Carl Amand Mangold - never heard of him? Then it's high time you did! There is a great spirit of originality in the music by this mid-19th century genius. With their reputation for surprising audiences with unknown masterpieces by unjustly forgotten composers, the multi-award-winning Berolina Ensemble perform a selection of Mangold's chamber music recorded in MDG's innovative 2+2+2 technology on Super Audio CD.

In his twenties, Mangold went to Paris to study composition, violin, singing and conducting where he met Berlioz, Chopin and Liszt, amongst others. Upon returning home, he engaged in a wide and varied range of musical and educational activities becoming a longstanding familiar figure in Germany. His acquaintance with many of the protagonists of German Romanticism enabled performances of his works far beyond the reaches of the Hessian Grand Duchy.

Mangold wrote hundreds of works spanning operas, oratorios and Lieder to concertos, symphonies and organ music. For his chamber works, he favoured classical forms and often wrote for friends and colleagues, which is reflected in his unique instrumentations. His string quartet dispenses with a second violin and relies instead on a double bass, which creates an almost symphonic sonority.

In his septet "Recollections of the Netherlands in 1565", Mangold demonstrates his dramatic talent: From the martial clash of the Spaniards and the Dutch contrasted with a tender tete-a-tete between Egmont and Klarchen, to a hopeful a patriotic song interwoven with a Protestant chorale, Mangold spins a rousing narrative with thematic fragments on the eve of the massacre that also inspired Schiller, Goethe and many others.

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"The wind players of the Berolina Ensemble know how to turn this composition into a real gem with their eloquent and fresh playing. […] The four instrumentalists on this recording interpret the work with both a relaxed tone and a high level of technical skill, making Carl Amand Mangold's compositions a pleasure to listen to."– Pizzicato

• Septett F-Dur für Klarinette, Horn, Fagott, Violine, Viola, Cello & Kontrabass; Serenade B-Dur für Flöte, Oboe, Klarinette, Horn & Fagott; Quartett für Violine, Viola, Cello & Kontrabass