The Bohemian musician Jan Dismas Zelenka wrote some exceptional church music for the Catholic court chapel at Dresden across a period of 35 years but never quite achieved the post of Kapellmeister. It is certain that he composed three Requiem Masses but the earliest source of this fourth setting is a Czech set of parts dated 1763 (18 years after the composer’s death). Scholars are undecided whether or not the attribution of this setting to Zelenka is provable but it is certainly good to hear it given an attractive performance by Fiori Musicali.

The performance is perhaps a little too soft-grained at times, although there is a tauter dramatic edge in the orchestral ritornello that introduces the “Dies irae” (featuring some articulate punctuating effects from members of His Majestys Sagbutts and Cornetts), and the general atmosphere of contemplative elegance suits the shapely string-writing and sweetly sung solo by Grace Davidson in “Tuba mirum”. The choir display admirably clear diction and precise unity in phrasing with the instruments, but seem to lose impetus in fugues that require more sustained power, colour and emotional commitment. The opening and closing movements of the Miserere in C minor (1738) have impassioned pulsing orchestral writing (including prominent oboes) and dramatically charged choral tension that combine to compelling effect. Those wishing for an introduction to Zelenka’s church music might find that more dramatic recordings by Frieder Bernius or The King’s Consort provide an easier way in, but this disc will amply reward those eager to hear more.