Search - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Karl Ristenpart, Chamber Orchestra of the Saar Radio :: Mozart: Eine Kleine Nachtmusik / Haffner Serenade

By the ripe old age of 33, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart had composed a veritable library of hits. That he was a master of his craft is utterly undeniable. Surely these tracks can be found in most any music collection, whether as part of an all-Mozart program or on a compilation of essential classics. What, then, could possibly be left to discover in this beloved and quite recognizable music?  
This collection features two familiar serenades: Mozart's "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik" and the "Haffner." The music itself needs little introduction, but the artists themselves deserve a bit of attention here. Karl Ristenpart was a German conductor whose career can be defined by the three orchestras he created, most notably the Chamber Orchestra of the Saar Radio, featured on this disc. The ensemble, founded in 1953 in the Saar region (which was still under French administration at the time), originally counted just 16 artists among its ranks. Among them was Georg-Friedrich Hendel, leader of the Hendel Quartet, who became the orchestra's first violin soloist and whose artistry is immediately evident on this recording. The orchestra itself proved fruitful, counting about 170 albums to its credit and touring extensively before Ristenpart's death in 1967.  
This collection has been digitally remastered from the original Erato recording, breathing new life into these otherwise fairly obscure performances.  Karl Ristenpart conducts the Chamber Orchestra of the Saar Radio in two serenades by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart:  Serenade in G Major, K525 Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, and Serenade in D Major, K520 (284b) Haffner, with Georg-Friedrich Hendel, solo violin.