Wienawski: Violin Concertos Nos. 1 & 2, Fantaisie brillante

Recorded in: Grand Hall of Moscow Conservatory November 2000 Producer(s) Valeri Polyansky Sound Engineer(s) Igor Veprintsev

Classical Music

Recorded in: New Broadcasting House, Manchester 29 February & 1 March 2000 Producer(s) Ralph Couzens Mike George Sound Engineer(s) Stephen Rinker Tim Archer (Assistant)

Import Hybrid-SACD pressing.

Recorded in: New Broadcasting House, Manchester 10-11 May 1998 Producer(s) Ralph Couzens Sound Engineer(s) Don Hartridge

In the wake of violinist Lydia Mordkovitch’s untimely death in 2014, Chandos has reissued and remastered several of her best recordings for the label, including this 1989 coupling of both Shostakovich violin concertos. The performances remain outstanding on every level.

It’s easy to slight No. 2’s often austere countenance and relatively sparse textures in favor of No. 1’s wider range of moods, textures, and greater surface virtuosity, yet Mordkovitch proves just as compelling and committed as her mentor David Oistrakh. If anything, she surpasses him in the brooding Adagio, where her slightly slower basic tempo, expressive discretion, and mesmerizingly controlled long legato lines grip you from start to finish. One might prefer a more incisive and playful approach to the Allegro finale, yet here the slippery thematic exchanges between soloist and orchestra convey a sense of gravitas and symphonic integrity that build to overwhelming climaxes.

These qualities also reveal themselves in the First concerto’s great third-movement Passacaglia, where the Scottish brass section achieves a smooth collective blend that still projects the music’s ferocity, matched by Mordkovitch’s perfectly tuned high sustained notes and octaves that both pierce and speak at the same time. Both Mordkovitch and Järvi revel in the Burlesque’s bleak brio and in the Scherzo’s rapid-fire chamber interplay, while the long first movement’s gloomy trajectory unfolds with carefully gauged dynamics and balances, from the low-lying woodwind rumbles to the ethereal celesta and harp intertwining at the end. Chandos’ resonant ambience closely approximates concert hall realism, especially if you’re listening via excellent quality loudspeakers or headphones.

-- Jed Distler, ClassicsToday.com

The newest installment in the Chandos La Musica de Espana series with the BBC Philharmonic and chief conductor Juanjo Mena explores the music of Isaac Albeniz, one of the greatest Spanish composers to have ever lived. This album includes his Piano Concerto No. 1 "Concierto fantastico", Suite espanola, Rapsodia espanola, and Suite from “The Magic Opal.” The featured soloist for the Piano Concerto and Rapsodia espanola is British pianist Martin Roscoe, who has already been critically praised for his previous recordings on the Chandos label.

BARBER Piano Concerto. COPLAND Piano Concerto. GERSHWIN Piano Concerto • Xiayin Wang (pn); Peter Oundjian, cond; Royal Scottish Natl O • CHANDOS 5128 (SACD: 75:44)


Let’s get this out of the way: this combination of a Chinese pianist, Canadian conductor, and Scottish orchestra delivers some of the most vibrant and stylish takes on these American piano concertos you are likely to hear anywhere. The soloist, Xiayin Wang, delivers the goods with a winning combination of taste and dazzling technique. She resists the temptation to showboat; she has the chops to make the Gershwin a virtuoso blowout, but instead respects, and trusts, the integrity of the score. As someone who still believes that there is such a thing as a nationalistic style in classical music performance, I am going to risk describing Wang as a member of the contemporary Chinese school of pianism, characterized by phenomenal technique anchored by a rock-solid rhythmic control, bright tone, and a big sound that is related to the immense influence of Russian teachers on Chinese pedagogy. The obvious exponents of such a “school” include Lang Lang, Yundi Li, and Yuja Wang.


This approach is ideal for much of the music on this disc. It even brightens up the rather leaden Barber Concerto, which is usually heard in a more darkly brazen manner. Her way with the Copland (a fine early work by the American master that is inexplicably underplayed), which exhibits a delightfully jazzy bent by the composer, and the beloved Gershwin, is utterly captivating and completely idiomatic.


Peter Oundjian, who I have enjoyed hearing in live performance a number of times, seems to me to be an unappreciated conductor. He has an excellent ear for balance and color, but is not an especially flashy musician, which, in the world of high-octane orchestral performance, does not take one to the front of the public stage. This recording reminds me why I admire him; he and his soloist find natural, flowing tempos, excellent clarity of texture, and attractive highlighting of the fine soloists in this world-class ensemble. Add the usual fine engineering from Chandos and you have yourselves a winner of a release.


FANFARE: Peter Burwasser

Classical Music

Classical Music

Violin Concertos for Children, Vol. 2

Classical Music

Classical Music

Antonín Dvořák’s op. 53 is now part of the repertoire for all the world’s great violinists. Josef Suk’s G minor Fantasy For Violin and Orchestra is a kind of virtuoso, rhapsodic symphonic poem. Janáček’s late, concise Violin Concerto, ‘The Wandering of the Soul’, combines great energy and urgency. Josef Špaček, the youthful concertmaster of the Czech Philharmonic, recorded these concerts live with “his” orchestra under its principal conductor Jiří Bělohlávek. The Forbes Magazine in the Czech Republic included Josef Špaček in their 2014 list of most influential “30 under 30” people.

MOZART: Piano Concertos Nos. 21 and 23 / Rondo in D major

Both composers on this recording, Johann Benjamin Gross (1809-48) and Julius Rietz (1812-77), belonged to the artistic circles around Robert Schumann and Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy. This recording presents a selection of cello concertos, a genre that experienced a significant upturn during the 19th century. The two Rietz pieces at the center of this recording, the Fantasy for Violoncello and Orchestra, op. 2 and the Violoncello Concerto, op. 16, likely date back to the mid-late 1830’s.

Classical Music

Classical Music

For all his successes on the operatic stage, Menotti has never won the same reputation in the field of instrumental music. As the 'Violin Concerto' on this disc reveals, however, Menotti's orchestral music is as concerned with creating vivid, dramatic images as are any of his operas. Recorded in: Teatro Nuovo, Spoleto, Italy 4 & 5 July 2001 Producer(s) Ralph Couzens (Recording) Aidan Oliver (Assistant) Sound Engineer(s) Ralph Couzens Christopher Brooke (Assistant)

SCHOENBERG Pierrot Lunaire. 1 Chamber Symphony No. 1. 2 Piano Concerto 3. Fantasy for Violin and Piano 4. The Book of the Hanging Gardens. 5 Psalm 130, De Profundius. 6 3 Piano Pieces, Op. 11 7. 6 Little Piano Pieces, Op. 19 8. 5 Pieces, Op. 23 9. 2 Pieces, Opp. 33a, 33b 10. String Trio, Op. 45 11. Suite in G for String Orchestra: Movements 1, 2, 4 12. BERG Lyric Suite. 13 4 Pieces for Clarinet and Piano, Op. 5 14. 7 Early Songs 15. Schliesse mir die Augen beide 16. WEBERN Passacaglia, Op. 1. 17 5 Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 10 18. 4 Pieces for Violin and Piano, Op. 7 19 & • Suzanne Danco (sop); 5 Magda László (sop); 15 Evelyn Lear (sop); 16 Irmen Burmester (sprechstimme); 1 Hans Bastiaan (vn); 1 André Gertler (vn); 19 Rudolf Kolisch (vn); 4 Erich Röhn (vn); 11 Tibor Varga (vn); 4 Ernst Doberitz (va); 11 Walter Müller (va); 1 Werner Haupt (vc); 1 Arthur Troester (vc); 11 Hans Peter Schmitz (fl); 1 Alfred Bürkner (cl); 1 Heinrich Geuser (cl); 14 Diane Andersen (pn); 19 Klaus Billing (pn); 1,14,20,21 Lothar Broddack (pn); 15 Hans Hilsdorf (pn); 16 Else C. Kraus (pn); 10 Ernst Krenek (pn); 4 Hermann Reutter (pn); 5 Peter Stadlen (pn); 3 Eduard Steuermann (pn); 7-9 Alan Willman (pn); 4 Emil Hammermeister (hrm); 20,21 Végh Quartet; 13 Bastiaan Quartet; 20,21 Günther Arndt, cond; 6 Ferenc Fricsay, cond; 2,12 Bruno Maderna, cond; 18 Arthur Rother, cond; 17 Josef Rufer, cond; 1 Winfried Zillig, cond; 3 RIAS CCh; 6 RIAS SO; 2,3 Berlin RSO; 17,18 Berlin PO 12 • AUDITE 21.412, mono (4 CDs: 299:54 Text and Translation) Live: Berlin 3 2/6/1949; 12 11/28/1949; 4 8/28/1953 (Kolisch)


& J. STRAUSS II 20 Roses from the South (arr. Schoenberg). 21 The Gypsy Baron: Treasure Waltz (arr. Webern)


Having been banned as “degenerate” during the Third Reich, by the end of World War II the experimental work of what is now called the Second Viennese School was, at best, on the fringes of German public perception. The three composers who made up the school as such were dead (Berg in 1935 and Webern in 1945) or self-exiled to the U.S. (Schoenberg). There were few performances of their work in postwar Europe and even fewer commercial recordings. So Hans Heinz Stuckenschmidt, the editor of new music at the RIAS in occupied West Berlin, and Schoenberg’s conductor-colleague Josef Rufer, sought out musicians—many from the composers’ circle of students and friends—to record and broadcast some of the most important works of these three pivotal modernists. This was more than an act of national contrition for Stuckenschmidt and Rufer. They intended to revive the performing traditions that had been developing in Berlin in the 1920s and ’30s, and cultivate a new generation of performers. They hoped, as well, to create more interest in the listening public through greater familiarity.


Audite’s four-disc The RIAS Second Viennese School Project presents a selection of these RIAS performances recorded between 1949 and 1965. The pieces, written between 1906 and 1950, provide an overview of the arc of the school’s development from the quartal harmonies of Schoenberg’s Chamber Symphony No. 1, to the stricter 12-tone serial techniques of works like the Two Piano Pieces, op. 33a & b, to the still dodecaphonic but increasingly personal works like his Piano Concerto and String Trio. While these works are often collectively written off as austere and unapproachable, the reality revealed here is rather different. Though the uninitiated will still find some of the going rough—there are works by these composers that are still cutting-edge these many decades later—this compilation persuasively argues that wholesale dismissal of the oeuvre of these composers is intellectual laziness. Most of the music here is not all that taxing to ears attuned to music of the last century.


Perhaps the problem in perception is one of interpretive tradition. Performers have tended to fall into two camps: those who take a coolly objective approach, and those—most often not of the composers’ close circle—who treat these pieces as they would any romantic work. This is most tellingly illustrated by the inclusion of two performances of the Fantasy for Violin and Piano , op. 47; one by objectivist Schoenberg disciple (and brother-in-law) Rudolf Kolisch and the other by famed Hungarian violinist Tibor Varga. Prewar, Schoenberg reputedly demanded adherence to the letter of the score, and often seemed to enjoy his reputation for inflexibility and aloof intellectualism. But later, the composer praised a recording of Varga’s more spontaneous take on his violin concerto, concluding that, “I wish to be younger to be able to write more music for you.” It is not hard to imagine that this more subjective interpretation of the Fantasy might have similarly earned the composer’s approval. Release annotator Wolfgang Rathert quotes Schoenberg’s concerns regarding Kolisch’s quest for executional perfection, and Schoenberg/Berg scholar Rudolf Stephan, interviewed for the program notes, states that Vargas distinguished himself in this repertoire “because he approached the piece[s] as a musician.” It takes only a measure of heart to reveal the Mahlerian late-romanticism in many of Schoenberg’s scores, and it is perhaps the lack of this heart in many performances that has stood in the way of acceptance. Indeed, this question of effective interpretation of the works of Schoenberg in particular is central to this release, and is explored at some length in Rathert’s illuminating essay and in the interview.


Schoenberg’s students Berg and Webern are represented as well, though by less than an hour of the former and barely 20 minutes of the latter. Berg’s works have always presented fewer problems to listeners. He has been accepted where Schoenberg has not in part because he wears his romantic inclinations on his sleeve and is never as unbending in his application of serial techniques. Webern was a keener serialist than even his mentor after 1925, but he is represented here by works that predate his adoption of Schoenberg’s more radical innovations.


So, is this then the ideal place for the serious listener wishing to come to terms with the Second Viennese School to begin? Certainly, as a broad sampling in several genres of historical performances of the composers’ compositions, this is quite attractive. The vocal works in particular are represented by outstanding performances. Suzanne Danco’s 1955 recording of Schoenberg’s The Book of the Hanging Gardens has been equaled only by Jan DeGaetani’s more detailed but less opulent reading. Irmen Burmester narrates a strikingly accurate Pierrot lunaire —more so than Schoenberg’s 1940 Columbia recording—which, led by Rufer, is alive to all the paradoxes of the work—art high and low—and the vivid imagery of the text. Evelyn Lear gives flawless performances of Berg’s contrasting settings of Theodor Storm’s Schliesse Mir die Augen Beide , while Hungarian soprano Magda László offers the same composer’s 7 Early Songs with less technical perfection but enormous sensitivity and beauty. The RIAS Chamber Chorus sings a fearless account of the harrowing and technically daunting De Profundis, op. 50b, though later performances—Accentus on Naïve comes to mind—have found more beauty in the severity.


Highlighting the fine chamber work performances included are a warmhearted and ultimately haunting performance of Berg’s Lyric Suite by the Vegh Quartet and an aptly neurotic performance of Schoenberg’s heart-attack-inspired String Trio, op. 45 by Erich Röhn and two other veterans of Furtwängler’s Berlin Philharmonic. Hungarian violinist André Gertler finds real warmth in Webern’s 4 Pieces for Violin and Piano, op.7, and Heinrich Geuser plays the 4 Pieces for Clarinet and Piano with uncommon tenderness. The two Strauss transcriptions are as charmingly done as those of the Boston Chamber Players (DG): high praise indeed.


I am less convinced, however, that Eduard Steuermann is an ideal guide for the piano works (but see contra Fanfare 34:4) though given his scrupulous approach, the playing is irreproachable. Peter Hill (Naxos) brings more color, Viennese grace, and a romantic sensibility, and the charismatic Mitsuko Uchida (Philips) offers a wonderful sense of mystery and atmosphere. Uchida brings similar qualities to the piano concerto, where she and Pierre Boulez find more of Schoenberg’s war-weariness than Peter Stadlen does. Ultimately though, it is the limitations of Stadlen’s 1949 live recording, with recessed orchestra and the insecurity of the RIAS ensemble at that time, which undermines his as a model. Still, other than a loving but wrong-headed performance of three movements of Schoenberg’s Suite for String Orchestra by the usually perceptive Ferenc Fricsay, the orchestral works fare well in this series. Fricsay redeems himself with a strong performance of the Chamber Symphony No. 1. There is, as well, a Webern Passacaglia, op. 1, conducted by Arthur Rother which emphasizes its Brahmsian longing, and a polished gem of a reading of his Five Pieces, op. 10, led by conductor/dodecaphonic composer Bruno Maderna.


All recordings are monaural, though generally clean and transparent with the slight edginess on the top typical of RIAS master-tape releases from this source. Some of the older tapes show signs of deterioration, but they have been repaired expertly. The earliest recordings exhibit the extreme highlighting of the soloists that was common radio practice then, but this is really only to the detriment of the Schoenberg concerto. The supporting material is brilliantly done, with the aforementioned essay and interview, plus notes on the interpreters and recordings, full recording data, and all sung texts. Collectors who already admire these works will certainly want this set for its historical significance. In the end though, I must answer my question regarding the neophyte more equivocally. Those with a musicological bent will certainly find this set fascinating. Those wishing an inexpensive introduction to the music may wish to start with the superb Robert Craft recordings of Schoenberg and Webern on Naxos in modern sound. In the end, though, this is an essential purchase on many levels and, if I haven’t made it clear already, an addition to the discography of the Second Viennese School of immense value.


FANFARE: Ronald E. Grames

Extraordinary, deeply expressive, bassoon playing.

Karen Geoghegan, runner-up in the BBC’s recent Classical Star programme is on a mission to promote the bassoon repertoire. This, her debut CD, is an ideal starting point. From the opening bars, the quality of the recording is self-evident, with a well balanced and excellently produced orchestral sound. By the time the bassoon enters, one is already immersed in quality, and it is easy to question whether a young performer such as Geoghegan can match those standards.

Not only does she match them, she surpasses them. Her sound quality is extraordinary, proving her argument that the bassoon is deeply expressive, worthy of being taken seriously as a solo instrument. The Hummel concerto is the work that brought her to Chandos’s attention initially, during the final of Classical Star, and this recording leaves no doubt about the artistry of this exciting young performer. The faultless technical work is never a burden - something often expected from this notoriously cumbersome instrument - and in Geoghegan’s hands, the bassoon is agile and flexible. The slow movement is breathtaking, with her depth of sound something that should be experienced by all. The cadenza is particularly stunning, with some beautifully resonant low notes contrasted against a singing high register. She has an instinctive feel for phrasing and spacing, using silence to give extra weight to the notes she plays. The orchestral playing is also impressive, with Wallfisch capably handling the impressive Orchestra of Opera North. The finale has charm and personality, and a sense of youthful enjoyment. This is a fresh, exuberant performance, which is captivating from beginning to end.

The Weber that follows is mysteriously dark in its opening Andante, and the subsequent variations are expertly performed. The Hungarian Rondo has a charming appeal, with its light-hearted nature and strong rhythms. The accompaniment from the orchestra is poised and contained, giving a perfectly balanced accompaniment, which features well-presented solo moments from various wind players. Geoghegan once again performs with style and understanding, and a maturity of musicality which one would not expect from somebody her age. Her command of her instrument is truly remarkable, in both the fast paced moments, such as the dramatic end of the work, and in the slower, more expressive passages.

Berwald’s Concert Piece follows, composed in 1827 and first performed in the composer’s native Sweden in the following year. There is a strong operatic influence in the writing, and the bassoon takes on the role of a resonant tenor voice. The Andante, with its surprising setting of a famous British tune - listen to the CD to find out which one! - is exquisite, performed with deep-felt expression. The wide leaps and technical display in the following variations are equally impressive, further displaying this young performer’s breadth of ability.

Not many will have previously encountered Jacobi. Born in Germany in 1791, he was a prolific composer of works for bassoon. Karen Geoghegan has often spoken about the multitude of bassoon works which are not often heard by the general public, and Jacobi’s works are a prime example of this. The Introduction and Polonaise is well constructed and is more usually heard in a version for bassoon and piano. This is the world premiere recording of the orchestral version, with the sleeve-notes explaining that the orchestration was copied by bassoonist William Bailey from an unknown source in the early twentieth century. The version works well, and the orchestration seems natural and carefully balanced. The piece makes considerable technical demands of the soloist, played here with typical evenness and sense of ease. She proves that the concept of a virtuoso bassoonist is certainly not a myth.

Forming a very obvious contrast, Elgar’s compositional style suits the bassoon equally well. Composed later than the other works, in 1910, it makes use of the expressive qualities of the instrument, with Geoghegan’s luxurious sound showing the music off at its best.

The final track is an orchestration of Gershwin’s Summertime, in an arrangement by David Arnold. This is one of the highlights of the disc, showing an entirely different aspect to the bassoon in a way which reaches out to the listener. Geoghegan’s sound is ideally suited to this music, and she has a relaxed jazzy feel, capturing the essence of the work and rivalling many jazz singers. The bassoon has a wonderful vocal quality in its higher registers, which is unmissable here. It is perhaps difficult to include such a well-known and popular track on a disc such as this, but it balances nicely with the rest of the programme and shows the bassoon in its best possible light.

Despite the obvious criticisms of reality TV and a culture of people who try to achieve fame overnight without the hard work that goes with it, it is evident that Classical Star found some real talent. It is clear that Geoghegan has spent her life so far working hard and nurturing her abilities, under the careful guidance of some excellent teachers, such as Janet Bloxwich and John Orford. With a disc such as this, it is impossible not to take the bassoon, and Karen Geoghegan, seriously.

-- Carla Rees, MusicWeb International

VIVALDI (Arr. Roos) La stravaganza, op. 4/1,3–6,9,11 • Frédéric de Roos (rcr, cond); La Pastorella (period instruments) • RICERCAR 288 (56:29)


Do you wish that Vivaldi had penned more concerti da camera ? (Not that you were lying awake at night thinking about it!) So do the members of La Pastorella, apparently. Doing nothing worse than what Baroque composers used to do all the time, they have taken seven concertos from La stravaganza , and arranged them for their ensemble, which consists of a violin (played by Mira Glodeanu), oboe (Benoît Laurent), cello (Hervé Douchy), bassoon (Alain de Rijckere), organ or harpsichord (Guy Penson), and guitar or theorbo (Philippe Malfeyt), all under the direction of recorder player de Roos. Does it work? Nicely. Does it replace Vivaldi’s originals? Of course not; but it complements them well.


The originals are violin concertos. Sometimes the solo part remains assigned to the violin, but at other times it is reassigned to the recorder, the oboe, or the bassoon. The solo material is passed from instrument to instrument throughout the course of a movement. If you feel that some of Vivaldi’s concertos for string instruments suffer from a too unvaried texture, these arrangements will remedy that. La Pastorella keeps the concertos’ original keys, although they do transpose some of the slow movements up or down a fifth, to “better suit the tessitura of the new solo instrument.” Again, that’s hardly a hanging offense in this repertoire, and the ends justify the means.


The performances are wide awake, yet relaxed. No one is trying to show off. The music-making is like an afternoon spent at home with friends. Try the slow movement of Concerto No. 11, and see if you don’t enjoy hearing the recorder sing with light melancholy to the accompaniment of the organ and theorbo. De Roos’s recorder has a likeable timbre, and he blends it beautifully with the other instruments. The booklet doesn’t include biographical material, so I don’t know how long La Pastorella has been around—it is not a new group. This CD moves me to explore its apparently extensive back catalog, though. This is lovely, innovative, low-pressure Vivaldi.


FANFARE: Raymond Tuttle

Chandos releases a new compilation of orchestral works by Grieg on its mid-price 'Classics' label. The disc contains some of Grieg's most popular works. Recorded in: Ulster Hall, Belfast 29-31 August (Suite No. 1), 19 & 20 August 1989 (other works) Producer(s) Brian Couzens (Suite No. 1) Tim Oldham (other works) Sound Engineer(s) Ralph Couzens Philip Couzens (Suite No. 1) Richard Lee (other works)

Elgar's defiant late work and Walton's richly atmospheric display vehicle have inspired Daniel Müller-Schott and André Previn - who was a personal friend of Walton - to collaborate on a recording that does full justice to the variety and uniqueness of these two masterpieces of English music.