Lost Music of Early America
Music of the Moravians

* Music by J. F. Peter, Simon Peter, Jeremiah Dencke, John Antes, Johannes
Herbst, and others

Cyndia Sieden & Sharon Baker (sopranos)
Boston Baroque/Martin Pearlman
Total time: 65:26
Telarc CD-80482/h4>

Summary for the Busy Executive: Joyous album.

In the 18th- and early 19th-century United States, one would have
undoubtedly found the most sophisticated music-making, oddly enough, in
the wilds of West Virginia, North Carolina, and southeastern Pennsylvania,
among the Christian sect of the American Moravians, essentially Czech and
German Hussites transplanted. If I recall correctly, the first American
performances of Haydn chamber works, symphonies, and Die Schoepfung - at
the time, let's not forget, Advanced Modern Music - came from them. They
also wrote by far the most competent music on this native ground. The New
England and Southern singing-masters forged a new idiom, in part because
they had little grounding in the old one. "City" composers like Francis
Hopkinson or James Hewitt confined themselves to genteel voice-and-keyboard
ditties or elementary variations, and even there often had trouble
constructing a simple phrase which didn't trip over itself. On the other
hand, the Moravians knew their stuff. They wrote chamber music, choral
music, choral-and-instrumental ensemble music, much of it in the style of
Handel and Haydn. Like the influence of the Moravians themselves, however,
the music seldom made it out to the culture at large, less the doing of the
Moravians themselves and more the lack of effort by that culture to seek it
out. The Moravians have kept tremendous archives of musical material, which
scholars have combed through for performing editions. Periodically,
performers have brought part of this huge legacy to life and light, but for
some reason it has never stayed in notice for long. Here's hoping Pearlman
hits it lucky.

Music played a great part in their services, particularly at the major
Christian feasts or commemorating major events (like the end of the
Revolutionary War). This disc concentrates on their functional religious
music. Few pieces run more than two-and-a-half minutes, but all are
shapely, many even beautiful. Original texts run both to English and
German, which undoubtedly reflects the linguistic makeup of the community.
Pearlman has organized individual pieces into "Lovefeasts" (Liebesmahl), a
Moravian service of worship that consisted almost exclusively of music. As
with everything else I've heard from them, Pearlman and the Boston Baroque
do an outstanding job here. The choral and instrumental work (period
instruments) is first-rate. Sieden and Baker sing with pure tone and true,
perhaps a bit naive, fostering the illusion that they're just very good
local soloists.  Furthermore, their tones match, so that in their duets
they sound like the emanation of one being.

For me, although not specifically designed, this is a perfect Christmas
album. The combination of strings, massed trombones (for hymns), choir,
and soloists for some reason put me in the mood of the season - snow and
sugarplums. You also get a freebie: a second disc of Pearlman talking about
the music, with musical illustrations. How can you pass this up?

The usual Telarc creamy sound suits these pieces very well.

Steve Schwartz