Helmuth Rilling, an acclaimed German choral conductor and influential interpreter of Bach, passed away last Wednesday, February 11. He was 92.
Rilling founded numerous ensembles including the Gächinger Kantorei (1954), the Bach-Collegium Stuttgart (1965), the Oregon Bach Festival (1970), and the Internationale Bachakademie Stuttgart (1981). He served as professor of choral conducting at the Frankfurt Musikhochschule from 1965 to 1989 and led the Frankfurter Kantorei from 1969 to 1982.
“Music has to shake you up,” said Rilling. As a conductor, he focused on fundamental elements such as the control of tempo, dynamics, and articulation.
Here are three of Helmuth Rilling’s recordings:
Bach: Complete Cantatas
Mozart: Mass in C minor, K. 427
Recorded at Knights Hall in Schloss Wolfegg in 1988, this performance features Gächinger Kantorei Stuttgart and Bach-Collegium Stuttgart:
Penderecki: Credo
Helmuth Rilling commissioned Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki to write the Credofor the Oregon Bach Festival. Completed in 1998, the large-scale work is scored for soloists, children’s choir, mixed choir and orchestra. The text includes biblical verses in Latin, Polish and German.
Rilling’s live recording of the world premiere with the Oregon Bach Festival won the 2000 Grammy Award for best choral performance.
Recordings
Helmuth Rilling’s complete discography Discogs