber music alongside artists such as Isabelle Faust and Kristian Bezuidenhout, and is a welcome guest with orchestras such as Concerto Köln, the Budapest Festival Orchestra and The English Concert. Her musical focus is on the Baroque and Classical repertoire, and recently she has increasingly focused on the later 19th century: she is involved in the "Wagner Readings Project" and was recently able to take over a collection of original romantic oboes, which she will soon present as part of a specially designed solo project.

Clara Blessing developed her enthusiasm for historical performance practice during her studies with Christian Schneider and Michael Niesemann, which she completed with distinction with a concert exam at the Folkwang University of the Arts in Essen. Formative experiences at the beginning of her career were the award at the International Telemann Competition as the first musician in her field, the Academy Scheme of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and membership of the European Union Baroque Orchestra. Clara Blessing has been supported by the German Academic Scholarship Foundation, the German Foundation for Music Life and Yehudi Menuhin "Live Music Now".

In addition to playing, teaching is a matter close to Clara Blessing's heart: she teaches as a professor at the Würzburg University of Music and regularly gives master classes at home and abroad. In 2021, she published the Etudes for Hoboe with Edition Walhall, a collection of original practice pieces for baroque oboe that is very popular.

In October 2023, Clara Blessing was elected Vice President for Artistic Practice by the University Council of the Würzburg University of Music. In this position, she is committed to university life in all its facets and sets her own impulses in projects such as Network 4.0, the establishment of a Career Center and the "Days of Diversity".

This album contains no booklet.