A forgotten catalogue

In Joseph Haydn’s personal belongings, a small notebook was discovered — the so-called Quartbuch. This thematic catalogue, copied around the 1770s, lists symphonies and divertimenti by “various masters.” Haydn himself annotated the pages, correcting attributions and counting the works that truly belonged to him.

Surprisingly, the Quartbuch contains no fewer than 33 symphonies attributed to Pieter Van Maldere (1729–1768), a Brussels court composer and one of the earliest exponents of the Classical symphony. Of these, only 18 have survived in manuscript or print. The others are lost, known only through short musical incipits in the Quartbuch — silent witnesses to a repertoire that vanished.

A complete recording

Terra Nova Collective has now recorded all 18 surviving symphonies — over four hours of music, spread across 57 tracks. While a few of these works have occasionally been recorded by modern orchestras, this project marks their world premiere on period instruments, reviving them in the sound world for which they were originally conceived.

Van Maldere’s European voice

Pieter Van Maldere’s career was truly international. As a violinist and composer at the Brussels court of Charles of Lorraine, his works were performed in Vienna, Paris, and Dublin. His symphonies reflect the mid-18th century’s stylistic transitions: elegant galant idioms, bold harmonies, and formal clarity that prefigure Haydn and Mozart.

A restoration, not just a rediscovery

This project is more than a revival — it restores Van Maldere’s rightful place in music history.
For the first time, we can hear a lost chapter in the development of the symphony.
Van Maldere’s voice is no longer silent.