Haydn: Missa Cellensis Mari Eriksmoen, Kristina Hammarström, Mark Milhofer, Christian Senn, Zürcher Sing-Akademie, Kammerorchester Basel & René Jacobs

• Joseph Haydn (1732 - 1809): Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": I. Kyrie:
• 1 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": I. Kyrie: No. 1, Kyrie Eleison I 03:20
• 2 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": I. Kyrie: No. 2, Christe Eleison 03:12
• 3 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": I. Kyrie: No. 3, Kyrie Eleison II 03:18
• Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": II. Gloria:
• 4 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": II. Gloria: No. 1, Gloria in excelsis Deo 03:21
• 5 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": II. Gloria: No. 2, Laudamus Te 04:32
• 6 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": II. Gloria: No. 3, Gratia agimus Tibi 02:27
• 7 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": II. Gloria: No. 4, Domine Deus 05:21
• 8 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": II. Gloria: No. 5, Qui tollis peccata mundi 05:13
• 9 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": II. Gloria: No. 6, Quoniam tu solis sanctus 03:33
• 10 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": II. Gloria: No. 7, Cum sancto spiritu - In gloria dei patris 03:29
• Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": III. Credo:
• 11 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": III. Credo: No. 1,Credo in unum deum 04:23
• 12 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": III. Credo: No. 2, Et incarnatus est 07:43
• 13 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": III. Credo: No. 3, Et resurrexit tertia die 05:33
• Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": IV. Sanctus:
• 14 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": IV. Sanctus: No. 1, Sanctus 01:36
• 15 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": IV. Sanctus: No. 2, Benedictus 05:52
• Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": V. Agnus Dei:
• 16 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": V. Agnus Dei: No. 1, Agnus Dei 01:49
• 17 Haydn: Missa in C Major, Hob. XXII:5 "Cellensis in Honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae": V. Agnus Dei: No. 2, Dona nobis pacem 02:23
• Total Runtime 01:07:05

Info for Haydn: Missa Cellensis

This recording is the first of a collaboration between René Jacobs, the Kammerorchester Basel, the Zürcher Sing-Akademie and Alpha Classics and will involve the release of four albums between 2025 and 2028; the first of these is the Missa Cellensis, then three albums devoted to Haydn’s last six masses. Haydn was commissioned in 1766 to write a Missa Solemnis, the Latin term for a fully scored mass with trumpets and timpani; it is the third and largest of Haydn's fourteen masses. It was under this erroneous name that the 1766 Missa Cellensis remained known until 1975, when a fragment of the autograph score containing the title page, Kyrie I and Christe was found in Bucharest and revealed that Haydn had in fact composed two Missæ Cellenses. It is the first of these (1766) that is recorded here. René Jacobs puts all his expertise and enthusiasm at the service of this music that he loves so much, in collaboration with soloists with whom he works regularly, an orchestra that is also a longstanding partner, and the remarkable choir of the Sing-Akademie of Zürich.

Mari Eriksmoen, soprano
Kristina Hammarström, mezzo-soprano
Mark Milhofer, tenor
Christian Senn, baritone
Zurich Sing-Akademie
Basel Chamber Orchestra
Rene Jacobs, conductor

Mari Eriksmoen
Norwegian soprano Mari Eriksmoen performed Marzelline (Fidelio) in a production at the Paris Opéra Comique under the baton of Raphaël Pichon and Pamina (The Magic Flute) at Theater Basel in the 2021/22 season. She also performed in the concert performance of Purcell's The Fairy Queen with Stefan Gottfried and the Concentus Musicus Wien at the Vienna Musikverein, as Mademoiselle Silberklang (The Drama Director) with Ed Gardner and the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, and as Gerda (Hans Abrahamsen's The Snow Queen) with Kent Nagano and the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. She performed Brahms's German Requiem with the Munich Philharmonic under Paavo Järvi and on tour with the Ensemble Pygmalion and Raphaël Pichon. In the summer of 2021, she performed recitals of works by Grieg, Grøndahl, and Wolf with Daniel Heide at the Edinburgh International Festival and with Malcolm Martineau at the Tivoli Festival.

Of particular note is Mari Eriksmoen's highly acclaimed role debut as Debussy's Mélisande (Pelléas et Mélisande) in the complex production by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Damien Jalet, and Marina Abramović for Opera Vlaanderen. Forum Opéra praised her "voice like crystal" and her portrayal of the "mesmerizing fragility of this heroine." She later sang Mélisande at the Grand Théâtre de Genève and the Grand Théâtre de Luxembourg, and in March 2022 in Willy Decker's production at the Teatro de la Maestranza in Seville.

Mari Eriksmoen studied at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo, the Paris Conservatoire, and the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen. Immediately after graduating in 2010, her international career began with an invitation to the Theater an der Wien, where she made her debut as Zerbinetta in Harry Kupfer's new production of Ariadne auf Naxos under the musical direction of Bertrand de Billy.

Kristina Hammarström
Swedish mezzo-soprano Kristina Hammarström is a regular guest at leading opera houses and renowned festivals, including the Vienna State Opera. at La Scala in Milan, the Vienna State Opera, the Theater an der Wien, the Paris Opéra, the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, the Théâtre du Capitole in Toulouse, the Grand Théâtre de Genève, the Monnaie in Brussels, the Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam, the Opera Vlaanderen in Antwerp, the Berlin State Opera, the Grand Théâtre du Luxembourg, the ABAO Bilbao Ópera, the Lyric Opera of Chicago, the Royal Swedish Opera in Stockholm, the Norwegian Opera in Oslo, the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, the Innsbruck Festival of Early Music and the Festival at the Drottningholm Palace Theatre. Her operatic repertoire includes an impressive array of roles in Baroque operas, as well as Charlotte (Werther), Octavian (Der Rosenkavalier), Arsace (Semiramide), Rosina (Il barbiere di Siviglia), Marguerite (La Damnation de Faust), Cecilio (Lucio Silla), Ascanio (Ascanio in Alba), Idamante (Idomeneo), and many other roles.

Kristina Hammarström is also in great demand as a concert singer, performing in concert halls and at festivals throughout Europe and Asia. Her repertoire includes Berlioz's Les Nuits d'été, Mahler's Kindertotenlieder, Rückert Lieder, Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen, Des Knaben Wunderhorn and Das Lied von der Erde, Brahms's Alto Rhapsody, Elgar's Sea Pictures, Bernstein's Symphony No. 1 (Jeremiah), Beethoven's Missa solemnis and Symphony No. 9, Schumann's Das Paradies und die Peri, as well as numerous masses and oratorios.

Among the conductors with whom she has collaborated are Herbert Blomstedt, Gianluca Capuano, William Christie, Alessandro De Marchi, Adam Fischer, Alan Gilbert, Emmanuelle Haïm, Philippe Herreweghe, Manfred Honeck, René Jacobs, Fabio Luisi, Andrea Marcon, Marc Minkowski, John Nelson, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, George Petrou, Christophe Rousset, and Jean-Christophe Spinosi. In addition to a solo album of Vivaldi arias, Kristina Hammarström's discography includes Handel's Giulio Cesare (title role), Alessandro Severo (Giulia), Orlando (Medoro), Catone (Arbace) and Messiah, Mozart's Idomeneo (Idamante), Mitridate (Farnace), Lucio Silla (Cecilio) and Requiem, as well as Bach's Christmas Oratorio. On DVD, she can be heard as Bradamante (Alcina), Daniel (Belshazzar), Bradamante in Vivaldi's Orlando furioso, and Medea in Cavalli's Giasone.

Mark Milhofer
studied with Renata Scotto and Leyla Gencer in Italy and made his debut as Giannetto in Rossini's La gazza ladra at British Youth Opera. His repertoire ranges from the early Baroque to the modern era, with roles such as Pisandro and Eumete (Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria), Arnalta (L'incoronazione di Poppea), Thespis and Mercure (Platée), Belmonte (The Abduction from the Seraglio), Ferrando (Così fan tutte), Don Narciso (Il turco in Italia), Don Ramiro (La Cenerentola), Fenton (Falstaff), Rosillon (The Merry Widow), Taxis (Honegger's Les Aventures du roi Pausole), Doctor (Eötvös's Tri Sestri), and Lawyer (Birtwistle's Punch and Judy). He has performed at the Berlin State Opera Unter den Linden, the Stuttgart State Opera, the Semperoper Dresden, the Frankfurt Opera, the Salzburg State Theater, the Theater an der Wien, the Graz Opera, the Teatro Regio di Torino, the Grand Théâtre de Genève, the Royal Opera House Covent Garden in London, as well as at the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino and the Macerata Opera Festival, among others. He has worked with conductors such as Alberto Zedda and René Jacobs. Concert appearances have brought him together with the Orchestra di Santa Cecilia in Rome and the Ensemble I Pomeriggi musicali in Milan, and he has given recitals at the Queen Elizabeth Hall and the Wigmore Hall in London. He will make his Bavarian State Opera debut in 2023, singing the role of Linfea in La Calisto.

Zürcher Sing-Akademie
For the Zürcher Sing-Akademie, sonic excellence and musical expression are paramount. Since its founding in 2011, the ensemble has grown into a major player in the professional choral world in Europe, and its singers delight audiences with their quality and personality.

Since the 2017-18 season, Florian Helgath has shaped the choir's profile as Artistic Director. Working with numerous leading conductors such as Giovanni Antonini, Kristian Bezuidenhout, Bernard Haitink, Pablo Heras-Casado, René Jacobs, Paavo Järvi, and Kent Nagano has decisively shaped the ensemble's quality and flexibility.

In addition to its long-standing, close partnership with the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, the Zürcher Sing-Akademie can be experienced in a highly diverse repertoire with various outstanding ensembles, such as the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the Basel Chamber Orchestra, the Musikkollegium Winterthur, the Helsinki Baroque Orchestra, and the Baroque Orchestra La Scintilla. With the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra, the choir regularly performs in major European concert halls, including the Philharmonie de Paris, the Cologne Philharmonie, the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, the Philharmonie Berlin, and, of course, the Freiburg Concert Hall.

The Zurich Sing-Akademie uses its a cappella projects to build bridges between traditional and contemporary music. With its programs and regular commissions, it places a special focus on the development of the Swiss choral landscape.

Tours have taken the choir to Germany, Italy, Israel, the Netherlands, Lebanon, Taiwan, South Korea, and China, as well as to various European capitals.

An exciting range of CD recordings with the Zurich Sing-Akademie ranges from Swiss rarities to symphonic classical music and opera. Most recently, Joseph Haydn's "Stabat Mater" with the Basel Chamber Orchestra under the direction of René Jacobs was released on the Pentatone label, and Felix Mendelssohn's "Midsummer Night's Dream" and "Lobgesang" with the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich under the direction of Paavo Järvi were released on the Alpha label. In December 2024, another a cappella CD with Lieder im Volkston was released on the Swiss label Claves Records to mark the 50th anniversary of Frank Martin's death.

The Basel Chamber Orchestra
is firmly anchored in Basel – with its two subscription series at the Stadtcasino Basel and its own rehearsal and performance venue, Don Bosco Basel. With more than 60 concerts per season, the Basel Chamber Orchestra tours worldwide, always a welcome guest at international festivals and in major European concert halls such as the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées Paris, and the Theater an der Wien.

A discography of over 30 award-winning recordings on renowned labels such as Sony, Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, Pentatone, and Warner Classics testifies to the excellent quality of this versatile ensemble. For its historically informed interpretations, the Basel Chamber Orchestra was awarded the ECHO Klassik in the "Best Ensemble" category in 2008 and was the first orchestra to receive the Swiss Music Prize in 2019.

The Basel Chamber Orchestra enjoys working with select soloists such as Hélène Grimaud, Regula Mühlemann, Vilde Frang, Bertrand Chamayou, and Sebastian Bohren. Under the artistic direction of the concertmasters and selected conductors such as Delyana Lazarova, Izabelė Jankauskaitė, René Jacobs, and Marc Minkowski, the Basel Chamber Orchestra presents its broad repertoire.

The concert programs are as diverse as the 47 musicians and range from early music on period instruments to historically informed interpretations and contemporary music. Every year, the Basel Chamber Orchestra commissions compositions and participates in the Basel Composition Competition.

Under the direction of Giovanni Antonini, the orchestra will alternate between performing and recording all 107 symphonies by Joseph Haydn with the ensemble Il Giardino Armonico until 2032. Starting in 2022, all symphonies by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy will be performed under the direction of Philippe Herreweghe.

A core element of the orchestra's work is its pioneering outreach work in large-scale participatory projects, fostering creative exchange with children and young people.

With its high level of self-financing, the Basel Chamber Orchestra pursues an innovative, entrepreneurial approach. Since 2019, the Clariant Foundation has been the presenting sponsor of the Basel Chamber Orchestra.

Rene Jacobs
With more than 260 recordings and a prolific career as a singer, conductor, scholar, and teacher, René Jacobs has distinguished himself as a significant figure in Baroque and Classical music. In 1977, he founded the ensemble Concerto Vocale, with which he explored the repertoire of chamber music and Baroque opera. He realized a series of innovative recordings for Harmonia Mundi, dedicated to works from a long-forgotten repertoire, which were acclaimed by the international press. 1983 marked his debut as an opera conductor with a production of Cesti's "L'Orontea" at the Innsbruck Festival of Early Music. As Artistic Director of this festival, and during his engagements at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden Berlin as guest conductor from 1992, at the Brussels Opera House La Monnaie from 1993, at the Theater an der Wien as a regular conductor from 2006, at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, at the Salzburg Festival, at the Festival d'Aix-en-Provence, and at other international venues, he has conducted operas from the early Baroque to Rossini. Parallel to his operatic career, sacred music has never ceased to occupy a significant place in René Jacob's work. In addition to an honorary doctorate from the University of Ghent, he has received many prestigious awards and international prizes from music critics in Europe and America, both for his recordings and for his lifetime achievement.

Booklet for Haydn: Missa Cellensis