Vocal Score for the opera Arianna In Creta by G.F. Handel. Libretto prepared anonymously from Teseo in Creta by Pietro Pariati. Please note that this piano score does not contain a realisation of the figured bass. The left hand of the piano part is the figured basso continuo of the opera, with occasional octave transpositions and the incorporation of some of the viola part. The right hand is a reduction of the main orchestral material. Item numbering and bar numbering accord with the full score and parts.

“Almira”, Handel’s first opera, was well received when premiered in 1705 at the Theater am Gänsemarkt in Hamburg. The director was Reinhard Keiser, who, remarkably, had himself already set Friedrich Christian Feustking’s text to music. The role of Fernando was sung by Johann Mattheson. The translation used by Handel leaves several Italian arias in their original language, resulting in a delightful mixture of German and Italian. The opera which, after sundry entangled romances, ends in the wedding of three couples, is characterised by exuberant scenes: the procession at Almira’s crowning ceremony, a duel, a prison scene and a masked-ball involving the three continents Europe, Africa and Asia. The vocal score to “Almira” by George Frideric Handel brings about a small sensation: Whilst conducting a reenactment of this work in 1732, Georg Philipp Telemann removed the Aria no. 28 “Ingrato, spietato” from his conducting score. Since then this aria has been deemed lost. Due to necessity only the edited vocal text devoid of any music was presented in the 1994 volume of the “Halle Handel Edition”. Thanks to a recently discovered contemporary manuscript copy from the beginning of the 18th century which was found in the music library of the Mariengymnasium in Jever, this aria has now been made available to performers for the first time in this new vocal score edition. Previous to this the corresponding pages could only be seen as a facsimile in an article of the “Göttinger Händel-Beiträge”. Now the aria can be performed again. Furthermore, with the help of this new source, missing measures in the basso continuo which had initially been completed by the editor of the “Halle Handel Edition” volume, could be reconstructed from the basso continuo part of the Bellante aria “Ich brenne zwar” (no. 71). Urtext edition based on the “Halle Handel Edition” Original German and Italian text with a German translation of the Italian arias Comprehensive foreword (Ger/Eng) Clear, straightforward piano reduction

Influential 18th-century oratorio deals with the triumph of the Jewish warrior-hero Judas Maccabaeus over the invading enemies of the Israelites. Beauty, drama and brilliant originality of its arias, duets and choruses have kept the work constantly in the active repertoire. Reprinted from authoritative edition of the German Handel Society. Text underlay in English and German.

In response to a continued interest in a scholarly facsimile of the Mass in B minor, a new cloth-bound facsimile edition (BVK 2194) has now been published. This replaces the original BÄRENREITER FACSIMILE edition (BVK 1911). Johann Sebastian Bach completed the Mass in B minor in 1748/49 shortly after the Art of Fugue and shortly before his death. This late work is as concentrated and rich in compositional technique as scarcely any other work. As early as 1818, Hans-Georg Nägeli enthusiastically described the Mass as the "greatest musical artwork of all time and all nations”. Since then it has been ranked as an icon of music history. One of the primary functions of a facsimile is the preservation of such a cultural heritage, particularly when the manuscript (as is the case with the Mass in B minor) is endangered and damaged by iron gall ink erosion. Furthermore, it is moving for Bach admirers to see how in some passages Bach’s handwriting reflects the effort which this last work demanded of him. The facsimile documents and records the present condition of the complete autograph score. Older reproductions have substituted a few individual folios where the content has become difficult to read in recent years. The renowned Bach scholar Christoph Wolff describes the work’s significance in his introduction, gives an overview of the history of composition and draws attention to particular distinguishing features of the manuscript. "This facsimile edition is a model for the presentation of musical sources, both in appearance and in documentation. […] Wolff's facsimile will serve as foundational tools" (Notes, December 2008) "Once, Bach came up against the boundaries of his art, on blotchy, 260-year-old paper. ‘Et expecto…’ is this point in the B minor mass, ‘And I look for the resurrection of the dead.’ Bach wrote modulations which were extraordinary. He had to strive for these. He crossed out – although this is a fair copy – hatched and scratched until the paper tore. He was already an old man, his script leans to the left. The handwriting here isn’t nearly as lively as in the ‘Cum sancto Spirito’, written earlier. Everywhere, one is moved by the closeness to the manuscript which the facsimile conveys – one of the most sumptuous ever published." (DIE ZEIT Literatur, December 2007)

For ATB Soloists, SATB Chorus and Orchestra.

Choral-Vorspiel"Nun komm der Heiden by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750). For tuba & piano. Swiss import. Grade 4. Score and parts. Published by Editions Marc Reift (MA.EMR-270).

Choral / Sinfonia & Gavotte (Chorus SATB) by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) and George Frideric Handel (1685-1759). Arranged by Jean-Francois Michel. For SATB Chorus and Brass Band. Swiss import. Grade 3. Score and parts. Published by Editions Marc Reift (MA.EMR-1359C).

Choral / Sinfonia & Gavotte by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) and George Frideric Handel (1685-1759). Arranged by Jean-Francois Michel. Brass Band. Swiss import. Grade 3. Score and parts. Published by Editions Marc Reift (MA.EMR-1359).

Choral / Sinfonia & Gavotte (Male Chorus) by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) and George Frideric Handel (1685-1759). Arranged by Jean-Francois Michel. For Men's Chorus and Concert Band. Swiss import. Grade 3. Score and parts. Published by Editions Marc Reift (MA.EMR-1358M).

Chorale (Female Chorus) by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) and George Frideric Handel (1685-1759). Arranged by Jean-Francois Michel. For Women's Chorus and Concert Band. Swiss import. Grade 3. Score and parts. Published by Editions Marc Reift (MA.EMR-1358F).