Strange but true: Emil Nikolaus von Reznicek’s opera Benzin set to his own libretto freely adapting Pedro Calderón de la Barca’s "El mayor encanto amor" collected dust for more than eighty years and first found its way from his music cabinet to the stage when it came to the attention of the Chemnitz Theater. It was here that the opera, now finally being released as a recording, celebrated its premiere on 28 November 2010. A closer examination of the opera reveals that there is much more to it than a lighthearted operetta; here we have a farcical, fantastic drama à la E. T. A. Hoffmann in which grotesque exaggeration renders tolerable the depths and perils of human existence. Dance forms pervade the music, contributing to the characterization of the social class depicted in the plot of the opera while also offering an overview of the “light tone” intended by Reznicek for this work; polonaise, foxtrot, Boston lente, and Tempo di Valse numbers occur along with a tango and a Galop presto. The tonal arsenal is fully equipped and implemented, which of course means propeller noise, sirens, and hammering on an anvil creating an authentic airport atmosphere.

Johann Peter Kellner is an outstanding example of the Central German countryside’s flourishing music culture. A rich music culture existed not only in Thuringia’s residence towns but also in the country, and it attained a considerable level during the eighteenth century. The structure of Kellner’s cantatas is uniform: introductory chorus- recitative- aria- chorale. The wedding cantata contains a second recitative prior to the concluding chorus. Influences from Johann Sebastian Bach and Gottfried Heinrich Stolzel and increasingly from CPE Bach are eminent in the composition of these works. They arose during the transition in musical styles between the Baroque and the use of empfindsam or gallant stylistic means. These cantatas from the generation of Bach’s pupils have once again been rendered audible after some 250 years and are now being made available to a broader public on the present recording produced at a historic stie with the use of the restored Kellner-Weise organ in the organo obligato duets.

Dmitri Borisovich Kabalevsky came behind Prokofiev and Shostakovich and along with Khachaturian in the “Big Four” of Soviet music. Following the releases of Kabalevsky’s four symphonies, his complete works for piano and orchestra and the two cello concertos, CPO now presents the composer’s music for solo piano. This release includes the three piano sonatas and the two important rondos while a future release will feature the complete preludes. There is also a short set of Three Rondos Op. 30 but as these pieces are nothing more than short and easy transcriptions from Kabalevsky’s opera “Colas Breugnon” they are not included here. Few careers are so closely linked to the recording medium as that of the pianist Michael Korstick. Among critics and experts in the piano world the Cologne-born Korstick has long enjoyed renown as one of the leading German pianists. Critics repeatedly emphasize the outstanding balance maintained by him between brilliant virtuosity and musical introspection, so richly informed by his striking personality and by his uncompromising faithfulness to the works he performs.

I imagine that most of my readers have, if nothing else by coincidence, heard Komm mit mir in’s Chambre séparée and probably been enchanted by the sweet melody. I first heard it, as far as I remember, in the early 1970s on an LP with the legendary Elisabeth Schumann – and then I was caught. Browsing through my not inconsiderable collection of operetta music I found dozens of recordings of this piece, as solo songs, mostly, and as duets – but not one other piece of music by Richard Heuberger. So it was with rather low expectations I started listening to this brand new recording. I was, literary overwhelmed from beginning to end. Here was a lively, expertly orchestrated overture, of the potpourri kind, and pretty soon the Chambre séparée popped up – as expected. But well before that there had been several catchy melodies, and for every new musical number during the entire operetta there were new gems. I was stunned.

Before I continue my eulogy I will present the composer, who probably is little known to many. Born in 1850 in Graz in Austria he had no inclination for music and studied to engineer. Not until 1876, when he had already turned 25, did he change direction and studied at the conservatory in his hometown. He then went to Vienna, where he became leader and conductor of several choirs and also started teaching at the conservatory. He also devoted himself to music criticism and, maybe surprising, championed the new musical currents around the turn of the century, Zemlinsky, Mahler and, not least Schönberg. In return Zemlinsky assisted him when he composed Der Opernball, and it is possible that the homogeneity of the music and the orchestration emanates from his younger friend (Zemlinsky was born in 1871).

The story may not be the most original among operetta librettos. I quote the synopsis from Franz Mailer’s liner notes: “It’s Carnival time, and Paul Aubier and his wife Angèle are visiting Georges and Marguérite Duménil in Paris. During their stay, Marguérite convinces Angèle to test the fidelity of their husbands, and they decide to use the Paris Opera Ball as the venue for the experiment. Marguérite and Angèle send identical notes to their husbands, which invite each man to a rendezvous with a mysterious beauty wearing a pink domino. Secretly, Hortense, the chambermaid for the Duménil family, sends a third invitation to naval cadet Henri – and slips on a pink domino. Under the pretence of attending to urgent business matters, Paul and Georges tell their wives that they must depart Paris immediately. Instead of leaving, however, they don their finest suits and hurry off to the Opera Ball. There, they begin the hunt for their pink dominos, and the evening descends into utter chaos. The following morning, no one has any idea who has been with who, let alone when or where … Although they all suspect each other of having been unfaithful, Hortense ultimately receives the blame for everything that has taken place.”

If you think this is too obscene for your taste, you can just throw the libretto away and just enjoy the music with eyes wide shut. I should mention, however, that this recording, based on an actual production at Opera Graz and that the original libretto has been rewritten by Peter Lund. To what degree I don’t know, but the musical numbers, several of them, have been allocated in a different order from the original score, for dramaturgic reasons. This matters very little for those who don’t know the original. The libretto is printed in the booklet, but only in German and the spoken dialogue is not included – a pity for those who are less than fluent in German.

Most of the musical numbers are ensembles of some kind: duets, trios, quartets and larger ensembles for the act I and II finales. Within these ensembles there is, however, generous opportunities for the individual role characters to burst out in solos and there is a wealth of lovely melodies and quite original, inventive songs. Georges has a beautiful tune in the first duet (CD 1 tr. 2) Man lebt nur einmal in der Welt; within the Paris-Lied (CD 1 tr. 4) has a refrain worth savouring: Überall, überall ist es schön in der Welt; Henri sings in the duettino with Hortense (CD 1 tr. 6) Hab’ daheim ein Schätzelein and Georges again in the quartet (CD 1 tr. 8) sings Willst du etwas Weibliches wie man sagt “gewinnen”. The second act opens charming chorus (CD 2 tr. 1) and then follows the high-spot, the extended duet with Henri and Hortense that ends up in the Chambre séparée (CD 2 tr. 2). In the finale of the act there is a string of pearls of lovely melodies and also some convincing contrapuntal writing, quite advanced for an operetta. Marguérite and Angèle have a riveting duet in the third act (CD 2 tr. 8) and the short final song is a nice waltz. This is an entirely charming melodious operetta worth anyone’s acquaintance – and best of all: the singing is soooo good! There isn’t a sour tone anywhere and no one overtaxes his/her voice. The chorus and orchestra are excellent and the recording ditto. For once it is a studio production and one is spared the stamping feet and banging doors of so many live recordings. That the production comes from Graz, Heuberger’s home town, is a further reason for rejoicing.

Operetta lovers, and they are not yet an extinct species, shouldn’t hesitate. They will be in for a real treat!

– MusicWeb International (Göran Forsling)

The uncommonly productive Christoph Graupner composed the five Epiphany cantatas selected for this recording between 1730 and December 1753, when he was no longer practicing the art of opera composition. The words were written by his brother-in-law, the Darmstadt pastor and superintendent Johann Conrad Lichtenberg. Lichtenberg was an extremely voluminous writer who turned out some 1500 cantata texts between 1719 and 1743, all imaginatively set to music by Graupner. The choice of cantatas for this recording was governed by two guiding principles: the subject matter of the Epiphany period, and their remarkable instrumentation, which exemplifies the wide range of timbres in Graupner’s music. Particularly in the arias he succeeded in displaying the musical potential of the instruments without neglecting the human voice. Founded by Kominik Worner in 2008, the Kirchheim BachConsort consists of leading musicians from the early music scene who appear in solo formations to study and perform programmes of 18th century music.

With the present release the gifted Belgian Quatuor Danel ensemble turn to two masterpieces by Cesar Franck: his passionate Piano Quintet and the String Quartet. The three-movement Quintet, like Brahms’s op. 34 an expansion of the Schumannian model, is one of Franck’s most infamous works. It immediately established itself, and a second performance with the pianist Marie Poitevin, the later dedicatee of the Prelude, Choral et Fugue, convinced the members of the Societe Nationale. Franck’s String Quartet, his last major work, was similarly acclaimed by its first listeners. After its first performance in April 1890, with tears in his eyes, Cesar Franck is said to have told his pupil Vincent d’Indy, "Now you see: at long last the public is beginning to understand me."

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REVIEW:

Both of these works have been admirably served on disc, but this new recording is the most gripping yet - and by a long shot. Urgently recommended.

– Gramophone

Johann Evangelist Brandl was a versatile composer considered by his contemporaries to be ‘one of the most estimable composers of our time.’ His output covers every standard genre of his day except for keyboard music. Roughly 70 songs from his pen appeared in print; his church music was left unpublished; his Six String Quartets op. 17 bear a dedication to Joseph Haydn. Particularly striking in his chamber music is his scoring for both strings and winds, with special importance accorded to the bassoon. On this new release, the Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz under the baton of Kevin Griffiths present an early work and a late work- the Symphony op. 12 in E flat major and the Symphony op. 25 in D major. The Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz is the largest and most important orchestra in this federal state. Based in Ludwigshafen, it is considered the leading symphony orchestra of the Rhine-Neckar metropolitan region and offers a diverse repertoire ranging from the great symphonies to music theater and filmscores.

In 1677 Johann Schelle became the music director at the Church of St. Thomas in Leipzig, succeeding his teacher Sebastian Knüpfer and preceding Johann Kuhnau in this post. His own pupils included important composers like Johann Christoph Graupner, Johann David Heinichen, Reinhard Keiser, Johann Theodor Roemhildt and Friedrich Wilhelm Zachow. Schelle is known to have produced more than 180 compositions, of which unfortunately only 48 have survived. His importance lies mainly in his chorale cantatas and in the combination of Biblical texts and freely written sacred poetry he employed in his more advanced sacred concertos- an early form of what would later become the Lutheran church cantata. The present release gathers together Schelle’s known compositions for Advent and Christmas. In doing so it also sheds light on the musical role of the St. Thomas Choir in Leipzig’s musical culture during the final third of the 17th century.

The Akathistos Hymn to the Virgin Mary is a lyrical masterpiece in 24 stanzas that has been treasured for nearly 1,500 years by Eastern Christians. Father Ivan Moody's 1998 setting, composed specially for Cappella Romana, weaves beloved Greek melodies into Russian choral textures as it progresses from reverent contemplation to ecstatic transcendence. Vocal ensemble Cappella Romana combines passion with scholarship in it's exploration of early and contemporary music of the Christian East and West. It's name refers to the medieval Greek concept of the Roman oikoumene (inhabited world), which embraced Rome and Western Europe as well as the Byzantine Empire of Constantinople ("New Rome") and it's Slavic commonwealth. "purity and radiance in perfect realizations" (Gramophone) "The sound is splendid" (American Record Guide) "light and warmth over an ancient musical ground" (Willamette Week)

When Giacomo Puccini received an offer from Vienna “to write an opera – yes: similar to Der Rosenkavalier, only more entertaining and more organic,” he replied, “An operetta, that for me is out of the question.” What the composition became is La rondine- a comic opera in 3 acts, which Puccini finished in 1916, two years after the original commission. At the premiere in Monte Carlo in 1917 the initial reception by the public and press was warm. However, despite the artistic value of the score, La rondine has been one of Puccini’s less successful works. In this production, conducted by Ivan Repusic, four star sopranos are featured: Elena Mosuc, Evelin Novak, Siobhan Stagg, and Elbenita Kajtazi.

CPO’s unique anthology of Baroque flute concertos contains not only the recording label’s sensational collections featuring virtuoso recorder concertos of the German, Italian, and English Baroque but also the complete solo recorder concertos of Georg Philipp Telemann, Alessandro Scarlatti, and Antonio Vivaldi. Telemann’s two so very different Concertos in F major and C major, for example, number among the most outstanding Baroque compositions of all for the recorder in a concerto role. Michael Schneider currently has no real rivals- worldwide- on his instrument. In his hands the recorder loses what so often limits its expressive capacity and gains a voice articulating all the musical facets. The complete eighteenth-century repertoire of recorder concertos, or most of it, is now available in performances by Schneider. Listening pleasure and astonishment are guaranteed for all!

The ORF Radio-Symphonieorchester Wien, headed by Cornelius Meister, presents Alexander Zemlinsky's "The Mermaid". Zemlinsky's "The Mermaid" is a rougher orchestral painting, created in the spirit of Jugendstil, according to the romantic fairy tale of Hans Christian Andersen. Teresa Vogl and orchestral director Christoph Becher listen carefully: the glittering colors of the waves, the longing of the enchanted mermaid after a solid ground under her feet, the perfidious suggestion of the water witch, the splendid wedding at the court. It is true that the marriage of the prince and the mermaid is of limited duration, but Zemlinsky gives the listeners a harmonious finale - just as it is for a fairy tale.

For two decades now the L’Orfeo Barockorchester ranges among the most prominent players on the Early Music stage. According to the Neue Zürcher Zeitung the international ensemble, directed by its founder Michi Gaigg, boasts uniqueness which sets it apart from any globalized uniformity. This quality is based on widely diverse musical synergies. A spirited approach, a sense of continuity, healthy dynamics in the ensemble and an inquisitive nature are the ingredients for Michi Gaigg’s recipe. Against this background she creates her own colorful, sensual, temperamental and unmistakable handwriting. This album is the second release in the ensemble’s exploration of the String Symphonies of Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy. The first volume was previously released to stunning reviews.

Do you know Georg Schumann? No, he is not the unknown brother, nephew or grandson of his famous name father Robert. Nevertheless, he was a respected composer, pianist and, above all, a music teacher. The German Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, under the direction of James Feddeck, has recently dealt with some of his great orchestral works. Trained by Carl Reinecke, encounters with Liszt, Brahms, Rubinstein, Mahler or Bruch, head of the master class for composition at the Prussian Academy of Arts in Berlin for more than half a century, Berlin Philharmonic's long-standing regular guest etc. All these are unmistakable signs of the importance of Georg Schumann as a composer, pianist, conductor and pedagogue. Musicians of the following generations would still have to be indefinitely grateful to him, since he and Richard Strauss, together with others, founded the cooperative of German composers, today's GEMA. And yet his name is nowadays no longer on concert programs, let alone in CD catalogs. It is all the more pleasing to see Georg Schumann again at cpo.

Mikhail Glinka, the founder of Russian national opera composition and Russian symphonic music, is known internationally above all for his operas A Life for the Tsar and Ruslan and Lyudmila and his orchestral work Kamarinskaya. His chamber oeuvre is little known outside Russia and – apart from piano music and songs with piano – is limited to a few works. The complete edition of Glinka’s works edited in the Soviet Union contains a mere eight chamber compositions. The form of Glinka’s Septet is modeled above all on the symphonies of Viennese classicism; for its themes, however, he draws on the folk melodies with which he had been familiar since his childhood, thereby combining Western tradition with Russian melodic designs. His Trio pathétique and the Serenata distinguished by great virtuosity and colorfulness are played without breaks between the four movements. The Three Russian Songs heard on the present recording form a group created by the composer Eduard Hermann during the 1880s. He employed songs with piano accompaniment by Glinka and arranged them for a piano trio.