08.10.2019

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The Berliner Philharmoniker, conducted by Nikolaus Harnoncourt, release Franz Schubert's complete symphonies, the Masses no. 5 in A flat major and no. 6 in E flat major and the opera Alfonso und Estrella in an exclusive hardcover edition. The recording will be available from 5 June on the orchestra's own Berliner Philharmoniker Recordings label. It includes eight CDs, a Pure Audio Blu-ray disc, and is complemented by an extensive video interview with Nikolaus Harnoncourt and a comprehensive booklet. The edition can be purchased at www.berliner-philharmoniker-recordings.com, in the shop of the Berlin Philharmonie and from selected retailers.

The recordings were made in the three seasons between 2003/2004 and 2005/2006, during which Nikolaus Harnoncourt conducted six different concert programmes which drew a comprehensive musical portrait of the composer Franz Schubert. The soloists in the Masses and the concertante opera recording include Christian Gerhaher (bass) who participates in all three works, Dorothea Röschmann (Soprano, Mass in E flat major and Estrella), Kurt Streit (Tenor, Mass in A Flat Major and Alfonso), Bernarda Fink (Alto, Mass in E flat major), Jonas Kaufmann (Tenor, Mass in E flat major) and the Rundfunkchor Berlin.

Nikolaus Harnoncourt on the music of Franz Schubert: “Music, with Schubert at its heart, is my daily bread. Schubert has been my constant companion. For me, he was the personification of music.”

Since his debut with the Berliner Philharmoniker in 1991, Nikolaus Harnoncourt has performed 29 programmes in 90 concerts with the orchestra in Berlin and Salzburg. As an expression of its particular appreciation, the orchestra awarded Harnoncourt its Hans von Bülow Medal in 2000, and in March 2014, he joined the circle of honorary members of the orchestra.