#ClassicsaDay #ClassicalMexico Week 5, 2024

Mexico has a long classical music tradition, extending back to the late 1500s. Composers emigrated from Spain to supply the great Mexican cathedrals with music. Within a generation, native-born composers assumed those roles. 

The Classics a Day team realizes that Cinco de Mayo is more of an American than a Mexican holiday. But it is an opportunity to celebrate Mexican culture. And so, the challenge for May is to post examples of Mexican classical music on your social media platforms.

Right from the beginning the traditional music of the native population influenced the classical composers. As a result, Mexican classical music has become a natural expression of the national character.

Here are my selections for the fifth and final week of #ClassicalMexico.

05/27/24 Carlos Chávez (1899–1978): Chapultepec Obertura Repulicana

Chávez was a founder of the Mexican Symphony Orchestra. His use of native Mexican music in his works influenced the course of Mexican classical music -- and brought it to the world stage. 

 

05/28/24 Silvestre Revueltas (1899–1940): Sensemayá

Sensemayá is Revueltas' most popular composition. It was based on a poem describing an Afro-Cuban religious ritual and sacrifice. Revualtas originally wrote the work for a small orchestra in 1937. A year later he created a version for a standard symphony orchestra. 

 

05/29/24 Higinio Ruvalcaba (1905–1976): Cuarteto de Cuerdas No. 6 in D major

Ruvalcaba was a violinist and composer. He replaced the founder of the Léner String Quartet when he retired.

   

05/30/24 Blas Galindo (1910–1943): Sones de mariachi

Galindo studied with Carlos Chavez and Aaron Copland. He eventually became the director of the National Institute of Fine Arts and the music director of the Symphony of the Mexican Institute of Social Security.

 

05/31/24 Melesio Morales (1839–1908): La Farfalletta

Morales was born in Mexico City. He had a successful career as an opera composer in Florence and eventually returned to Mexico City. Morales is best known for his vocal music, which includes 10 operas and two cantatas.

 

Next month:

Living in Greg Caffrey's Environments

Irish composer Greg Caffrey is better known in the UK than in America. Perhaps this release will change that somewhat. It features four orchestral works by Caffrey, all written within the last 12 years. 

I'd call Caffrey's style "post-tonal." He uses dissonance effectively, and his melodies seem angular at times. Traditional chord progressions are absent. And yet there's still a sense of motion -- that the music has started at a point and will eventually return to that point.

Aingeal opens the album. It's the most recent composition (2021), and according to the composer, the most personal. The early death of a close friend inspired the work. Caffrey channels his loss and pain into something ethereal, disturbing, and ultimately comforting. 

Caffrey composed Environments I and Environments II in 2011 and 2012 respectively. Environments I is for solo piano and orchestra. It's not a concerto, where the soloist is showcased. Rather, it's a study in contrasts between a single instrument and an ensemble. Caffrey's unusual orchestrations blur the distinction between soloist and group. Daniel Browell's performance is both nuanced and engaging.

Environments II seems similar in intent. Here though, the forces are solo guitar, string orchestra, and percussion. The limited palette of the string orchestra throws the guitar into greater relief. Craig Ogdon has made several great recordings of contemporary guitar works. Add this performance to the list. 

 According to Caffrey, A Terrible Beauty was a long time coming. He conceived each of the three movements as a stand-alone work. Caffrey spent eight years composing the parts and then piecing them together. 

The title comes from a poem by WB Yeats. The music isn't an illustration of Yeats' poetry. Rather, it's an emotional reaction to it. Caffery's orchestration gives the ensemble an unusual blend.  It effectively communicates the unsettled nature of the poems. Yeats' poetry tells us something's not quite right -- Caffrey's music confirms it. 

These are powerful orchestral works. The Ulster Orchestra directed by Sinead Hays does a superb job. This music doesn't sound easy to play. And yet every note sounds authoritative and assured.

This might not be the music for your next dinner party. But if you're looking for music of substance that can communicate true emotion -- well, this might be for you.   

Greg Caffrey: Environments
Craig Ogden, guitar
Daniel Browell, piano
Ulster Orchestra; Sinead Hays
Divine Art

David Leisner Charms with New Album

Seldom has a classical album been more appropriately named. "Charms to Soothe" delivers on its promise. Guitarist David Leisner presents a program of favorite 19th-century guitar works. And without exception, they are a delight. The program mixes music by familiar composers and lesser-known virtuosi. 

Touring instrumental virtuosi of the 1800s were often composers. They primarily wrote music for themselves to play in concert. They also wrote instructional guides to further the artistry of their instruments. Fernando Sor and Mauro Giuliani were two such artists. And their music has remained in the guitar repertoire since it was introduced. 

Leisner presents a few composers whose reputations didn't survive. Johann Kaspar Mertz was a contemporary of Giuliani. He toured mostly in Eastern Europe and Russia. Merz' wife was a concert pianist, and he may have drawn inspiration from the music she played. Included here are two selections from Bardenklänge, Op. 13. One is titled "Lied Ohne Worte," which suggests at least a nod to Mendelssohn.

Giulio Regondi was a Swiss guitarist who spent most of his life in London. His Études for guitar are perhaps his best-known pieces. And while they do have their challenges, they're also enjoyable to listen to. Another London-based guitarist was Leonard Schulz. Most of his music has been lost, but his 12 Studies, Op. 40 survive. They're well-crafted and deceptively complex works. 

All the selections are favorites of Leisner. His talent could easily carry him through the challenges of these works. But there's more going on here. Leisner shows his affection for this music in his playing. The melodies do more than sing, they emote. These are intimate performances. And ones that both charm and engage (well, at least they did for me). 

Well-recorded, and superbly performed. If you'd like to spend time with a friend sharing some of his favorite music get this release. It does indeed have charms to soothe.

Charms to Soothe: 19th Century Music for Guitar
David Leisner, guitar
Azica Records ACD-71368

Paul Wee Recovers Henselt and Bronsart Concertos

If this album could have been recorded in the 1890s, it would have had a very different dynamic. Back then, this program would have paired one of the most famous concertos in the world with one of the most obscure. 

Fast forward to the 21st Century. Now this program pairs two piano concerts almost equal in obscurity. But now -- as then -- both are worth hearing. And both can deliver an emotionally satisfying listening experience. 

Adolf von Henselt was considered one of the greatest piano virtuosi of the early 1800s. Franz Lizst envied his technique. And his sojourn in Russia influenced generations of Russian pianists -- including Sergei Rachmaninov. 

Henselt's Piano Concerto in F minor, Op. 16 was premiered by Clara Schumann in 1845, with Felix Mendelssohn conducting. As one modern critic noted, "It was the Rachmaninov Second of its day." 

All the major pianists performed the work, and often more than once. It's easy to hear why. Like Rachmaninov's concerto, it's a big work. The melodies are big, the piano passages are big, the emotions are big. And that makes it a real crowd-pleaser. 

It's also a well-constructed work. Henselt unfolds his themes in a logical (though exceptionally dramatic) fashion. 

Henselt withdrew from music in his thirties. And perhaps that's why this concert eventually fell out of the repertoire. 

By contrast, Hans Bronsart von Schellendorf's music never enjoyed much attention. Bronsart was one of Franz List's prime students. He even premiered Liszt's Second Piano Concerto (with the composer conducting). But Bronast transitioned from composing to conducting, and then theater management. His compositional output was small and under-valued by audiences. 

The piece shows Bronsart had the technical skill to write a challenging concerto. And he had the compositional skills to make it an engaging and compelling work. 

Paul Wee performs these concertos with abandon. His technique is formidable, and he employs every bit of it in this work. 

The Swedish Chamber Orchestra is directed by Michael Collins. The ensemble has an impressively big sound. These concertos were meant for flamboyant artists to thrill audiences with their artistry. 

Paul Yee, supported by the Swedish Chamber Orchestra, does just that. My recommendation: press play, and enjoy the ride. I did.

Adolph von Henselt; Hans von Bronsart: Piano Concertos
Paul Wee, piano
Swedish Chamber Orchestra; Michael Collins, conductor
BIS-2715 SACD

#ClassicsaDay #ClassicalMexico Week 4

Mexico has a long classical music tradition, extending back to the late 1500s. Composers emigrated from Spain to supply the great Mexican cathedrals with music. Within a generation, native-born composers assumed those roles. 

The Classics a Day team realizes that Cinco de Mayo is more of an American than a Mexican holiday. But it is an opportunity to celebrate Mexican culture. And so, the challenge for May is to post examples of Mexican classical music on your social media platforms.

Right from the beginning the traditional music of the native population influenced the classical composers. As a result, Mexican classical music has become a natural expression of the national character.

Here are my selections for the first week of #ClassicalMexico.

05/20/24 Eduardo Hernández Moncada (1899–1995): Costeña

Moncada was active as a pianist, conductor, and composer. His goal was to blend traditional folk music with classical forms.

 

05/21/24 Gabriela Ortiz (1964): Kauyumari

Ortiz is the daughter of folk musicians. She holds several advanced music degrees and combines folk and rock traditions into her work.

 

05/22/24 José Mariano Elízaga (1786–1842): Dúo de las Siete Palabras

Elizaga was the foremost composer in Mexico in the early 1800s. He was also the Kapellmeister for Emporer Augstin I of Mexico.

 

05/23/24 José Antonio Gómez y Olguín (1805-1876): Te Deum para solistas, coro y orquesta

Gómez spent most of his professional life at the Mexican City Cathedral. He began as third organist and eventually became its music director.

 

05/24/24 Gustavo Campa (1863–1934): Three Miniatures for String Quartet

Campa was a major influence in Mexican Classical Music. He was among the first Mexican composers to embrace Debussy and the Impressionist style of composition.