Jan Zach
About the composer
Jan Zach (1699 – 1773) was born in Celákovice, a village north east of Prague, Czechia, on November 15. In 1725 he was engaged as a violinist and organist in some churches in Prague. In 1737 he was passed for the post of organist in St. Vitus Cathedral, maybe because of his compositions, which – for these times – had rather daring harmonies and chromaticisms. He was so disappointed that he left Prague and came to work in Munich, Augsburg and the Alsace. In 1745 he became Musical Director at the Court of the Elector Johann Friedrich Carl von Ostein in Mainz. The Elector was very satisfied with Zach, and even gave him leave to make a study trip to Italy, but gradually the relationship began to worsen. In 1756 this led to his dismissal. Never again he was to attain a fixed post, so he became a traveling musician, going from monastery to monastery as many of his colleagues in that period had to. He died in 1773 in Ellwangen.
About the Stabat Mater
| Date: | Unknown, probably around 1750? |
| Performers: | Soprano, alto, tenor, bass, mixed choir, organ, orchestra |
| Length: | 43.16 minutes |
| Particulars: | Zach's Stabat Mater in G minor is an easy to listen to piece, without complicated polyphony or fugues. The text is divided into 9 musical parts, but with an orchestral introitus, while the final "Amen" is also developed into a separate part. |
| Textual variations: | The complete "Analecta"-version is used, with only one change: Stanza 16, line 2: not "Passionis eius sortem" but "Passionis fac consortem" |
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Information about the recording
| CD: | Arte Nova 74321 54241 2 (2 CDs): Musikland Rheinland-Pfalz Vol.1, Johann Zach |
| More info: | The first of a series dedicated to composers who lived and worked in the region of Germany, in this case with sacred works by Zach. The Stabat Mater was recorded at the Christuskirche, Mainz, in July 1997. I bought this CD in a record shop in the Netherlands, 1998 |
| Orchestra: | Mainzer Domorchester |
| Choir: | Mainzer Domchor |
| Conductor: | Mathias Breitschaft |
| Soloists: | Suzanne Calabro, soprano |
| Other works: | Missa Solemnis in D major |
| Code: | 1998 ZAC-01 |
