Unique collection of choral works by Hans Werner Henze. Henze’s choral works represent a significant extension to his major works. Another distinguished recording from the Vokalensemble Stuttgart. The Ensemble Modern is one of the leading instrumental ensembles for contemporary music.

Hans Werner Henze was a prolific German composer.

Although his choral works are not commonly counted among his major works, they nonetheless reflect his artistic philosophy in many respects. Like his other music, his choral works were meant to be true to real life and clearly understood by the audience. This was the major difference between Henze and other composers who were active after the Second World War. While he did indeed use the same compositional techniques as his colleagues, such as dodecaphony (twelve-tone technique), serial composition, neo-classical sound, his works retained traditional forms of expression.

The three choral works on this album date from 1947 (Fünf Madrigale), 1963 (Lieder von einer Insel) and 1978 (Orpheus - Henze’s first a cappella choral composition). These works reflect traditional elements of Western music.

In recording these pieces, the SWR Vokalensemble Stuttgart and the Ensemble Modern have once again made a key contribution to the music of an important German composer. The first-class SWR Vokalensemble Stuttgart has already recorded representative works by other composers, such as Charles Ives, Elliott Carter, Heitor Villa-Lobos, and many more.