The two works recorded on this disc both come from a creative period at the beginning of the 1930s. In terms of style, with his works linked to basic tonalities, Weigl drew on the sound realm of late Romanticism, from whose aesthetics he never departed in favour of more progressive contemporary trends. Weigl’s knack for orchestration shows both in the hymnic climaxes as well as the chamber music-like passages. Weigl never lived to hear any performances of either his Third Symphony or the Symphonic Prelude. Like so many of his larger works, these scores were not (re-)discovered until interest in Weigl’s music resurged decades later. This release allows audiences to hear both works for the first time on record.

REVIEW:

Stylistically, the pieces clearly show Weigl’s own voice, even as they remain close to the late-Romantic symphonic style.

The symphony's rich palette of development and treatment leads from intimate moments of chamber music to grand climaxes. The large orchestration of the Symphonic Prelude indicates that it was intended for the concert hall rather than as incidental music. Overall, the works remain rooted in traditional sounds.

Weigl was unable to experience performances of these works. The new interest in his music is also reflected in these premiere recordings. The Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz and conductor Jürgen Bruns illuminate these works with successful commitment.

— Pizzicato (Uwe Krusch)

The latest instalment in this popular series focuses on the life and music of Russian composer Modest Mussorgsky. Illustrated with some of Mussorgsky’s finest works the biographical narrative includes excerpts from Songs and Dances of Death; Boris Godunov; Night on Bald Mountain and Pictures at an Exhibition.

Two-time Grammy Award-winning singer Sylvia McNair and celebrated pianist Kevin Cole in a collection that is a must for lovers of theater music: 15 songs — 13 of them in first recordings — by the great Harold Arlen (composer of “Over the Rainbow,” “Stormy Weather,” “The Man That Got Away") and lyricist Martin Charnin (the hit musical “Annie”). Plus demos made by the songwriters in 1966 when Arlen was 61 and Charnin 30, and a 24-page booklet that includes an interview with McNair and Cole on this “labor of love” project.

This third volume of music by Eduard Strauss I features many new discoveries including the Electric Lights waltz and the polka, Leaps of Pegasus, displaying Eduard’s gift for melody and orchestration. All but one of the tracks on this album are premiere recordings of the original full orchestrations. Volumes 1 and 2 can be heard on 8.225369 and 5371.