Nine German Arias

'With her pure, luminous tone, graceful sense of phrase and discerning musicality, Carolyn Sampson gives enchanting performances of music that is essentially about enchantment … 'Süsse Stille' is exquisitely shaped and savoured, with a rapt, confiding pianissimo at the da capo. Elsewhere Sampson perfectly catches the blissful langour of 'Künft'ger Zeiten eitler Kummer' and brings a smiling eagerness to 'Die ihr aus dunklen Grüften', enhancing the da capo with playful touches of ornamentation'
(Gramophone)

'Carolyn Sampson beautifully expresses inward rapture and outward joy, and she is touchingly wistful in 'Süsser Blumen'. She is nicely matched by the violin of Stéphane-Marie Degand, and the spiky tone of Alexandra Bellamy is an extra pleasure in the three oboe sonatas'
(Classic FM Magazine)

In this enchanting disc, Carolyn Sampson's ravishing, silvery tones are put to the service of some of Handel's most joyous and profound music for the solo voice.

Handel wrote little for his native tongue, but what he did demonstrates a particular level of contemplative pietism while still employing the familiar techniques of Italian opera. In these nine German arias he set the poems of his contemporary Barthold Heinrich Brockes, and their theme is that the abundant goodness of God is evident in the joy and beauty of His creation. The musical relationships with Handel's opera arias are evident in the endless ingenuity of his characterization and the expressive, articulate melodies with which the soprano and the violin obbligato create their vivid images.

These arias are paired with Handel's three oboe sonatas—delightful works which demonstrate the composer's enthusiasm for the instrument's expressive capabilities and colours.