Benedikt Anton Aufschnaiter (1665-1742) was probably trained in Vienna during the 1680s, and he succeeded Georg Muffat as Kappellmeister of Passau Cathedral in 1705. In the preface to his theoretical work Regulae Fundamentales Musurgiae, Aufschnaiter mentioned influences such as Carissimi, Lassus and Kerll. Little is known about Aufschnaiter’s life, but musicologist Peter Lechl has discovered approximately 300 of his compositions. Violinist Gunar Letzbor’s risky claim that he is ‘the Catholic Bach’ is certainly an exaggeration, not least because that extraordinary label already belongs to the Dresden court composers Heinichen and Zelenka. But Aufschnaiter was evidently a talented composer, whose latter-day revival is boosted by this deeply satisfying disc.

The eight church sonatas recorded here were published in 1703 in Augsburg. Each one is dedicated to a saint, the sonatas remain within their original key, and structural conventions remain fairly rigid. Within them, however, Aufschnaiter creates an impressive variety of texture and melodic sonority. An extrovert Italian energy imforms Ars Antiqua Austria’s spirited performances, but the ensemble also evoke melancholy moods for more contemplative movements. Letzbor contributes some dazzling violin playing, and directs fine performances that are appropriately sombre yet pleasantly stylish. The chamber ensemble often sounds like a bigger Baroque orchestra due to a sweet, flattering acoustic.

Letzbor enthusiastically writes: ‘As I first heard the music of this composer, I was at once filled with…Passion, joy, fear, despair, love, piety, tenderness, exuberance, insouciance.’ Such emotions are evident in this recording, and I am eager to hear some of Aufschnaiter’s vast corpus of sacred vocal music.