The Hipocondria Ensemble, which, under the artistic direction of Jan Hádek, is dedicated to the learned interpretation of 17th and 18th century music, is a confident chamber ensemble that has built a strong place among renowned early music ensembles over two decades of activity. With the dramaturgy of his new album with compositions by Simon Brixi, the ensemble created an imaginary liturgical arch from the morning mass through the litany to the Magnificat of Vespers. It is the Magnificat that can remind us of Zelenka’s works in terms of style and technical complexity. “It took more than two years to create the album’s dramaturgy. At the beginning, I had the idea to record Simon Brixi’s Magnificat and songs by his son František Xaver. After consulting with musicologist Marc Niubó and with his help, I started looking for which songs would be suitable. After a while, it turned out that this option would not be the right one. The search continued, with other suggestions and with them the names of other authors, such as Giovanni Battista Bassani, Antonio Lotti and so on. However, even these variants did not seem to be good for various reasons. After a while, I went back to Simon Brixi’s work and began to find out if a small selection of songs could be used to create a representative selection for the recording. I chose from about two dozen spiritual songs located in different places. I had to exclude some of them due to unavailability. In others, the rewriting revealed that these were later modifications from the second half of the 18th century. Due to changes made in the conduct of votes, instrumentation and the total number of errors, these songs also had to be excluded from the selection. In the end, six songs crystallized for recording. Over time, I must say that I do not regret the work done and careful consideration, because we managed to choose really beautiful and representative songs that deserve to sound again, “said Jan Hádek.
Hipocondria Ensemble recorded the album in collaboration with excellent soloists – soprano Hana Blažíková and bassist Jaromír Nosk. The novelty was published on August 27, 2021 by Supraphon. The album contains songs – Missa ex D, Arietta De gloriosissima resurectione Domini nostri Jesu Christi, Litaniae de venerabili sacramento, Alma redemptoris mater, Domine ad adjuvandum me festina, Magnificat. These are the recordings listed in the world premiere and the song Magnificat was first recorded on period instruments. The album is published in the acclaimed supraphonic edition of Prague Music of the 18th Century on CD and in digital formats.
