Programme

Johann Georg Orsler (1698–1770): Trio Sonatas
Sonata in F major “Il pastor fido”
Partita in C major
Sonata in E flat major
Partita in D major
Trio in C major

Silesian native Johann Georg Orsler (ca. 1698–1777) passed through a remarkable number of places that figure in the history of the music of the Czech lands in the 18th century (from Wroclaw and Vienna through Prague, Dresden, Olomouc, Brno, Holešov, Nova Bystřica, Brtnice and Valtice back to Vienna ). As a thirty-year-old, he entered the contemporary dictionary literature, but already at the end of the century, music lexicographers were not sure how to spell his name correctly and to which of his several bearers to attribute the compositions marked by him. After that he was completely forgotten and his sparsely preserved compositions received attention only in the very recent past. His compositions are significant not only as rare examples of the repertoire composed for aristocratic music lovers settled in the Czech lands, but also as exceptionally high-quality music, as is to be expected from a former pupil of members of the imperial band led by Johann Joseph Fux. Orsler’s remarkably diverse and at the same time distinctive trio sonatas present music that appeals not only to musicians and listeners, but also to music historians.