Carl Orff was approached by Dr. Alfred Krings and Rudolf Ruby from Harmonia Mundi Records. The outcome of this meeting resulted in ten records being produced in random order from 1963-1975. Each record contained a detailed commentary by Dr. Werner Thomas. Orff in his autobiography states that “an internationally understandable title had to be found” for the recordings. “Musica Poetica,” he continues, “speaks for itself.” The title of the recorded series draws attention to the meaning of the word, language and poetry as they are woven together with musical models that invite the student to change and develop them into a personal form.

The Musica Poetica recordings began in May 1963 under the artistic direction of Gunild Keetman and Carl Orff. The wide array of choirs and ensembles employed this time included the Tölzer Knabenchor under the direction of Gerhard Schmidt-Gaden, the Kammerchor der Staatlichen Hochschule für Musik, München under the direction of Fritz Schieri, the Kölner Kinderchor under the direction of Hans-Günter Lenders, and the Stuttgarter Sprecherin under the direction of Heinz Mende. The instrumental ensemble was prepared by Karl Peinkofer and directed by both Carl Orff and Herman Regner. Godela Orff-Büchtemann fulfilled the role of speaker. These ensembles and artists were involved with the recording process for many years. Their singing style, their expressive presentation of text and music, determined the sound quality of the record series to a great extent.

The contents of the ten records correspond to the arrangement of select material in the five main Schulwerk volumes, but also contain material from the supplementary volumes and some newly-composed vocal, speech and instrumental pieces. They represent the definitive “documentation of the Schulwerk in sound” as quoted by Orff.