Artists · Nachtmusique
18th Century Wind Ensemble, direction Eric Hoeprich
Eric Hoeprich & Oscar Arguelles, clarinet & basset horn
Javier Zafra & Eyal Streett, bassoon
Bart Aerbeydt & Gijs Laceulle, horn
The ensemble Nachtmusique, formed in 1990 specially to perform Harmoniemusik of the late 18th century on period instruments, are specialists in the field, and also members of the best of the period-instrument orchestras: Orchestra of the 18th Century, Freiburger Baroque Orchestra, AAM, Le Cercle de l"Harmonie, AKAMUS, Anima Eterna, Orchestre des Champs-Elysées. In addition to the music of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven, undisputed masters of the genre, Nachtmusique also perform the works of less well-known composers such as JC Bach, Franz Krommer, Carl Maria von Weber and Georg Druschetzky. To these can be added countless 18th- and early 19th-century arrangements of operas, symphonies and oratorios from composers such as Mozart and Beethoven to Rossini and Mendelssohn. Their CD recordings on the Glossa label of Mozart, Beethoven, J. C. Bach and Krommer works have received wide critical acclaim. They have toured extensively throughout Europe, the Americas and Australia.
In the UK, in addition to a previous appearance in the Edinburgh International Festival, the ensemble has performed in Wigmore Hall, and for the Lufthansa Festival at St John's Smith Square in London. In France, Nachtmusique have performed in numerous festivals - Île de France, Clisson et Loire Atlantique, Perros Guirec, Pionsat, St Agrève, Saoû chante Mozart and Lanvellec, as well as at the Théâtre des Abbesses in Paris, the Montpellier opera, Théâtre de Cherbourg, Musée Grévin in Paris, and in Lille, Strasbourg, Toulouse and Chaumont.
The name of the group is derived from a letter written by Mozart to his father in 1781, where he describes how late one evening he was serenaded by "a Nachtmusique for 2 clarinets, 2 horns and 2 bassoons of my own composition. Just as I was getting ready for bed, they surprised me in the most pleasant fashion with the first Eb chord…"
Nachtmusique at the Théâtre St Louis in Pau, France, Photo rights reserved
Press reviews
'THEIR name might mean "night music", but the life-affirming joie de vivre of Nachtmusique worked wonderfully well for a Queen's Hall morning concert yesterday, in a cheerful all-Mozart programme… The instruments of principal clarinet Eric Hoeprich and his band are as much a visual as an aural feast… Whether in small ensembles of two or three, or the enlarged group who took on Mozart's Gran Partita with unabated relish, the variety of music and sonoritiesproduced by these old instruments was endlessly fascinating.'
Nachtmusique at Queen's Hall, reviewed by Carol Main, The Scotsman, August 2013
'Nachtmusique is a truly top-notch period wind ensemble - a kind of supergroup of players from
Europe's finest early music orchestras. Their instruments are early Classical originals or replicas,
handled with such skill and affection that you start to wonder why woodwind technology ever
evolved beyond the late 18th century… the epic Gran Partita, in a joyously spirited, superbly paced
performance… The first movement was broad and buoyant; the minuets were sturdy; the famous
Adagio breathed and the finale fizzed with blithe charisma. The ensemble never re-tuned and yet
their blend was near perfect. Colourful, characterful music making.'
Nachtmusique - Queen's Hall, Edinburgh, by Kate Molleson, The Herald, August, 2013
Mozart as Mozart Heard It
'Here was music, and playing, magical enough to charm the birds out of the trees... the sound of the sextet as a whole was an absolute delight, producing a pacifying, buttery mellowness, employed with an insinuating persuasiveness.'
The Sydney Morning Herald (Australia)
'This was music-making on a level seldom heard! One experienced a sound of brilliant intensity and absolute technical mastery. The highpoint came in the Beethoven Sextet, op. 71: music with the most perfect expression - no brittle sounds and never exaggerated. The concert was agreat success and confirmed the esnsmble's well-deserved international fame.'
Gazzetta Del Sud (Italy)
'NACHTMUSIQUE is an ensemble concentrating on the rich literature of wind music from c.1800. Its playing was a delight; the intimate blending of the valve-less horns with the early clarinets & bassoons was perfect.'
The Age (Melbourne, Australia)
'Down to the last detail, the music sounded as clear a s glass, perfect in its structure and unbelievably beautiful in the blend of the instruments. Even the pieces played on fewer instruments were no less expressive, with perfect balance and great warmth in sound.'
NRC Handelsblad (Rotterdam, Netherlands)
'Ten or twenty years ago it would have been impossible to hear a concert like this. Recently the general level of performance on original instruments has taken a great leap forward and the best specialists are in this group.'
The Volkskrant (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
'On hearing this ensemble, one can safely say that wind music performed on original instruments has arrived. Take for example the Adagio movement (Mozart Serenade, KV375) with its shining cantilenas, supported by a perfectly executed accompaniment.'
Telegraaf (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
Nachtmusique at the Théâtre St Louis in Pau, France, Photo rights reserved
Programmes
Mozart & Beethoven
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
1756 - 1791
Overture - Die Zauberflöte (K620, 1791), arr. J. Stumpf, c.1792
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Serenade in E-flat, KV 375 (1781)
Allegro maestoso, Menuetto, Adagio, Menuetto, Finale : Allegro
-- entracte --
"Un pasticcio dei duetti":
Frédéric Duvernoy 1765 - 1838
Duo in F for 2 horns
Conradin Kreutzer 1780 - 1849
Duo in B-flat for 2 clarinets
Christoff Ernst Friedrich Weyse 1774 - 1842
Duo in B-flat for 2 bassoons
Ludwig van Beethoven 1770 - 1827
Sextet in E-flat Opus 71
Adagio - Allegro, Adagio, Menuetto (Quasi Allegretto), Rondo (Allegro)
Figaro! Figaro!
Overtures & airs from Mozart's "Le Nozze di Figaro" & Rossini's "Il Barbiere de Seviglia" (arrangements c1800-1820)
Overture, "Le Nozze di Figaro"
Se vuol ballare, Signor Contino
Voi che sapete
Non piu andrai
La Calunnia e'un Venticello
Di si felice innesto
Largo al Factorum
Overture: "Il Barbiere de Seviglia"
Franz Krommer (1759-1831)
Partita in C minor
Largo, Allegro, Adagio, Rondo - Allegro
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Divertimento in F, Hob. II:15
Presto, Menuetto, Adagio, Menuetto, Presto
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827)
Sextet in E flat, op. 71
Adagio - Allegro, Adagio, Menuetto, Rondo - Allegro
Mozart v Salieri
Opera tournament
W. A. Mozart - Le Nozze di Figaro
KV 492 (1786) extracts, arr. Georg Sartorius
Antonio Salieri - Tarare
(1787) extracts, arr. Johann Stumpf.
Mozart - Overture; Presto
Salieri - Andante; "Astasie est une Déesse": Andante; "Roi, nous mettons la liberté"
Mozart - Allegretto - Presto; "Se vuol ballare, Signor Contino"
Salieri - Andante - Allegro; "Quel plaisir de nos cours s'empare"
Mozart - Allegro; "Non più andrai, farfallone amaroso"
Salieri - Cantabile; "Ainsi qu'une abeile"
Mozart - Allegro di molto; "Susanna, or via, surtite"
Salieri - Allegretto; "Le trône est pour moi sans appas"
Mozart - Duos, KV 487 (1786) :
Allegro, Menuetto, Andante, KV 292 (1775), Polonaise, Allegro, Canonic Adagio, KV 410 (1785)
Mozart - Overture, La Clemenza di Tito, KV 621 (1791), arr. anonyme, c.1800
Mozart - Serenade in E-flat major, KV 375 (1781)
Allegro maestoso, Menuetto, Adagio, Menuetto, Finale : Allegro
Salzburg
Michael Haydn - Marcia Turchese in C, P65 (Salzburg, 1795)
Mozart - The Magic Flute (KV620, 1791), arr. J. Stumpf, c.1792
Overture
"Der Vogelfänger bin ich ja"
Quintet: "Hm, hm, hm"; "Die Königin benadigt dich..."
Marsch der Priester
Finale: Allegro
Mozart - Divertimento in B-flat, KV240 (Salzburg, 1776)
Allegro, Andante grazioso, Menuetto, Allegro
Michael Haydn - Divertimento in D, P95 (Salzburg, 1786)
Allegro, Menuetto, Adagio, Menuetto, Allegro
Mozart - Serenade in E-flat, KV375 (Vienna, 1781)
Allegro maestoso, Menuetto, Adagio, Menuetto, Finale : Allegro
Mozart - Six Duets for horns / basset horns, KV 487
Mozart - Canonic Adagio, KV 410 for 2 basset horns & bassoon
Franz Krommer - Partita in E-flat (c1800)
Johann Christian Bach - Sinfonias in B Major & E flat Major (1782)
Weber - Adagio & Rondo (1808)
