Händel’s works were well-known and popular, but already at the end of the 18th century they could frequently no longer be performed in their original arrangements, since the spread of new instruments such as the clarinet made it difficult to put together an orchestra using the original instrumentation.

Zelter’s arrangement, which was presumed missing for many years after the Second World War together with the archive of the Sing-Akademie, will now be performed for the first time—after its première in the early 19th century.

The archive of the Berlin Sing-Akademie, rediscovered in the National Library of the Ukraine in Kiev, is a musico-historical treasure of international importance. Among the more than five thousand hand-written scores and old prints, twenty-one unknown passions by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach alone await their revival. We are delighted that our contribution enables the public to share in these discoveries. Already last year, the Schering Stiftung made possible the performance of the St. John’s Passion of 1772, while the St. Matthew’s Passion by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, dating from 1785, could be presented to the public after more than two hundred years on April 4, 2004.

Performed by:
Zelter Ensemble of the Berlin Sing-Akademie—Choir and Orchestra
Mojca Erdmann—Soprano
Tina Hörhold—Contralto
Maximilian Schmitt—Tenor
Locky Chung—Baritone
Conducted by Joshard Daus