Joseph Haydn: Die Sieben Unseres Erlosers Am Kreuze

It was not until 1795 that Haydn was inspired by a foreign arrangement to rework his celebrated orchestral work Die sieben letzten Worte unseres Erlosers am Kreuze (The Seven Last Words of Our Savior on the Cross) into an oratorio, which was first performed publicly in 1798 in the presence of the emperor. The careful reworking with the collaboration of Gottfried van Swieten, the librettist of his two late oratorios, made the piece one of his most successful works.

This moving recording with Frieder Bernius, the Kammerchor Stuttgart, the Hofkapelle Stuttgart and hand-picked soloists makes it clear why.