Franz Schmidt (1874-1939)
Das Buch mit sieben Siegeln
The Book with Seven Seals
Oratorio based on the Revelation of St. John
for soloists, choir, organ and orchestra (1935–1937)
Klaus Florian Vogt, tenor (Johannes)
Georg Zeppenfeld, bass (Stimme des Herrn)
Inga Kalna, soprano
Bettina Ranch, mezzo soprano
Dovlet Nurgeldiyev, tenor
Volker Krafft, organ
NDR Choir
Latvia State Choir
Hamburg State Philharmonic Orchestra
Simone Young, conductor
The present CD is the recorded document of a special
performance.
When Simone Young lay down her baton on 15
June 2015 after the performance of Franz Schmidt’s
The Book with Seven Seals, it was the 45th programme
in the 90th Philharmonic concert that she had conducted within the ten years of her term as Hamburg
Artistic Director (August 2005 to July 2015).
Thus the Hamburg State Philharmonic Orchestra
did not require much persuading to issue this rarely
performed work as a CD on the OehmsClassics label.