#ClassicsaDay #ClassicalHumor Week 4

 This month's Classics a Day theme is a tribute to the late Peter Schickle. Schickle was a talented composer of both classical and film music. He's best remembered, though, for his alter ego, PDQ Bach.

PDQ Bach was the youngest and least talented of Johann Sebastian Bach's children. The music by him that Peter Schickle "discovered" is musical humor at its most sublime. The more one knows about classical music, the funnier PDQ Bach pieces are. The works reference virtually every aspect of classical music, from familiar themes to nomenclature. 

But Schickle wasn't the first composer to have some fun with "serious" music. The challenge this month is to post examples of musical humor in classical works. Although most of my posts are PDQ Bach, an equal number aren't. Here are my posts for the fourth week of #ClassicalHumor.

04/22/24 Franz Reizenstein "Let's Fake an Opera"

In 1949 Benjamin Britten wrote "Let's Make an Opera," an audience-participation play that turns into a one-act opera. Reizenstein's mash-up of grand opera references that work, and was a hit at the 1959 Hoffnung Festival. 

 

  

04/23/24 PDQ Bach: Knock, Knock Cantata, S4-1

Everyone knows the knock-knock joke is old. But until this late 1700s cantata by PDQ Bach was discovered, no one thought it was THAT old.

 

04/24/24 Malcolm Arnold: A Grand, Grand Overture

For the inaugural Hoffnung Festival in 1958, Arnold wrote this overture for an orchestra, three vacuum cleaners, and a floor polisher.

 

04/25/24 PDQ Bach: The Seasonings, S.1/2 tsp.

Franz Joseph Haydn's "The Seasons" is one of the greatest secular oratorios ever written. PDQ Bach's "The Seasonings" isn't even one of the longest (mercifully).

 

04/26/24 Joseph Horovitz: Horrotorio

For the 1961 Hoffnung Festival, Horovitz "rediscovered" this oratorio. Singing roles include Dracula's Daughter (soprano), Dowager Baroness Frankenstein (contralto), Edgar Allen Poe (tenor), Count Dracula (bass).

 

#ClassicsaDay #ClassicalHumor Week 3

 This month's Classics a Day theme is a tribute to the late Peter Schickle. Schickle was a talented composer of both classical and film music. He's best remembered, though, for his alter ego, PDQ Bach.

PDQ Bach was the youngest and least talented of Johann Sebastian Bach's children. The music by him that Peter Schickle "discovered" is musical humor at its most sublime. The more one knows about classical music, the funnier PDQ Bach pieces are. The works reference virtually every aspect of classical music, from familiar themes to nomenclature. 

But Schickle wsn't the first composer to have some fun with "serious" music. The challenge this month is to post examples of musical humor in classical works. Although most of my posts are PDQ Bach, an equal number aren't. Here are my posts for the third week of #ClassicalHumor.

04/15/24 Franz Reizenstin: Concerto populare (A piano concerto to end all piano concertos)

This work was premiered at the first Hoffnung Festival, dedicated to humorous classical music. The pianist and orchestra engage in a contest of wills, Grieg's concerto vs. Tchaikovsky's, each playing their preferred work.

 

04/16/24 Paul Hindemith: Flying Dutchman Overture as Played by a Bad Spa Orchestra at 7am by the Well

Hindemith's humor has two subjects in this one work. Superficially, it makes fun of the lesser musicians many spa towns employed. But it's also a dig at Wagner. Even the title pokes fun at his portentous operas.

 

04/17/24 PDQ Bach: Missa Hilarious (S.NO2)

Bach had briefly converted to Catholicism but wasn't a member of the church long. This mass, for example, earned him an excommunication. This mass, like his other religious works, was placed on the church's index of proscribed books.

 

04/18/24 Florence Foster Jenkins: Queen of the Night Aria

Jenkins was a society matron who wanted to be an opera singer in the worst way -- and she was. And she was wildly popular. While the audience came to hear her mangle arias, it was never clear if Jenkins herself was in on the joke.

 

04/19/24 PDQ Bach: Konzertshtick for Two Violins Mit Orchestra (S 2+)

Normally a concert piece for two instruments provides a balance between the two soloists. But in this case, it's hardly a fair fight.

 

#ClassicsaDay #ClassicalHumor Week 2

This month's Classics a Day theme is a tribute to the late Peter Schickle. Schickle was a talented composer of both classical and film music. He's best remembered, though, for his alter ego, PDQ Bach.

PDQ Bach was the youngest and least talented of Johann Sebastian Bach's children. The music by him that Peter Schickle "discovered" is musical humor at its most sublime. The more one knows about classical music, the funnier PDQ Bach pieces are. The works reference virtually every aspect of classical music, from familiar themes to nomenclature. 

But Schickle wsn't the first composer to have some fun with "serious" music. The challenge this month is to post examples of musical humor in classical works. Although most of my posts are PDQ Bach, an equal number aren't. Here are my posts for the second week of #ClassicalHumor.

04/08/24 Sergei Prokofiev: Symphony No. 1 "Classical Symphony"

Prokofiev wrote this work not as a joke, but as an exercise in composing without a piano. He predicted that critics would say he was "contaminating the pure classical pearls with horrible Prokofievish dissonances." But he also thought audiences would "just be content to hear happy and uncomplicated music."

  

04/09/24 PDQ Bach: The Stoned Guest S.86 proof

Although it seems a parody on Dargomyzhsky's opera The Stone Guest, this half-act opera actually follows many Classical Era conventions -- including grafting a happy ending onto a depressing tragedy. 

 

04/10/24 Charles Ives: Symphony No. 2

Ives once told someone who was hissing in the audience, "When you hear music like this, sit up and take it like a man!" For Ives, this symphony wasn't a joke, but rather a poke at the pretentiousness of the classical world. 

 

04/11/24 PDQ Bach: The Abduction of Figaro (Act 1, Scene 1)

PDQ Bach wasn't the only composer to write sequel to Mozart's operas. Just the least qualified to do so. 

 

04/12/24 Luigi Russolo: Serenata per intorarumori

Russolo invented a family of musical instruments in 1913. They were classified as crackers, bubblers, rumblers, buzzers and so on.

 

David Starobin Plays Guitar Music By Guitar Virtuosi

I thought David Starobin released his farewell album a couple of years ago. But I'm not complaining. Starobin is a masterful performer. And his releases are always well-recorded. 

Most of the works on "Virtuosi" have been previously released -- but not all. Three selections by W.T. Matiegka. Matiegka was a friend of Franz Schubert, and their styles are very similar. If Schubert had written guitar music, this is probably what it would have sounded like. 

Also premiered her are Five Anecdotes by Andres Segovia. He's the only 20th Century composer on the album. The others all date from the early Romantic Era. But his music isn't out of place. These works explore the possibilities of the guitar while remaining tonal and tuneful.

Starobin plays with remarkable control. He plucks the strings with precision -- even the fasted runs sound clean and accurate. And his left hand technique is flawless. There's never even the hint of a finger slide. 

But most important is what Starobin does with these skills. He plays expressively, giving shape to the music. It doesn't matter how demanding the music is, one only hears the beauty of the sound. 

This is a collection of virtuoso guitar music written by virtuoso guitarists. And it's played by a virtuoso guitarist. 

Virtuosi: Guitar Music by Giuliani, Matiegka, L'Hoyer, Coste, Regondi, Sor, Segovia
David Starobin, guitar
Bridge Records 9600

#ClassicsaDay #ClassicalHumor Week 1

 This month's Classics a Day theme is a tribute to the late Peter Schickle. Schickle was a talented composer of both classical and film music. He's best remembered, though, for his alter ego, PDQ Bach.

PDQ Bach was the youngest and least talented of Johann Sebastian Bach's children. The music by him that Peter Schickle "discovered" is musical humor at its most sublime. The more one knows about classical music, the funnier PDQ Bach pieces are. The works reference virtually every aspect of classical music, from familiar themes to nomenclature. 

But Schickle wsn't the first composer to have some fun with "serious" music. The challenge this month is to post examples of musical humor in classical works. Although most of my posts are PDQ Bach, an equal number aren't. Here are my posts for the first week of #ClassicalHumor.

04/01/24 PDQ Bach: Twelve Quite Heavenly Songs S.16

One of PDQ Bach's more ambitious song cycles is this set of twelve lieder based on the signs of the Zodiac (sort of).

04/02/24 Lord Berners: Funeral March for a Rich Aunt

Lord Berners was Gerald Hugh Tyrwitt-Wilson, 14th Baron Berners. Although he was a early 20th C. avant gardist, he could never quite suppress his sense of humor.

 

04/03/24 PDQ Bach: Cantata Blaues Gras

Bach composed this work while at Wein-am-Rhine. It was commissioned by Tommy Mann and the Magic Mountain Boys, a roving group of musicians playing instruments from the American colonies.

 

04/04/24 Dmitri Shostakovich: Gallop, from "The Nose"

Shostakovich's 1927 opera involves a nose who runs away from its face and causes mayhem. The music matches the absurd plot, which features a human-size dancing nose.

 

04/05/24 PDQ Bach: Iphigenia in Brooklyn, S.53162

The title of this cantata plays off a couple of things. The Schickle  number of this work references the cantatas written by Gerog Philipp Telemann and Christoph Graupner. They number in the thousands for each composer. Second, several composers set the stories of Iphigenia in Aulis and Iphigenia in Tauris. So having her land someplace else seemed only natural.

 

David Johnson Solo Piano Music: Unfamiliar and Appealing

David Johnson was an important figure in Scottish music. He did ground-breaking research into 18th Century Scottish folk music. His work established links between folk and classical music of the period. 

Johnson was responsible for reviving several early Scottish composers of the era. And as an instrumentalist and concert promoter, he brought this music to the public. 

Johnson was also a prolific composer, although his music isn't well-known. This album collects the twelve preludes and fugues Johnson wrote in the 1990s. He was a research fellow at the time. The initial pieces were written as one-offs. 

But as time went on, Johnson came to think of them as a series. He composed the later installments with that concept in mind. The pieces all share a common four-note motif. -- B-flat, B natural, E and A. In Germanic spelling, B natural is "H." It allowed Bach to spell out his name musically. And it allowed Johnson to reference Bheatha -- the Gaelic word for life. 

This is a fascinating collection of pieces. Some are quite simple. Others sound challenging to play. Johnson writes in a primarily tonal style. But that doesn't limit him to simple harmonies. 

Christopher Guild has a strong background playing Scottish classical music. And that experience informs his playing here. Johnson often referenced Scottish music in these pieces. Guild ensures they're played with the proper phrasing and rhythmic bounce.

Charming, witty, and thought-provoking. 

David Johnson: 12 Preludes and Fugues for solo piano
Christopher Guild, piano
Divine Art

#ClassicsaDay #WomensHistoryMonth Week 4, 2024

 The #ClassicsaDay team has made Women's History Month the March theme since 2017. The challenge remains: post classical music videos from female composers on your social media channels. There are plenty of options when it comes to 21st- and 20th-century composers.

What continually surprises me is how much music is yet to be discovered from earlier centuries. And also how much of it was known at the time, but somehow fell into obscurity. Here are my discoveries for the fourth and final week of #WomensHistoryMonth. 

03/25/24 Alba Trissina (f. 1622): Vulnerasti cor meum

Trissina was a Carmelite nun who studied with Leone Leoni. Leoni published four of her works in 1622. They're all that survive of her music.

 

03/26/24 Mlle Bocquet (early 17th C.-after 1660): Sarabande in A minor

Her first name is unknown, but not her talent. This virtuoso lutenist wrote a series of works that expanded the possibilities of the instrument.

 

03/27/24 Antonia Bembo (c. 1640–1720): Se legge d'amore

Bembo was an Italian singer and composer who found a home at Versailles. She was a musician in the court of Louis XIV. Six volumes of her music are preserved in manuscript.

 

03/28/24 Rosa Giacinta Badalla (1660–1710): Pane angelico

Badalla's reputation rests on a single publication. Motetti a voce sola (1684, Venice) shows a composer at the top of her game. The works were most likely written for performance in her convent.

 

03/29/24 Elisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre (1665–1729): Sonata No. 2 in B-flat

De La Guerre was famed as a harpsichord virtuoso. She published several collections of sonatas and cantatas. She also composed two operas that were staged in the 1690s. 

 

Next Month:

Amazing Miniatures by Janis Kepitis Ripe for Discovery

Jānis Ķepītis was was concertmaster for Latvian Radio from 1934 through 1952. And he was on the faculty of the Latvian State Conservatory from the end of World War II until his death in 1984. He taught Chamber Ensemble, and was beloved by his students. 

Keptis was also a prolific composer. And despite the quality of his work,  his fame remained within the borders of Latvia. His work included six symphonies, two operas, and many chamber works. 

This release focuses on an even larger and less-explored portion of Keptis' music. 

Keptis wrote hundreds of short solo piano music, many that were never published. Keptis lived in a Soviet-controlled Latvia. And music was as tightly controlled as all other forms of expression. Since his piano music was never published, it never had to be vetted by the authorities. 

Perhaps for that reason, there's an honesty to these works that comes through time and again. These are simply well-crafted pieces written for the shear joy of creation.

Nora Luse plays with sympathy and enthusiasm. These may be small pieces, but she takes them seriously. And in the process reveals some marvelous miniatures of beauty. I'm looking forward to the next installment.

Janis Kepitis: Piano Miniatures from the Manuscripts, Volume One
Nora Luse, piano
Toccata Classics

Akademie fur Alte Musik Berlin's Sympathetic Performances of CPE Bach

 

This release presents a sampling of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach symphonies. The works They span a forty-year period, starting when Bach was in Berlin, and ending when he was in Hamburg. They're in the empfindsam, or sentimental style. 

The idea was to return to true and natural expression. It was a reaction to the intellectualism of the late Baroque. And that naturalism is in evidence in these works. Bach creates catchy, tuneful melodies that sound simple, but never trite.

The Berlin symphonies were written for a sophisticated audience that craved the unusual. Bach delivers, often with some unexpected phrasing. 

The Hamburg symphonies have a different aesthetic. Bach's patron, Baron Gottfried van Swieten, wanted works that were grand and sublime. And Bach delivers. 

The Akademi fur Alte Musik Berlin performs these works with both precision and expression. Empfindsam may sound simple, but it requires real musicianship to convey its charm. The ensemble does so in symphony after symphony. 

Some of these symphonies were highly regarded in Bach's time. And rightly so. They appeal to the ear as well as the intellect.  

Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach: Symphonies from Berlin to Hamburg
Akademie fur Alte Musik Berlin
Harmonia Mundi

#ClassicsaDay #WomensHistoryMonth Week 3, 2024

 The #ClassicsaDay team has made Women's History Month the March theme since 2017. The challenge remains: post classical music videos from female composers on your social media channels. There are plenty of options when it comes to 21st- and 20th-century composers.

What continually surprises me is how much music is yet to be discovered from earlier centuries. And also how much of it was known at the time, but somehow fell into obscurity. Here are my discoveries for the third week of #WomensHistoryMonth. 

3/18/24 Chiara Margarita Cozzolani (1602–1678) Bone Jesu

Cozzola was a Benedictine nun who also composed for her convent. Four collections of her music were published during her lifetime, although almost half are now lost.

 

3/19/24 Claudia Francesca Rusca (1583​-​1676): Canzon Prima à4 'La Borromea,' Canzoni Francesi à4

Rusca was a nun at a convent in Milan. Her only collection of music was written for use inside convents. The Sacri concerti à 1–5 con salmi e canzoni francesi (Milan, 1630) existed only in manuscript.

 

3/20/24 Leonora Duarte (1610–1678): Sinfonia VII

Duarte was a talented composer and keyboardist from Antwerp. Her only surviving works are a collection of seven symphonies written around 1650.

 

3/21/24 Sulpitia Cesis (fl. 1619): Angelus ad Pastores

Cesis was a nun who spent most of her life in a convent. She was also a noted composer and lutenist. Her fame rests on a single collection of Motetti Spirituali, published in 1619.

 

3/22/24 Barbara Strozzi (1619–1677): O Maria (Sacri Musicali Affetti, Op. 5)

Strozzi's salons were well-known in Venice. The intelligentsia would gather to hear her perform (and sing) her compositions. Eight volumes of her vocal works were published during her lifetime.

 

Gustav Hoyer: Rime of the Ancient Mariner

Gustav Hoyer's "Rime of the Ancient Marriner" works on two levels. And that's a remarkable feat. This album features two versions of the composition. One includes a recitation of the poem, The other is just the music. 

Played under the recitation, Hoyer's music supports and amplifies the poem's disturbing imagery. But this is not just background music. 

Without the narration, the work becomes an epic tone poem. One that conveys the drama and arc of the narrative exclusively in music. 

Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem was published in 1798.  It set the tone for gothic horror of the 19th Century. The Ancient Mariner of the poem is a cursed sailor. He frivolously kills an albatross, a good luck symbol. In doing so, he condemns the entire crew to death. Only he is spared to wander the earth, recounting his tale over and over. 

Coleridge's poem carries a hint of menace. The mariner waylays a wedding guest about to enter the church for the ceremony. As his tale unfolds, it's clear that the mariner is driven to tell his story to specific people. But why this person, and why at that moment?

The poem implies there's a reason, but it's never revealed. The wedding guest is compelled to listen to the mariner, but he can't explain why. Hoyer's music perfectly captures that concept of unease and unspoken danger. It defines the work and gives it emotional power.

The Budapest Film Orchestra is directed by Peter Pejtsik. The orchestra delivers a lush, emotive performance. One can hear the ocean swells, the approach of death, the unfolding of the curse.  This is powerful and effective orchestral writing. 

This is a tale of the supernatural, but the Rime of the Ancient Mariner is a tale of redemption. By telling and retelling his story, the mariner is atoning for his sin. Hoyer's music conveys that feeling of hope, which peeks through from time to time. 

Kent Stephens is an excellent narrator. His reading is dramatic, yet restrained, adding to the unsettling nature of the poem. I can't say which version I prefer. Both provide a moving listening experience. 

Recommended.

Gustav Hoyer: the Rime of the Ancient Mariner
The Budapest Film Orchestra; Peter Pejtsik conductor
Kent Stephens narration
Navona NV6590

Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and JoAnn Falletta Echo Success

 "Echoes of Eastern Europe" accurately describes this new album. The Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra presents two works inspired by Czecho-Slovak music. 

The BPO's partnership with JoAnne Falletta has been a fruitful one. The orchestra is now a world-class ensemble with an impressive catalog. And they have explored neglected areas of the repertoire 

This album pairs a 19th and a 21st-Century work. David Serkin Ludwig's violin concerto was a present for his wife, Belia Hristova. The concerto is an exciting, energetic work.  It references the Slavic dances of her heritage. 

Hristrova plays with a fiery, gritty tone. Her violin at times sounds like a fiddle -- which is the intent. Falletta and the BSO Enthusiastically join in the celebration. 

Antonin Dvorak never strayed far from his Czech roots. His Symphony No. 7 was completed in 1885. Dvorak's immediate inspiration was Brahm's Third Symphony with a taste of Bohemia. 

Donald Tovey wrote, "[this symphony is] among the greatest and purest examples in this art form since Beethoven." And so it is. The symphony follows the traditional four-movement symphonic structure. Themes are developed logically and organically. 

The work is pure music (there's no program attached). But careful listening reveals some Czech influences. Sometimes it's a rhythm or a melodic turn. It follows Ludwig's concerto on the album, so the ear is already attuned to hear folk elements. 

The BSO and Falletta give the symphony a stirring reading. It's a performance I found satisfying with repeated listening. 

I do have one complaint about the album, though, and that's the cover. I'd call it echoes of a good album cover. The figures are weirdly blurred.  The image says almost nothing (at least to me) about the music.

Don't judge this release by its cover. The artwork may be clumsily executed, but the performances within are both first-rate. 

Echoes of Eastern Europe
David Ludwig: Violin Concerto; Antonin Dvorak: Symphony No. 7
Bella Hristova, violin
Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra; JoAnn Falletta, conductor

Pál Hermann Complete Surviving Music Series Concludes with Delightful Oddities

Pál Hermann should have toured the world, receiving his due as one of the 20th Century's greatest cellists. Pál Hermann should have developed his compositional skills. And in time Pál Hermann should have graduated to large-form works. 

Pál Hermann should have left a rich legacy of recordings. Pál Hermann should have lived past age 42. 

But Pál Hermann was a Jew in 1930s Europe. His career was curtailed in Nazi-controlled countries. He moved to France, and then to the Free Zone in southern France after Germany invaded  Hermann was captured in 1944 and died en route to a Lithuanian extermination camp. 

Hermann's surviving music shows a composer of great imagination and promise. The first volume in the Toccata Classics series presented his Cello Concerto and other orchestral works. Volume Two focused on his chamber and instrumental music, mostly for stringed instruments. 

This final volume rounds up the odds and ends of Hermann's catalog. And in the process, round out the portrait of these talented musicians. 

Hermann was a cello virtuoso, but his musical interests were far-ranging. He loved early music. Hermann played with an early music ensemble while in school. His Suite for Three Recorders and his Saraband for Lute are charming homages to Renaissance music. 

The Divertissement for harpsichord is less so.  Hermann writes some decidedly modern music for the instrument. 

Also included is a variety of short piano pieces. There's even a work for piano four hands. And his small collection of songs is also present. 

Hermann did not survive the war, but his music did. It's take a while, but that music lives again in these Toccata Classics recordings. To my ears, they sound as fresh and inventive as the day they were penned. 

Recommended -- and not just this volume, but the entire series.

Pál Hermann: Complete Surviving Music, Volume Three
Chamber, Instrumental, and Vocal Music
Various Artists, including Mikko Pablo, cello; Matthieu Walendzik, baritone; Lena Zhukova, harpsichord; Nicolas Horvath and Dimitri Malignan, piano
Toccata Classics 

#ClassicsaDay #WomensHistoryMonth Week 2, 2024

 The #ClassicsaDay team has made Women's History Month the March theme since 2017. The challenge remains: post classical music videos from female composers on your social media channels. There are plenty of options when it comes to 21st- and 20th-century composers.

What continually surprises me is how much music is yet to be discovered from earlier centuries. And also how much of it was known at the time, but somehow fell into obscurity. Here are my discoveries for the first week of #WomensHistoryMonth. 

3/11/24 Caterina Assandra (1590-after 1618): O Dulcis Amor Jesu

Assandra was a Benedictine nun, as well as a composer and organist. She published at least two books of motets (only Op. 2 survives), as well as several other sacred works.

 

3/12/24 Francesca Caccini (1587–1640?): Chi desia

Francesca's father Giulio was one of the founders of opera. Francesca's sister Settimia was a successful singer and composer. Francesca's "La liberazione di Ruggerio" (1625) is the earliest known opera composed by a woman.

 

3/13/24 Settimia Caccini (1591–1638?): Due luci ridenti

Settima's father Giulio was one of the founders of opera. And her sister Francesca was a respected composer of opera as well. Although a prolific composer herself, only eight of Settima's works survive.

 

3/14/24 Claudia Sessa (c. 1570 – c. 1617/19): Occhi io vissi di voi

Sessa was a nun. She was also an instrumentalist, singer, and composer. Two of her sacred choral works were published in 1613. 

 

3/15/24 Lucrezia Orsina Vizzana (1590–1662): O magnum misterium

Vizzana was a nun in the convent of S. Christina, Bologna. And she was also a singer, organist, and composer. A collection of her choral music, Componimenti musicali de motetti concertati a l e più voci was published in 1623.

 

Bruckner From the Archives, Volume 1 - A Remarkable Series

This is a remarkable project constructed from some remarkable sources. it's a complete survey of Bruckner's eleven symphonies (along with other key works). Each of the six volumes will comprise of two CDs -- over 2 hours of music each.

And the sources are equally remarkable. There are some world recording premieres and some CD premieres. The source material comes from the archive of John Berky, president of the Bruckner Society of America. 

Culled from over 11,000 recordings, the performances here are rare. Yet each delivers a strong interpretation of Bruckner's music. 

The works in volume one come from 1862-63. Bruckner was in his forties. He was already an established choral composer and organist. He wanted to write symphonies and began an intense period of study. Technically the music on this release are student pieces. But they work very well as legitimate compositions. 

The String Quartet, WAB 111 shows Bruckner's grasp of form and melody. The recording comes from a 1951 NDR aircheck with the Koeckert Quartet. The practice Symphony in F minor WAB 99 is another revelation. 

Though competently written, it doesn't hint at the symphonies to come. Rather, it's a Mendelssohn/Brahms-like work that provides a pleasant listen. Kurt Woss and the Bruckner Orchestra, Linz gives a sympathetic reading in this 1974 aircheck. 

Bruckner's first symphony is also represented. The Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Eugen Jochum performs. This is the original version of this work, the "Linz" version. 

Kudos go to Lani Spahr, responsible for the audio restoration and remastering. The recordings range from 1944 to 1974. Spahr does a great job bringing these tracks close to the same sound. You can still hear the differences between the decades, but they're not jarring. 

Rarely heard Bruckner in rarely-heard performances. This is my kind of series!

Anton Bruckner: From the Archives, Volume 1 

Bruckner Orchestra, Linz; Kurt Woss, conductor 

Vienna Symphony Orchestra; Hans Weisbach, conductor 

Vienna Akademie Kammerchor, Vienna Symphony Orchestra; Henry Swoboda, conductor 

WDR Symphony Orchestra Koln; Dean Dixon, conductor 

Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra; Eugen Jochum, conductor 

Koeckert Quartet 

Somm Recordings, Ariadne 5025-2

Audiophile Society Delivers with Strauss Release

This is a release from the Audiophile Society. So sound quality is paramount. But on this release, performance quality is also paramount. The album presents two different mixes of the same Strauss tone poem.

Mega-Dimensional Sound is a 3D audio format developed by the Audiophile Society (that is, its founder, chief engineer, and bottlewasher David Chesky). 

The format accounts for different listening environments. Because when it comes to playback, one size does not fit all.

The headphone mix is for intimate listening. It's for high-performance headphones powered by a headphone amp for optimal responsiveness. The mix takes into account that the speakers are inches from the ears. And the sound is contained within earcups. 

This mix reproduces what would be heard in the studio. It's a clean, detailed sound. The instrumental timbers are accurately reproduced, but there's virtually no ambiance. In other words, an ideal recording to explore sonically through headphones. 

The speaker mix adds ambiance. It's designed for reproduction in an open space. The sound is still very detailed. But it sounds fuller. The soundfield conveys a real sense of dimension. One can hear the orchestra spread out before them, and pick out where soloists are located. 

If this were just an audio demo, I wouldn't write about it (not my beat). But the performance merits the effort. The Czech National Symphony Orchestra delivers a committed performance. 

Strauss was an innovative orchestrator. The orchestra delivers, always with a clear, balanced sound. Seven Mercurio keeps things moving along. I have heard performances where things get a little unfocused along the way. Not here.

Mercurio knows where he's going with this score, and how he wants the orchestra to respond. And they do. 

Make sure you play the proper mix for your media. The headphone mix played through speakers can sound a little flat. And if you're downloading, get the highest resolution file you can. It will make a difference. 

Richard Strauss: Also Sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30
Czech National Symphony Orchestra; Seven Mercurio, conductor
The Audiophile Society

Schumann Trilogy Surveys Concertos and Piano Trios

This is a perfect program that works on so many levels. This is more than a Schumann Trilogy. It's actually several Schumann trilogies folded together. 

This three-disc set features the three concertos Schumann composed for violin, cello, and piano. It also features his three piano trios. The soloists comprise the piano trio. And they're each a featured soloist in a Schumann concerto. 

What makes this project even more interesting is the choice of instruments. Isobelle Faust, Jean-Guihen Queyras, and Alexander Minikov wanted to get to the heart of Schumann's music. So they elected to perform with instruments of the period. 

That meant gut-stringed violin and cello. Pianist Melnkiov used an 1847 Streicher fortepiano for the trios, and a 1837 Érard pianoforte for the concerto. And of course, the Freiburger Barokorchester also used instruments of the period. 

It makes for a subtle but important difference in sound. The Piano Concerto in A minor is a repertoire staple. There are plenty of thundering interpretations with large orchestras and steel-string concert grands. Here the sound is softer and more refined. It's still a showpiece, but somehow a more sophisticated one. 

Joseph Joachim didn't think much of the violin concerto Schumann wrote for him. He never performed it and forbade its publication for 100 years. Times have changed. Schumann's use of traditional forms was fluid, but not flawed. The music works on its own terms. Isobelle Faust delivers a thrilling performance.

When these three artists get together things really take off. The three piano trios of Schumann are intimate works. The piano parts were all written with his wife Clara in mind. But the violin and cello are well-balanced with the piano. 

The trios have a sense of exuberance, especially in these performances. As I said -- a perfect program. And in this case, played to perfection.   

The Schumann Trilogy
Violin Concerto WoO 1; Piano Concerto Op. 54; Cello Concerto Op. 129
Piano Trios Nos. 1-3
Isobelle Faust, violin; Jean-Guihen Queyras, cello; Alexander Mlnikov, piano
Freiburger Barokorchester; Pablo Heras-Casado, conductor
Harmonia Mundi HMX 2904095.98

#ClassicsaDay #WomensHistoryMonth Week 1 2024

 The #ClassicsaDay team has made Women's History Month the March theme since 2017. The challenge remains: post classical music videos from female composers on your social media channels. There are plenty of options when it comes to 21st- and 20th-century composers.

What continually surprises me is how much music is yet to be discovered from earlier centuries. And also how much of it was known at the time, but somehow fell into obscurity. Here are my discoveries for the first week of #WomensHistoryMonth. 

03/04/24 Kassia (c.810-867): Hymn of Kassiani the Nun

Kassia, also known as Kassiani wrote extensively on theology, and composed prolifically. Many of her hymns have become part of the Eastern Orthodox hymnody.

 

03/05/24 Herrad of Landsberg (c. 1130-1195): Creatrices

Herrad was an Alsatian abbess of Hohenburg Abbey. Her major work was the Hortus deliciarum, an illustrated encyclopedia of all knowledge known to 12th-century Europeans. It also included 20 songs, notated with neumes.

 

03/06/24 Maddalena Casulana (c.1540–c.1590): Madrigal VI

Casulana was a lutenist, singer, and composer. She was the first female composer to have an entire book of her music published. She would have three collections of madrigals published in her lifetime: in 1570, 1583, and in 1586.

 

03/07/24 Alba Tressina (fl. 1590): Anima mea liquefacta est

Tressina was a Carmelite nun in Vecnza. Leone Leoni was the maestro di cappella at eh Vicenz Cathedral. Thanks to him, four of Tressina's motets have been preserved.

 

03/08/24 Vittoria Aleotti (c.1575–after 1620): Lasso quand’io credei d’esser felice

Vittoria was one of two gifted female composers in the same family. Vittoria published a single set of madrigals in 1593. Her younger sister Raffaella also published a collection of music the same year.

 

Fridrich Bruk Symphonies Reflect on Art

Fridrich Bruk is a Ukrainian-born composer who made a home in Finland. He's been quietly building an impressive catalog of symphonies. A catalog I would have known nothing about without Toccata Classics. The label has released five albums so far, bringing ten of Bruk's twenty-three symphonies to the world. 

Several of Bruk's works have extra-musical themes. The two symphonies in this volume were inspired by painters and their works. 

The subtitle for Bruk's Symphony 13 is a little unwieldy -- The Painter Malevich (1878–1935). Kazimir Malevich was a Ukrainian painter who pioneered the Russian avant-garde. His abstract art got him into trouble with the Soviet authorities. In the end, they forced him to return to a realist style. 

Bruk depicts the thwarted artistic spirit of Malevich and his battle with the authorities. The symphony opens with a heroic theme. It undergoes many transformations throughout the work. That theme, BTW, sounds very close to Alexander Courage's original "Star Trek" horn call. But I'm sure that wasn't intentional.   

Symphony No. 14 from 2015 is subtitled "The Scream." It's inspired by Edvard Munch's painting but does far more than just musically depict the work. The orchestra doesn't play at full volume throughout. Rather, Bruk creates an unsettled mode. The music sounds restless, and often at odds with itself. 

Bruk's style is mostly tonal, which adds to the power of the work. We have a frame of reference. We know where the music is supposed to go -- even when it doesn't. And Bruk is a master orchestrator. Individual instruments, pairs, and trios, are used effectively. 

The Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra directed by Imants Resnis delivers spirited performances. I'm hoping Toccata Classics will eventually release all Bruk's symphonies. Every one I've heard so far is well-crafted and has a distinct personality.

Fridrich Bruk: Orchestral Music, Volume 5
Symphony No. 13, the Artist Kazimir Malevich (1878-1935)
Symphony No. 14, The Scream
Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra; Imants Resnis, conductor
Toccata Classics, TOCC 0661

Howard Blake Orchestral Works Show Depth

This release is in honor of Howard Blake's 85th birthday. Blake has had a long and successful career both in the concert hall and in film. He's a skilled and prolific composer, with over 650 works to his credit. 

And yet to many, he's a one-hit wonder. -- "Walking on Air" from the animated classic "The Snowman." But there's so much more to this British composer. As this release demonstrates.

The release was timed for Blake's 85th birthday, but the material is much older. The works were recorded in the 1990s, with Blake serving as producer. 

I researched the tracks, but couldn't find previous listings for them. The artists are the same as an ASV Blake recording. Perhaps they were from the same sessions?

In the end, it doesn't matter. If these compositions were released earlier, they're long out of print. And thanks to SOMM, they're available now. The sound quality is very good, with plenty of detail to relish.

The collection includes Blake's Symphony No. 1 from 1967. Subtitled   "Impressions of a City," it shows Blakes's skill to set the stage with music.  And it shows his ability as an orchestrator.

The Concert Dances for Piano and Orchestra from 1992 shows Blake's skill as a performer. He both plays and conducts the Philharmonia Orchestra from the piano bench. 

The Court of Love (1979) and A Month in the Country (1992) round out the release. These are straightforward, appealing works. They're on a higher plain than British light classical music. Yet they're still quite tuneful and appealing. 

Orchestral Music by Howard Blake
Philharmonia Orchestra; Howard Blake piano and conductor
English Northern Philharmonia; Paul Daniel conductor
Somm Recordings

#ClassicsaDay #BlackHistoryMonth Week 4 2024

Classical music originated in Western Europe, but it's not exclusive to dead, white European males. The challenge for February is to post videos of classical music either written or performed by musicians of color. 

There's a lot to choose from. I decided to focus on composers, but there are plenty of conductors and performers going back farther than you might think. Here are my posts for the fourht and final week of #BlackHistoryMonth 

02/26/24 Shawn Okpebholo: There is Always Light

This trio for clarinet, bassoon, and marimba was composed in 2021. The title comes from the spiritual "Hold On."

 

02/27/24 Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson: Worship A Concert Overture for Orchestra

Perkinson wrote classical music and founded the Symphony of the New World. He also composed for Max Roach, wrote film scores, and did arrangements for Marvin Gaye.

 

02/28/24 Zenobia Powell Perry: Echoes from the Journey

Perry was a composer and civil rights activist. Many of her compositions reference the Black Experience. In this work, she uses spirituals to illustrate that experience from Reconstruction through the 1960s.

 

02/29/24 Samuel Coleridge-Taylor: Ballade in A minor for Orchestra, Op. 33

This work was composed the same year his cantata Hiawatha's Wedding Feast was premiered, 1898. It was one of 92 works he published before his death at age 37.

 

Next Month:

Benjamin Alard Happily Performs Bach

Benjamin Alard's chronological traversal of Bach's harpsichord music continues. Volume 9 features music written while Johann Sebastian Bach was in Köthen. This album is subtitled "Köthen, 1717-1723 - The Happy Years." And rightly so. 

Leopold, Prince of Anhalt-Köthen, was a keen musician and appreciated Bach's talents. Bach was Leopold's Kapellmeister and could give his musical creativity free reign. This album features some of those efforts, including the English Suites and the Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 in D major.

Alard plays a 1740 triple-manual harpsichord made by Hieronymus Albrecht Hass. The instrument has five sets of strings and six registers. This allows Alard a great deal of expressive leeway.  The instrument can deliver dramatic changes in volume. Different registers have different timbres, providing contrast for contrapuntal passages.

And the recorded sound of the instrument is remarkably clean. There's no rattling of loose parts, no clack of keys. Just the sound of the plucked string. That pure sound is ideal for Alard's masterful playing. 

His technique seems flawless. And his choice of string and register combinations elevate these performances to a different plane. The music is as expressive as if played on a piano -- only in a more style-appropriate manner. 

A solid addition to this excellent series. 

Johann Sebastian Bach: The Complete Works for Keyboard, Vol. 9
Köthen, 1717-1723 - The Happy Years
Benjamin Alard, harpsichord
Marc Mauillon, baritone
Sien Huybrechts, flauto traverso; Anne Pekkala & Paul Monteiro, violinss; Samantha Montgomery, viola; Ronan Kernoa, bass violin
Harmonia Mundi HMM 902472.73
2 CD set

Arnold Rosner Orchestral Music Uniquely Powerful

Arnold Rosner is one of my favorite composers. I am thrilled that Toccata Classics has issued a fourth volume of his orchestral music. Here's to many more!

Rosner was a unique talent. His style combined Romantic Era lyricism with Medieval and Renaissance harmonies. His music seems to come from an alternate reality. One where the Baroque never happened.

The works in this release share a similar character. They have a powerful sound that seems timeless. Of special interest is Variations on a Theme by Frank Martin. Rosner admired Martin, another composer who created his own style. Martin's music is very much suited to Rosner's. The work sounds like a collaboration between the two. 

Rosner didn't totally ignore the Baroque period. He borrowed some forms from the era, albeit to rework them. The Concerto Grosso No. 2 is one such work. Here Rosner alternates ripieno tuttis with various melodic fragments. The fragments develop and coalesce in unexpected ways.  

A My Lai Elegy is Rosner at his best. His anger toward this massacre is palpable. And that anger fuels this composition. The work has some tutti outbursts that almost overwhelm the listener. Rosner's harmonies have a raw power to them. Here they unleash a fury of sound.      

The London Philharmonic Orchestra directed by Nick Palmer delivers committed performances. Rosner's music benefits from its powerful ensemble sound. And their ability to drop from fff to ppp in a heartbeat.   

All the works on this release are world premiere recordings. Arnold Rosner was a true individual. But one whose works can be readily enjoyed on first hearing. His music connects. It just needs an audience to connect to. Recordings like this help. 

Arnold Rosner: Orchestral Music, Volume Four
London Philharmonic Orchestra; Nick Palmer, conductor
Toccata Classics, TOPCC 0710

Charles Villiers Stanford: Irish Song Cycles Return to Roots

I've often described Charles Villiers Stanford's music as Brahms with an Irish lilt. Stanford's Irish roots were never far from his musical inspiration. In this collection, those roots are front and center.

Stanford incorporates Irish melodic turns and harmonies into his songs. "Cushendall," from 1910 sets the poems of Ulster poet John Stevenson.  

"A Fire of Turf" comes from a collection by Winifred Letts. Letts was inspired by the Celtic Revival of the early 1900s. Stanford's music reinforces their cultural identity. 

"A Sheaf of Songs from Leinster" comes from that same collection. Rather than creating a song cycle, Stanford presents a series of stand-alone vignettes.

Stanford is often characterized as a stuffy Victorian, which is a little unfair. His "Blarney Ballads" of the 1890s are satirical songs. The broad humor shows another side of Stanford's personality. 

Also included are two songs from his opera "Shamus O'Brien." Stanford wanted to be known as an opera composer but without success.

Sharon Carty and Benjamin Russell give some fine performances. The "Irishness" of these songs varies from work to work. Carty and Russell hit just the right tone time after time. Russell's singing of the "Blarney Ballads," for example, borders on caricature. But his delivery of "A Fire of Turf" is effective and sincere.

A fine addition to Somm's survey of Stanford's music.

Charles Villiers Stanford: Cushendall
Irish Song Cycles
Sharon Carty mezzo-soprano; Benjamin Russell, baritone; Finghin Collins, piano
Somm Recordings SOMMCD 0681

#ClassicsaDay #BlackHistoryMonth Week 3, 2024

Classical music originated in Western Europe, but it's not exclusive to dead, white European males. The challenge for February is to post videos of classical music either written or performed by musicians of color. 

There's a lot to choose from. I decided to focus on composers, but there are plenty of conductors and performers going back farther than you might think. Here are my posts for the third week of #BlackHistoryMonth 

02/19/24 Julia Perry: Prelude for Piano

Perry won two Guggenheim Fellowships and studied with Nadia Boulanger in Paris. She was on the faculty of Florida A&M University, a historically black land-grant university.

 

02/20/24 James Lee III: Sinfonia Concertante for Violin and Orchestra

Lee studied with William Bolcom and Bright Sheng. He's currently on the faculty of Morgan State University. His Snfonia Concertante was written in 2017.

 

02/21/24 Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges: Sonata for Two Violins

Bologne was a virtuoso violinist as well as a composer. In the 1790s he was one of the most famous -- and popular -- musicians in Paris. 

02/22/24 Edmond Dédé: Two pieces for Piano

Dédé was a child prodigy. But as a free-born Creole in the antebellum South, opportunities were non-existent. He moved to France and became an important composer and opera conductor.

 

02/23/24 William Grant Still: Wood Notes

Still was a ground-breaking artist. He was the first Black to: conduct a major orchestra; have an opera performed on national TV; have a symphony played by a major orchestra; and have an opera performed by a major opera company.

 

Chromosphere Explores Woodwind Orchestra's Potential

Let's be clear. A woodwind orchestra isn't a regular orchestra with the strings and brass removed. The Czech Philharmonic Wind Ensemble has 18 players. This lineup includes four sax players -- a rarity in a standard orchestra.

It's definitely a contemporary grouping of instruments. And this release presents grouping of contemporary British composers.

Judith Bingham is the most prominent of this group. Her work "Mozart's Pets" premiered in 2021. It's a lighthearted blend of instruments depicting animals with Mozart's music.

"Domes" by Kamran Ince is an entirely different kind of music. The work was originally written for orchestra in 1993. Ince reworked it for woodwind orchestra in 2022. He creates long, flowing lines with wavering dissonances. It's somber, ethereal, and thought-provoking.

The works by Keiron Anderson, Charlotte Harding, and Christopher Hussey are of similar quality. This isn't high school band music. These compositions use instrumental combinations in effective and imaginative ways.

These works are written at a level of complexity that engages the listener. And rewards multiple listening.  

Chromosphere: Symphonic Colors of the Woodwind Orchestra
Czech Philharmonic Wind Ensemble
Divine Art DDX 21117

Argentinian Contemporary Music Takes Flight

Initially, the album title confused me. But "Alas" (as used here) isn't a lamentation. Rather, it's the Argentinian word for "wings." This release features music by Argentinian composers. And.these works do indeed take flight.

Alberto Ginastera is Argentina's greatest composer (or at least best-known). He's represented with his Variaciones concertantes, Op. 23. This work gives many instruments in the orchestra a place in the spotlight. And the musicians of Orchestre de Lutetia handle them deftly. 

The title track, "Alas" is also the most recent composition on the album. Gerardo Di Giusto's fantasy for violin, cello, and orchestra is a high-octane work. De Giusto uses traditional Argentinian dance rhythms to keep things moving. And they provide a sense of urgency throughout the composition.

Patrick Langot, cello, and Alexis Cardenas, violin make a fine team. They make the rhythms snap, and their playing has a fresh, raw sound. 

Langot is also featured on Alejandro Iglesias Rossi's Llorando silencios. This work for solo cello also incorporates many concepts of Argentinian music. , It makes for an effective showpiece. Langot's performance is assured and engaging.

Langot is also the soloist for Gabriel Sivak's Descaminos. This is a more contemporary work. Sivek uses masses of sound to create a mysterious world for the cello to explore. 

Four composers, four compositions. All are Argentinian, and that's really the only common denominator. Recommended.

Alas
Patrick Langot, cello; Alexis Cardenas, violin
Orchestre de Lutetia, Alejandro Sandler, conductor
Evidence Classics

Richard Flury String Quartets of Interest

Toccata Classics previously released eight volumes of Richard Flury's music. These albums featured his orchestral music, choral works, and even an opera or two. 

This release begins a survey of his chamber music. It presents two of Flury's seven string quartets. He composed the first in 1926. No. 4 was written in 1940.

Flury was a Swiss composer and conductor. He studied composition with Hans Huber and Joseph Marx. He also studied conducting with Felix Weingartner. In 1931 he joined the faculty of the Solothurn Canton School. Flury remained there until his death. 

Flury composed steadily and prolifically. His seven string quartets span a half-century. No. 1 shows the 30-year-old composer finding his voice. 

It's an attractive work, with some modernisms thrown in. I could hear hints of Hindemith, Bartok, and even a little Schoenberg. But it's all mixed together in a well-constructed composition. And at no time does it sound derivative. 

By 1940 Flury had found his voice. And that voice spoke the language of the late Romantic period. In some ways, I think it's a stronger work. It seemed more relaxed, and more organic in its development. 

The Colla Parte Quartet delivers some fine readings of these works. Their playing is both animated and engaged. The quartet gives the impression that these works are fun to play. And that is not a bad thing.

Richard Flury: Chamber Music, Volume One
String Quartets, Nos. 1 and 4
Colla Parte Quartet
Toccata Classics TOCC 0712

#ClassicsaDay #BlackHistoryMonth Week 2 2024

Classical music originated in Western Europe, but it's not exclusive to dead, white European males. The challenge for February is to post videos of classical music either written or performed by musicians of color. 

There's a lot to choose from. I decided to focus on composers, but there are plenty of conductors and performers going back farther than you might think. 

Here are my posts for the second week of #BlackHistoryMonth

02/12/24 William L. Dawson: Soon Ah Will Be Done

Dawson arranged several African-American spirituals that quickly entered the choral repertoire. "Soon Ah Will Be Done" was written in 1934, when he was at Tuskegee Institute.

 

02/13/24 R. Nathaneil Dett: Ave Maria

Dett was born in Canada but spent most of his life in America. He was the first Black composer to join ASCAP. He's one of many American composers to study with Nadia Boulanger.

 

02/14/24 Jose White Lafitte: La Bella Cubana

Lafitte was a Cuban-French violin virtuoso active in the late 19th Century. Most of Lafitte's works were written for the violin.

 

02/15/24 Jessie Montgomery: Strum

Montgomery is a violinist as well as a composer. She's served as composer-in-residence for the Chicago Symphony and is on the board of Chamber Music America.

 

02/16/24 Undine Smith Moore: We Shall Walk Through the Valley

Moore is known as the "Dean of Black Women Composers." Much of her work was inspired by African-American spirituals and folk music.