The Karol Rathaus Ensemble, carrying out its mission to bring this outstanding Polish composer back to the concert life, once again reached for the rarely performed music of its patron. 2021 saw the world recording premiere of two chamber works by Karol Rathaus, i.e. the Trio, Op. 53 from 1943 and the Trio Serenade, Op. 69 from 1953 (DUX 1712). Now the ensemble decided to record more compositions; what is important, some of them have also been recorded for the first time. The repertoire of the album has been selected in such a way as to give the listener the opportunity to get to know both Rathaus’ new works and his new face: not only did he create chamber music, but also songs, so the album also features ‘guest’ performers. Expanding the circle of artists ready to take the risk of discovering the above work is of great importance, since the music of 20th-century Polish exile composers is still marginalized both in musicological research and in the concert repertoire. Its absence in the domestic culture resulted from the fact that for several decades the communist authorities did not allow information about the art created outside Poland: emigrants were to plunge into oblivion. Nowadays, we are witnessing a gradual renaissance of their music, and the names of such eminent artists as Jerzy Fitelberg, the Łabuński brothers, Karol Rathaus, Szymon Laks, Roman Maciejewski, or even Roman Palester and Andrzej Panufnik are slowly enter-ing the collective consciousness.

The turbulent life of Arthur Lourié (1891–1966) – student of Glazunov, friend of Blok, lover of Akhmatova, commissar of the Soviet regime, exile in Germany, France and the USA, ghost-writer for Koussevitzky – is reflected in the wide range of references in his music, from echoes of the ceremonies of ancient Greece to Neo-Baroque and Neo-Classical procedures perhaps inspired by his collaboration with Stravinsky in Paris. Some of the works in this first of two albums surveying his chamber and instrumental music have an almost ritual formality; in others a mischievous grin is not far from the surface.

REVIEWS:

The personnel is spearheaded by flautist Birgit Ramsl and they all play with commendable accomplishment and verve that serve Lourié well. There are also four premiere recordings. However you sum him up, stylistically, his remains a cultured, cultivated and agreeably cosmopolitan voice, drawing on Russian and French traditions to irradiate the ritual formality of his music.

-- MusicWeb International

This new release is a brilliant collection of chamber music works by Polish composer Józef Elsner and his disciples Józef Władyslaw Krogurski and Ignatzi Felix Dobzinski. Known as Chopin's teacher, Elsner was also active as a violinist and conductor, and was also a renowned educator. He established the Warsaw Conservatory and taught excellent composers. On this release, enjoy a number of very beautiful works by these early Polish Romantic composers. Also notable is the participation of Yakubu Kushrik, a virtuoso who won the 4th place (the highest Polish person in the competition), which is the same as Aimi Kobayashi at the 18th Chopin International Piano Competition in 2021

Society of Composers, Inc. presents 10 works from boundary-defying composers on TRANSITION AND APOTHEOSIS, the 35th installment of their celebrated Composers’ Series.

"Carnyx" by Chris Arrell employs the carnyx, the ceremonial and battle trumpet used by Iron Age Celts, to conjure the terror of an army encroaching through the morning mist.

Jiyoun Chung’s "Scissors" is a fantasia-toccata for solo piano inspired by the traditional Korean Scissors dance.

"24/7" by Yunfei Li honors the healthcare professionals who served on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Transition and Apotheosis" from Mike McFerron is a multichannel fixed media piece that maps Danish composer Per Nørgård’s “infinity sequence” to sound elements.

Paul Lombardi’s "Unwoven" incorporates the fractal-like technique used in his past pieces to startling new effects.

Robert McClure’s "struggling in excess" decries the vast amounts of waste humans produce on a daily basis.

"glass, evaporate[d]" from to?-dr?-'ki is a hauntingly beautiful reimagining of 2019’s "lips evaporate".

William Price’s "Sans Titre VII (B)" is a modified variation-rondo that explores the wide range, technical agility, and unique extended techniques offered by the saxophone.

"Der Saus und Braus" by Joseph Klein is the sixteenth in a series of short works for solo instruments based on characters in Elias Canetti’s "Der Ohrenzeuge: Fünfzig Charaktere" (Earwitness: Fifty Characters).

Finally, Ania Vu’s "Tik-Tak" sets the composer’s Polish poem to remind us of the relentless flow of time.

SCI renews its decades-long mission to promote and disseminate contemporary music in this Navona Records release.

In its mix of tonality, Expressionism and Schoenbergian serialism, the late chamber music of Egon Wellesz (1885–1974) marries the mid-century radicalism of his native city with the lyricism of his adoptive homeland. In the first part of his career Wellesz was best known as a composer of operas, and these chamber works were audibly written by someone with a keen sense of drama.

In this release, clarinetist Aldo Botta wanted to give his contribution in the popularization of solo clarinet pieces. It is a tribute to international renowned artists as well as others lesser-known, who have composed little musical masterpieces from both past and present literature. Some of them are from our own time, artists who are currently working on astonishing musical productions as clarinetists, performers and teachers. Their compositions – here available for the listener – all have a single common characteristic, which is the desire to convey the love for a very noble instrument: the clarinet.

There is scarce information available on Charles Duvernoy – not to be confused with Jean Baptiste Duvernoy (1802–1880), a French composer and pianist of the later romantic period, author of many studies and didactical works for piano. Charles was born in Montbéliard, France, and began clarinet studies in Strasbourg while playing in a military band. In 1790 he moved to Paris where he improved his playing – first as a member of the National Guard Band along with his brother, hornist Frédéric-Nicolas, and then achieving the posts of principal clarinet with the orchestra of the Monsieur Theatre and then the Feydeau Theatre of Saint-Germain, a position he held until 1824. He was also a professor at the Conservatory of Paris from 1800–02 and from 1808–16.

The Quartet No.1 is an unpretentious but enjoyable composition with well-conceived themes in all three movements and strong connections to the classical Viennese period. The 3 Themes and Variations employ simple themes with an introduction (in a minor key for No.1 and 2) before developing them in five variations (No.1 & 2) and three variations (No.3). The two Airs varies (chosen from the 6 Airs varies) were also conceived in theme and variations form. The style is purely classical and resembles other Airs (or Sonatas) written by French composers such as Lefevre, Devienne or Buteaux. Originally written for C clarinet and bass, this recording uses a B flat clarinet and basset horn for a better timbral match. For authentic colour, the clarinet is an early, original Lefevre six-key boxwood instrument from the early 19th century.

Frédéric-Nicolas’s Trio No.1 is the work of a virtuoso hornist. In 1788 he went to Paris and joined the Orchestre de la Comédie italienne. Two years later he became hornist of the Orchestre de la Guarde National and later was a professor at the Paris Conservatory, where he served until 1815. He also played in the Orchestre de l’Opéra de Paris from 1796–1817. He left a great number of horn pieces including 12 horn concertos, trios, nocturnes, quintets, etc. The Trio recorded here features a well-developed first movement and a second movement consisting of a short theme with four carefree variations ending in a brilliant coda. The horn is substituted with the more velvety, nasal colour of the basset horn, creating a new, interesting timbral combination.

Ignaz Pleyel (1757–1831) was one of the most multifaceted artists of all time, being active in various fields as a composer, performer, publisher and piano builder. Born in Lower Austria, he became the pupil of Joseph Haydn in Eisenstadt, who considered him to be a superb student. In 1791, due to the French Revolution, musical performances in churches and public concerts were abolished, so Pleyel travelled to London searching for a better place to work. Pleyel was a quite prolific composer, writing at least 42 symphonies, 70 string quartets and several operas. Recent scholarship has suggested that the theme for the St. Anthony Variations Op.56a by Johannes Brahms was probably composed not by Haydn but by Ignaz Pleyel. The beautiful and cheerful Quintet in C for piano and winds is in a pleasant, early-classical Viennese style, reminding us of the previous masterpieces for the same medium by Mozart and Beethoven. An arrangement for Wind Octet of this work is preserved at the Fürstlich Fürstenbergische Hofbibliothek Donaueschingen in Germany.

The manuscript of the Due Duetti for clarinet and viola has so far never been published. The Trio Op.20 No.1 for two clarinets and bassoon is an arrangement from one of Pleyel’s flute and string trios. The two short songs Behind yon Hills and The smiling Morn, from the Original Scottish Airs, are originally for soprano and piano, but the clarinet replaces the singer with a similarly expressive and beautiful result. The Variations in F on a Theme of Pleyel is a piece arranged for three clarinets by Antonín Myslík, taken from the Quartet in F by Franz Krommer (1759–1831). Mozart praised Pleyel’s compositions in a letter written to his father.

During his short life Don Banks (1923–80) enjoyed a reputation as the leading modernist among Australian composers. Studies with Mátyás Seiber, Milton Babbitt and, especially, Luigi Dallapiccola helped refine his serial technique, but his music never retreated into academic abstraction, as this recital of chamber and vocal works demonstrates: it retained a keen sense of drama, an ear for atmosphere, a rather angular lyricism and, occasionally, a touch of humor. The works are performed by Ole Bohn, Robert Johnson, Geoffrey Gartner, Rowan Phemister, Daniel Herscovitch, Francesco Celata, Jenny Duck-Chong, Alison Pratt, Daryl Pratt, and Joshua Hill.

The creation of the WindWorks label represents an expanded relationship between the North Texas Wind Symphony and GIA Publications. GIA’s generous support and ongoing dedication to wind music has made it possible for the ensemble to continue producing recordings of the highest quality that are a testament to the perseverance and work ethic of everyone involved. SPECIAL NOTE: This is the last recording Eugene Migliaro Corporon will conduct for the WindWorks series.

The creation of the WindWorks label represents an expanded relationship between the North Texas Wind Symphony and GIA Publications. GIA’s generous support and ongoing dedication to wind music has made it possible for the ensemble to continue producing recordings of the highest quality that are a testament to the perseverance and work ethic of everyone involved. SPECIAL NOTE: This is the last recording Eugene Migliaro Corporon will conduct for the WindWorks series.

Final volume in the first-ever complete recorded cycle of symphonies by Talivaldis Keninš (1919–2008), one of the most prominent post-WW2 composers in Latvia and Canada. This album includes three of the composer’s eight numbered symphonies performed by the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra under Andris Poga.

Although born in Latvia, Keninš lived most of his life as an exile. He was educated in Paris, where he studied under Tony Aubin and Olivier Messiaen, and won several awards. Keninš emigrated to Canada in 1951 and became a respected pedagogue and a very influential figure in Canada’s music life. Alongside his eight symphonies, the composer also wrote 12 concertos. However, he also included many concertante elements in his symphonies and the Symphony No. 2, “Sinfonia concertante” (1967), scored for three wind instruments and symphony orchestra, is very close to a triple concerto. The symphony’s extensive second movement is based on a lullaby of the Mi’kmaq First Nations people. Symphony No. 3 (1970) was completed few years after its predecessor and is a step forward in the composer’s journey as a symphonist. Here we encounter the idea of a lyrical hero, which, in the ears of the listener, could be personified. Although many consider Kenins’ 8th Symphony to be his symphonic climax, the 7th Symphony (1980) is by no means a lesser work: it could be even considered as one of the composer’s most personal and intimate creations. The symphony ends with an aria based on a text by the composer’s father and the atmosphere of the work seems to stem from the composer’s emotional trauma on the occupation of his native Latvia by the Soviet troops.

REVIEW:

Ķeniņš composed his first symphony when he was forty and almost a decade elapsed before he turned to the genre again. However, his Symphony No 2 “Sinfonia concertante” does not strictly adhere to any symphonic mould. That the composer had a trio of wind instruments as some sort of a concertino tends to show that he was not completely sure of how to tackle that form again. This also shows is the lay-out of the piece, i.e three movements of strongly contrasting character as well as weight. In fact, the whole weight of the symphony lies in the long central movement whereas the brief opening Lento and the equally brief final Molto animato e marcato merely function as a prelude and epilogue of some sort. Moreover, the central Molto moderato: Tema e variazioni is twice as long as the two other movements put together. The weighty central movement is cast as a theme and variations on a lullaby of the Mi’kmaq First Nations people which the composer also used in his Suite in D major for organ. Anyone interested in what the Mi’kmaq First Nations people may be referred to Wikipedia for it all seems a rather long story. The variation movement of the Second Symphony is an impressive piece of music in which Kenins’ contrapuntal mastery is already fully displayed.

The Symphony No 3 is Ķeniņš’ first large-scale work for large symphony orchestra and again the composer demonstrates his assurance in his handling of form and counterpoint. The central movement Lento inquieto, though shorter than that of the Second Symphony, is again the emotional heart of the piece but it is nevertheless counterbalanced by two outer movements of fairly equal length but of quite different character. Georgs Pelēcis is quoted in Orets Silabriedis’ excellent notes as saying that “Kenins rejects seemingly essential symphony ingredients, such as the sonata form. That does not appear in any of the three movements … only one main theme is developed in each movement, and they are all interrelated. The unifying element is the rich chromatic intonations …”. The Third Symphony is clearly a work by a composer in full command of his aims and means, which shows in the way that the composer handles polyphony – an essential component of his music making. The first and second movements end with uncertainty, preparing for what is to follow, but the final movement Molto animato e brioso ends with an assertive gesture. As Silabriedis puts it: “I am responsible for everything that I have said and done”. (Incidentally, one might be reminded of RVW, whose Fourth Symphony also ends abruptly with a fist banging on a table and a door brutally slammed.

The Symphony No 7 “Symphony in the form of a Passacaglia” is scored for large orchestra and a mezzo-soprano in the final aria. Half the duration of the piece is purely orchestral and cast as a fully developed Passacaglia capped, so to say, by a short Allegro molto before the final aria for mezzo-soprano on a poem by the composer’s father, Atis Ķeniņš (1874–1961), who was also a statesman and one of the founders of the Republic of Latvia in 1919. The poem must have had a particularly personal resonance for the composer. “The mezzo-soprano solo links the composer more tightly with his family roots, expresses itself in more trusting and optimistic feelings; however, the unease in the harmonies and rhythm likely cannot hide the composer’s fears about out era. The concluding epilogue is like an Agnus Dei. The finale should express hope and faith, which stands over life’s troubles, soothing our darkest predictions, and suppressing our fears” (the composer’s words quoted in Silabriedis’ notes). The text, as translated in the booklet, may seem somewhat dated but has now acquired some new relevance in our troubled times and the symphony now carries a most welcome and needed appeal for peace. Nonetheless, Ķeniņš’ Seventh Symphony is quite an impressive piece of music in its own right and its “message” (if such there is) may be heard by any man of goodwill.

This final installment in Ondine’s Ķeniņš cycle has been carefully prepared and is as immaculately performed as the preceding ones. These are committed performances throughout, in excellent sound, up to Ondine’s best standards and Orests Silabriedis’ notes are excellent.

Ķeniņš’ symphonic cycle is on a par with other largely forgotten similar cycles that would probably have remained ignored or little known, were it not for brave and enterprising recording companies who have invested in similar projects. Examples that immediately come to mind are BIS’ recordings of Tubin’s symphonies and the hopefully ongoing Wordsworth cycle by Toccata. One cannot but hope that ventures such as these will encourage others to follow suit.

Ķeniņš’ music is too good to be ignored and these performances do it full justice; I am sure that they will play a part in securing his music its deserved status.

-- MusicWeb International

Greatest ever Danish pianist in concert - His activities as a soloist and his increasingly comprehensive work as a teacher were central to his ?nal years from about 1950 until his death in 1967. Here I am thinking not only of his teaching as a professor at the conservatoire, but even more of his efforts to stimulate and encourage interest in classical music. One of his tools was television. TV was completely new. Many people were interested in it, and in Denmark only one channel was available. This was Danmarks Radio, which only transmitted a few hours daily. It opened up a unique opportunity for Schiøler to gain access to “the general public” in this way. There were many broadcasts which had the title “About the Piano” in common. In this series the sound track of Schubert’s Wanderer Fantasy has already been included in Vol 4. Besides the music, viewers could also hear Schiøler’s eloquent, inspiring and appealing introductions. Volume 6 also includes an example from these broadcasts. Schiøler introduces and talks about Saint-Saëns’ Variations for two pianos on a theme of Beethoven. The theme is the trio from the minuet in the Sonata in E?at, op. 31 no. 3. The variations make considerable demands on the two pianists, who constantly cast little bits of the theme to each other which they then have to grab in such a way that it never affects the pulse and continuity of the music. It demands perfect synchronization between the two players, here Schiøler and his pupil Peter Westenholz (1937 – 2008). And it is a joy to listen to them playing together! The recording was made in Schiøler’s own home on his two Hornung og Møller concert grands.

Little is known of Jacques-Jules Bouffil (or Boufil, 1783–1868) before his admission to the newly founded Paris Conservatoire in 1801. There he became a clarinet student of Xavier Lefevre, apparently making such rapid progress that he was awarded a premier prix on his graduation in 1806 and appointed second clarinet in the Opera-Comique a year later. In the years following he began to share principal clarinet duties with Charles Duvernoy until eventually (in 1821) succeeding him outright in the post.

Enter the Czech-born composer Antonin Reicha, who had arrived in the French capital from Vienna in 1808 fleeing the conflict that had engulfed Europe. A later account of 1837 tells us that while the Theater Feydeau was performing Reicha’s opera Cagliostro, the composer was approached one day by Bouffil and a colleague, Guenee, both members of the orchestra, asking for composition lessons. Reicha agreed, and his private class soon swelled to include other talented Parisian instrumentalists, Joseph Guillou (flute), Gustave Vogt (oboe), Antoine Henry (bassoon) and Louis Dauprat (horn) among them. The same account goes on to relay that, as the winds had been neglected as solo instruments in favor of strings by composers of the day (Mozart excepted), Reicha had the idea to combine the five principal winds, and after some research he published six wind quintets in succession, performed by Bouffil and the above-mentioned members of his composition studio over three consecutive winters, in the foyer of the Salle Favart.

Coached in composition by Reicha, Bouffil wrote primarily for his own instrument and in a Viennese style attractively modulated with a French accent, having both virtuosic and didactic purposes in mind. Both of these sides of his output receive attention on the present album.

These three compositions by three Portuguese composers pay direct and indirect tribute to the music of Beethoven. The Piano Quintet by João Domingos Bomtempo was written in the style of the Viennese Classical mainstream even as Beethoven was changing its direction. The two works by César Viana and Jaime Reis both have distant roots in Beethoven but pay their homage in very different styles, one using relatively traditional language and the other more radical – as was Beethoven himself, of course. The Lopes-Graça Quartet, made up of musicians with notable solo and chamber music careers, professors at the Escola de Música do Conservatorio Nacional (Lisbon), was formed in 2005 with the aim of equipping the Conservatory, in the image of many of its counterparts in the world , a reference group in the string area, with conditions to develop a permanent work with output at the levels of specialized training in chamber music (quartet master-classes) and the promotion of the school, at home and abroad.

This album explores music by three generations of the Tcherepnin family of composers: Nikolai, Alexander and Ivan. Although each wrote a wide range of scores, from solo pieces to operas and ballets, this recording focuses on their chamber music, presenting pieces spanning 95 years. Nikolai's works for violin and piano reveal a late-Romantic, post-Tchaikovskian sensibility, whereas those of Alexander have a more modern, twentieth-century touch, closer to the style of his friend Sergei Prokofiev (a student of his father). Ivan is represented by two works - early and late - for flute, clarinet and piano, which have an improvisatory and playful quality.

REVIEW:

Chamber music from three generations and almost 100 years from the Tcherepnin family, is presented on this CD. The family is represented by Nikolai, Alexander and Ivan. The works for violin and piano are by Nikolai and Alexander. Ivan is represented by compositions for flute, clarinet and piano. In five cases these are premiere recordings. Their music always develops on the basis of their Russian roots, which also leads to folk-song sounding elements. However, other influences always play into the music, such as expressionism in Nikolai’s case, Peruvian culture in Ivan’s, and in the well-traveled Alexander’s diverse influences and penchant for hexachordal scales alternating semitones and minor thirds. These recordings from a concert performance offer an opportunity to get acquainted with this assemblage of three generations of musicians – the fourth is not represented here. By far the best known, Alexander, is represented with his violin sonata and three small works for this instrumentation. The internationally experienced performers, all of whom have a connection to the United States, particularly Boston, offer a carefully crafted and spiritedly presented picture of these works by the three composers in mature performances.

-- Pizzicato

Krzysztof Penderecki’s works for (string) quartet neatly encapsulate the stylistic breadth and trace the development of Poland’s most important modern composer throughout his six-decade-long career. From the avantgarde rhythmical study that is Quartet No.1, via an ode to Webern, to the neo-romantic elder Penderecki’s Schubertian Clarinet Quartet, this collection covers all his chamber music for three and four strings, even the early neo-baroque outlier of his Three Pieces adapted from his film music for the steamy 1964 movie, The Saragossa Manuscript.

REVIEW:

From wild child of the experimental avant-garde to luscious neo-Romantic, Krzysztof Penderecki had an unusually profound stylistic transformation across his career. When his string quartets neatly encapsulate that trajectory, written as they were between 1960 and 2016, it’s no mean feat to pull off the entire cycle in consistently convincing and compelling fashion. Yet, that is what the Meccore Quartet has done here.

-- The Strad