Around the World with Franz von Suppe

Jules Verne's novel "Around the World in Eighty Days" was an international best-seller. If you're of a certain age, you may recall the 1956 film adaptation starring David Niven and Shirley MacLaine. 

Or perhaps you're one of the few who saw the 2004 version with Jackie Chan and Steve Coogan. Although I passed on that, I did enjoy the PBS Masterpiece adaptation with David Tennant. 

The 1956 film's title song became an international hit. Can't say the same for subsequent productions. This release presents a musical version of "Around the World" that predates all of these. 

Dario Salvi is an expert at unearthing forgotten theater music from the 19th Century. And it's music that deserves a second hearing. This time, it's Franz von Suppé's score for an 1872 production of "Around the World in 80 Days." 

Suppé was one of the most popular and prolific theater composers of the late 19th Century. He wrote music for over 200 productions, but only a handful of overtures are still performed. 

There was a reason Suppé was so popular. He had a gift for melody and was a highly skilled orchestrator. He understood the essence of drama and how to convey it musically. And this play gave him a chance to shine. 

This spectacle play depicts Phineas Fogg's mad dash around the world. For each location Suppé presents some regional music (through the lens of Western classical music). Each set piece is sounds safely exotic. The Suez Canal, India, Borneo, and even California all get music that effectively sets the stage. 

Dario Salvi directs the Janáček Philharmonic Orchestra in some energetic performances. This music was written to tell a story. And under Salvi's direction, it does just that. Even listening to the music without the liner notes I could hear the locale changes. And I could hear the key dramatic moments when they arrived. 

If you like Suppé's overtures, get this release. This score shows a more sophisticated side of this composer.

Franz von Suppé: Die Reise um die Erde in 80 Tagen

Janáček Philharmonic Orchestra; Dario Salvi, conductor

Naxos 8.574396

Gottlieb Wallisch Delivers with Hans Gal Piano-based Works

This release features a selection of piano-oriented works by Hans Gal. Specifically, works written before the Second World War. 

Gal was Jewish, so when the Nazis came to power in 1933, his career as a composer and teacher in Germany was over. He relocated to Austria but fled in 1938 when the Nazis annexed it. Gal and his family arrived in Britain, where they were interred as hostiles until 1940. 

Two works come from the 1920s when Gal's future looked bright. The Quartet for Piano Left Hand, Violin, Viola, and Cello in A major was an important milestone. Concert pianist Paul Wittgenstein lost his right hand in the First World War. He commissioned a host of works for piano left hand to restart his concert career. 

Wittgenstein only wanted the best. His commission placed Gal in august company. Other commissioned composers included Maurice Ravel, Ernest Wolfgang Korngold, Paul Hindemith, Benjamin Britten, and Sergei Prokofiev. Gal's late Viennese style makes this an appealing work. And one that deserves to be heard more often.

The Piano Concertino was written in 1934 after Gal had relocated to Austria. The score sounds neoclassical, but there's an edge to it. Dissonances grind together, offsetting the sunny appeal of the overall form.

The 1940 Impromptu for Viola and Piano stylistically looks backward. Pal's present in the camp was appalling.  And his future was uncertain. This short work provides a nostalgic look back and a means to escape. 

Pianist Gottlieb Wallisch performs with distinction. I was particularly impressed with his playing of the piano quartet. Wallisch's left-hand technique was first-rate. Wittgenstein wanted music that would show off his skill. Gal delivered -- and so does Wallisch. 

Hans Gal was a favorite among performers, conductors, and music enthusiasts. This album demonstrates why. Well-constructed music well-recorded.   

Has Gal: Piano Quartet in A major
Suite, op. 24; Concertino, Op. 43; Impromptu
Gottlieb Wallisch, piano
Aron Quartett; Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra; Hartmut Rhde conductor
CPO 555 276-2 

John Dustable Returns from Orpheus

If you're a classical music lover of a certain age, you probably remember the Musical Heritage Society. MHS was kind of a Book-of-the-Month Club for music. Each month you received a booklet with their offerings. Some recordings were set to automatically ship to you if you didn't return the form. 

MHS offered a lot of licensed recordings from several labels, both large and small. All were repackaged in plain black-and-white record sleeves (later CD booklets). But MHS also produced its own recordings. 

Some appeared under the MusicMasters label. But many remained out of print -- until now. The Orpheus Label has been resurrected. Their 2,000+ recordings made or purchased by the MHS means there's a lot to choose from. 

And the first round of releases is pretty strong. The label will be rolling out complete Hummel chamber music, and complete organ symphonies by Widor and Vierne. And historic recordings like this. 

Denis Stevens was an early champion of early music. This release, originally recorded in 1961, is significant in several ways. 

It was produced as a tribute to Manfred Bukofzer. He was a major figure in musicology and the preeminent authority on  Dustable's music. It also was intended to mark the 200th anniversary of Dunstable's death in 1453. (There were some special broadcasts marking the event, but no recordings.)

John Dunstable was active in the first half of the 15th Century. His polyphonic works have a distinctive sound. Dunstable didn't follow norms of the Netherlandish School, the standard for sacred music. 

Instead, he arrived at his own solutions for voice-leading and dissonance resolution. And those solutions make his music sound fresh and interesting even today. 

The performances are both enthusiastic and a little loose. There's an energy to early early music recordings that have gone missing over time. The overall sound is a little closed-in, with the extreme highs and lows missing. But in the end, that doesn't matter. 

There is so little John Dunstable available, it's great to have this back in print. And it's now a historic recording in its own right. 

A great start to a label relaunch.   

John Dunstable: Sacred and Secular Music
Eileen Poulter, soprano; Russel Oberlin, countertenor
Michael Brimer, organ
The Ambrosian Singers; Denis Stevens, director
Orpheus

#ClassicsaDay #ClassicalMexico Week 5

The Classics a Day team decided to turn a holiday -- Cinco de Mayo -- into a month-long celebration. Mexico has a rich classical music tradition. It dates back to the early 1600s when Spanish -- and very soon native-born -- composers began writing music for church services. And today Mexico has a thriving classical music community. Even if we're not aware of it here in the States.

Mexico has four centuries of classical music to choose from. Here are my selections for the fifth and final week of #ClassicalMexico.

05/29/23 Silvestre Revueltas (1899–1940): Cuarteto de cuerdas No. 2 "Magueyes" 1931

The second of Revueltas' four string quartets was composed in the late 1920s. It wasn't published until 1953. Discrepencies between the published version and the original manuscript suggest the publisher used a later revised version of the work, now lost.

05/30/23 Eduardo Hernández Moncada (1899–1995): Sinfonia No. 2

1942 Moncada was part of the Nationalist Movement of the 1920s. He wanted his music to embrace and celebrate the traditional folk music of Mexico.

05/31/23 Alfonso de Elias (1902-1984): Concertino para violín y orquesta

de Elias is considered to be the last Mexican composer to compose in the Romantic Style. His Concertino for Violin and Orchestra was written in 1967 and is based on a well-known folk tune.

Next month:

Joseph Bologne Opera a Welcome Discovery

I'm glad this recording was released, and I'm glad Cedille chose to release it in the format they did. The music of Joseph Bologne, Chevalier De Saint-Georges is in the midst of revival and rediscovery. French composer Bologne was of mixed race and is almost larger than life. 

Bologne was a virtuoso violinist, conductor, composer, champion fencer, and military officer. As a musician, he was the toast of Paris. Bologne dazzled 1790s audiences with his technique. Most of his compositions (naturally) centered around the violin. He wrote violin concertos, quartets brilliante, and string symphonies. 

All were successful and popular. Then Bologne attempted to break into opera. As skilled as he was, success eluded him. "L’Amant Anonyme" (The Anonymous Lover) premiered in 1780 and had a very short run. 

It was the third comic opera Bologne wrote, and the only one to survive in complete score. Cedille wisely chose to release this production on three CDs. The first two have the complete opera comique. And that means spoken dialogue as well as music. The third disc is just the music itself.

The Haymarket Opera Company directed by Craig Trompeter does this music justice. The orchestra makes the music sparkle, especially during the overture. The soloists perform with a lightness and clarity that well-suites the featherweight plot.

I did have one quibble with the interpretation, though. The singers seemed a little reigned in on the da capo arias. Audiences of the day would have expected vocal fireworks. 

The complete opera is important. It recreates the experience of the Parisian audiences (at least aurally). But man, the dialogue really slows things down. I think it should be delivered at a rapid-fire pace, almost like a screwball comedy. The measured, stately readings just negate the momentum of the music.

I've listened to the first two discs. It's not likely I'll revisit them with any frequency. But the third disc is the one I'll be returning to again and again. It's only the music -- 71:37 vs. 98:54 playing time.

And this disc presents the distilled genius of Bologne. He didn't e have the dramatic instincts of Mozart (his contemporary). But listening to the music, it doesn't matter. Each aria and ensemble piece is a little gem. 

Bologne knew how to write a melody.

If you want a complete picture of Joseph Bologne, you should definitely get this release. But if the music-only single disc is ever available for separate sale -- that's the one I'd spring for.

Joseph Bologne, Chevalier De Saint-Georges: L’Amant Anonyme
Nicole Cabell, soprano; Geoffrey Agpalo, tenor; David Govertsen, bass-baritone; Erica Schuller, soprano; Michael St. Peter, tenor; Nathalie Colas, soprano
Haymarket Opera Company; Craig Trompeter, conductor
Cedille CDR 90000 271
3 CD Set