THE ROYAL EDITION - R. STRAUSS

It is an astonishing gift of fate when a creative artist, known to the world for a particular achievement, is suddenly shown in a quite different light thanks to the existence of a single document that has somehow escaped the ruthless culling mechanisms of time. Harry Partch's Bitter Music is such a document, a "diary of eight months spent in transient shelters and camps, hobo jungles, basement rooms, and on the open road". This long-lost journal of Harry Partch's wanderings during the Great Depression (from cleaning sewers to having tea with Irish poet W. B. Yeats) is an extraordinary musical portrait of an American pioneer, chronicling his occasionally hilarious and often heartbreaking struggles to forge a new music system outside the classical tradition. This premiere recording of Bitter Music takes the form of readings and collected musical fragments- an aural diary of what was going through Partch's mind and ear during a critical period in his artistic development.

THE ROYAL EDITION - BRUCKNER:

This new album of haprsichordist Catalina Vicens is a unique, multifaceted musical and poetic project. First, it features music from Naples, Italy from around 1525, the year when the instrument that she plays was actually built in Naples. Secondly, Ms. Vicens conceived an imaginary tale of the life and story of that very instrument, partly based on historical facts, partly on poetic inspiration emerging from her encounter with this priceless treasure of a historical harpsichord. The album comes with a free audiobook download of that same story, narrated by Ms. Vicens herself and accompanied with original music from the disc.

Schumann: Piano Quartet, Op. 47 - Piano Quintet, Op. 44

You really won’t be disappointed with these stylish, polished, engaging performances.

In the old days—that is, the 1980s and ‘90s—this is a recording that would have been done by the Baltimore Consort, with soprano Custer LaRue; but they would have left out the boring stuff, all those endlessly plodding “grounds”, or the excessively torturous (as opposed to the reasonably tortuous) six-and-one-half-minute Expostulation of the Blessed Virgin, in favor of livelier, more virtuosic, or just more light-hearted or even humorous material.

Mields is certainly a wonderful singer—indeed, this is some of the best work she’s done—and the instrumentalists are first-rate. But I don’t buy the legitimacy of the programmatic device that supposedly unifies the chosen repertoire: a “journey into the extremities of the life of the soul, caused by feelings of love.” The word “mad” pops up frequently in the liner notes, supposedly a theme that links all of the music, by Purcell and a few contemporaries—but you’ll be hard pressed to hear and feel this connection as you listen.

That’s not to say that the program isn’t composed of some fine and well-chosen songs—and Mields has admirable command of the material; yet her final, gorgeously sung Dido’s Lament lacks a true emotional connection with the character’s situation, eliminating that oft-recorded, beloved aria as a reason to own the disc. But there are plenty more reasons among the 31 tracks—and if you’re a fan of this period and place (latter 17th-century England), and of songs such as “Sing, sing Ye Druids” and “The Three Ravens”, you really won’t be disappointed with these stylish, polished, engaging performances.

-- David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com

The first part of the Heinrich Schutz Complete Recording with the Dresdner Kammerchor under Hans-Christoph Rademann has set new artistic and editorial standards. Now the second of three album sets is being released. It encompasses Volumes 9 to 14 of the Complete Recording, including the St John Passion. This work, representative of the high standard of the whole series, was awarded the German Record Critics’ Award in 2016. Once again, top performers such as Hille Perl, Lee Santana, Dorothee Mields, Harry van der Kamp, and many others join the ensemble. Vol. 9 Auferstehungshistorie (The Resurrection) (album 12) Vol. 10 Weihnachtshistorie (Christmas History) (album 13) Vol. 11 Matthäuspassion (St Matthew Passion) (CD 14) Vol. 12 Symphoniae Sacrae III (CD 15–16) Vol. 13 Johannespassion (St John Passion) (album 17) Vol. 14 Symphoniae Sacrae I (albums 18–19).

Classical Music

BOITO: MEFISTOFELE PATANÈ, RA

A delightful collection. Casadesus plays Rameau to the manner born. Highlights include a comically zippy Le Rappel des Oiseaux and a lusciously flowing Les Niais de Sologne--the latter featuring a particularly impressively sculpted, sensitively balanced left hand. The Scarlatti sonatas rise to the same level. Casadesus achieves a harpsichord-like clarity of articulation while never denying himself the sensitive dynamic shadings unique to the piano. In the hugely virtuosic K. 533 and K. 14 his trills and runs rival Horowitz's, and he understands the need to project the horn imitations in K. 430 with brassy brilliance and verve. On the other hand, Casadesus' legato but always pointed phrasing in the great B minor sonata, K. 27, projects just the right smooth elegance. Recorded in 1952, the mono sound has been nicely remastered and in no way limits the impact of the performances.


The second half of the recital jumps ahead to the Classical Period, and to the early 60s sonically speaking. The Haydn sonata sports an especially lovely central Adagio, and Casadesus catches its simple eloquence without a trace of affectation. He also takes Haydn at his word in the dazzling Presto finale, playing with a breezy velocity that enhances the music's good-humored sense of fun. The Mozart quintet unites Casadesus with some distinguished partners, including John de Lancie (oboe) and Mason Jones (horn). It's a sincere compliment to say that they play the music like Poulenc: in other words, the performance has pungent wit, urbanity, and a nicely modern, "sec" quality that perfectly marries classical poise with surprising touches of sentiment (in the last two movement particularly). Sony France's ongoing tribute to Casadesus has come up with another intelligently planned, essential installment.
--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

Classical Music

This album, The Genteel Companion, is named after a book of the same name which was published in 1683 and contained tunes and instructions for the recorder. +Including compositions by John Baston, George Frideric Handel, William Croft, and more, this album is a broad look at recorder music of the Baroque era. The works here are performed by Richard Harvey on the recorder, and other outstanding musicians on period instruments.

Following Mahler's Ninth and Bruckner's Fifth, this live recording of Joseph Haydn's "The Creation" is already the third CD recording to feature master conductor Bernard Haitink at the helm of the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, an orchestra he’s been guest conducting for over 50 years. The BRSO and its Choir joined forces for this recording, together with a team of renowned soloists - soprano Camilla Tilling, tenor Mark Padmore and bass-baritone Hanno Müller-Brachmann. This is the first and only currently available recording of "The Creation" featuring Bernard Haitink.

Classical Music

BEETHOVEN: SYMPHONY NO. 9 MEN

A staggeringly powerful reading, it represents one of the high points in Furtwängler’s entire discography. Like his two BPO accounts from 1949, this one with the VPO uses modified Haas—the latter’s insertion of 10 bars from the 1887’s Adagio is omitted—and there are elements from the 1892 Schalk (a cymbal clash is heard in the 1949 finales, but not in this one). This 1944 has greater passion and is more listenable than are either of the BPO 1949s.

-- Jeffrey J. Lipscomb, FANFARE [reviewing the box set of Bruckner symphonies conducted by Furtwängler, Music & Arts 1209]

This recording of the capella vocalis Boys Choir is guaranteed to set the perfect Christmas holiday mood. The bell-like voices of the choir intone popular Christmas carols such as “Es ist ein Ros‘ entsprungen” and “Stille Nacht”. In addition to these timeless numbers are other heartwarming songs of the season as well as an enchanting selection of Polish Christmas carols.

Elman made two commercial recordings of the Tchaikovsky Concerto. The first, with Barbirolli in 1929, has seldom been out of the catalogue in one form or another. The second dates from an LPO session with Boult in 1954 and is much less well known. But dating from December 1945 comes this live Boston/Paray traversal that catches the great violinist still on the right side of physical infirmity and a gradual but inexorable waning of powers. These latter do manifest themselves in particular ways in the companion concerto, the Mendelssohn.

In terms of structure the Boston performance of the Tchaikovsky differs little from the 1929 traversal; the timings for the first movement are in fact almost identical though there are differences in matters of thematic emphasis, metrical displacements, vibrato usage and phrasal elasticity. This is still however, very recognisably, the master tonalist of old, one who imbued every phrase with lavish intensity and a throbbing, molten vivacity. He brings intense concentration and expressive shading to his opening rhetorical statement and the Elmanesque rubato that no-one could quite match. He is very slow and highly romanticised; the orchestral pizzicati that point the rhythm are delayed an age as a result. Elman lavishes prayerful simplicity after the cadenza and his voluptuous vibrato takes on an ever more devastating candour. Behind him the Boston winds are highly characterful and though there is some crunch and other such aural damage (especially in tuttis) it will detain only the pickiest of listener. Elman is not quite certain in his passagework at the end of the movement – though the harmonics are negotiated well enough – but one can hear how eventful and tactful is Tchaikovsky’s orchestration when a fine conductor is in charge clarifying lines. The orchestra emerge newly distinctive in the slow movement – flute and clarinet principals especially. Elman’s phrasing rises and falls, ever more rapturous and involved, his line taking on more and more a sense of direction, the orchestral string blending under Paray of real distinction. In the finale the orchestral accents are commensurately strong; this is the one movement where the excitement of a live performance impels Elman to a fleeter performance than his earlier commercial recording though oddly it’s not necessarily more overpoweringly exciting.

The Tchaikovsky is a reminder of Elman’s eminence; in the first decade of the century it was he who was the most fêted of young fiddlers and the Tchaikovsky was for a decade or more "his" concerto. The Mendelssohn dates from November 1953. His slightly earlier commercial recording with Defauw and the Chicago Symphony has always been highly regarded whilst the twilight Vanguard session in Vienna that produced the later disc, with the State Opera Orchestra under Golschmann has not. Again Elman’s overall conception changed little and the difference in timings between Mitropoulos and Golschmann are negligible. Elman is perhaps guilty of some rough playing in the opening movement of the Concerto; some rather inelegant expressive pointing is another particular feature (but how irrepressibly Elman it sounds). With the highlighting comes a rather static introspection and an equally glutinous tonal projection that can too dramatically personalise the line. Nevertheless against this one can cite the finger position changes that remind one of the old lion and the beautiful strands of lyrical weight he can and does lavish – even if the vibrato itself is now slowing and the tempos ossifying somewhat in terms of phrasal interconnectedness. In the Andante he no longer possesses the elfin projection or sense of relaxation that the greatest interpreters of this work bring to it (if indeed he ever really did – his recording with Defauw, though of course highly personalised, was highly impressive). He does rather distend the movement (to 7.50). He is jaunty and unmotoric in the finale; he never used it as a piece of showmanship as other, less scrupulous colleagues did. He also makes a couple of fluffs on the lower strings but these are minor details – even if the final bars are rather grandiosely emphatic.

The recordings have been handled with skill; the attendant problems are really insignificant ones and won’t be in any way problematic. As one who welcomes anything by Elman, no matter how minor, these major live performances have a still compelling part to play in expanding and widening the Elman discography; that they are ancillary to the main body of his recordings is undeniable but wise heads will want to hear them and reflect on Elman’s place in the hierarchy of great violinists.

-- Jonathan Woolf, MusicWeb International

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

This oddly named recording does not contain any bagpipe music. What we do have is a collection of pieces for lute and viola da gamba featuring music by a host of baroque composers both familiar and obscure. The title was probably inspired by the opening tune, "The Brown Haired Maiden," a staple for Scottish bagpipe players. Two more arrangements of anonymous bagpipe tunes, "Bagpipes" and "Lancashire Pipes" round out the pipe connection.
Vittorio Ghielmi is clearly having fun when he imitates the droning sound of the bagpipes on his viola da gamba. When Ghielmi is joined by lutenist Luca Pianca, the result is inspired. The soloists also excel in the more introverted music of such composers as Marin Marais, Antoine Forqueray, Leopold Weiss and others. Pianca is magnificent in the solo lute pieces of Weiss, especially the expansive Praeludium et Fuga in E minor. Equally impressive is the gritty playing the duo brings to Marais's "La Paraza." Sumptuous sound quality and lavish packaging makes this recording a real treasure.
Includes division(s) on a ground by Christopher Simpson. Soloists: Vittorio Ghielmi, Luca Pianca.

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music