Described in the notes as "comprehensively forgotten," Peter von Winter was born three years before and died two years before
Ludwig van Beethoven. He started as a member of the Mannheim Orchestra when that ensemble was creating the Classical style and he became the kapellmeister of the Munich Court and was later made a Knight. When he died, the streets were lined with people in mourning as his coffin was carried through the city to the cemetery. And with his internment, the music of Peter von Winter fell into oblivion and his reputation faded into obscurity.
Into obscurity, that is, until the release of this disc of world premieres. But for all its fey charms and robust delights, for all its tender string melodies and saucy wind melodies, for all its wit and fancy and energy, the music of Peter von Winter is still comprehensively forgettable. For all that clarinetist
Dieter Klocker plays with ineffable grace and soprano
Isolde Siebert sings with exquisite elegance, for all that the Südwestdeutsches Kammerorchester of Pforzheim performs with casual brilliance and
Johannes Moesus conducts with complete sympathy, and for all that Orfeo's sound is stunningly realistic, the music of Peter von Winter is well worth hearing for listeners who already know the music of the
Mozarts, the
Haydns, the
Bachs, and Ditters von Dittersdorf.