Spohr: Overture Op 12, Quartet Concerto Op 131, Etc / Weigle

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This Spohr collection gets off to a slow start with the Overture Op. 12. It's an early effort (1806), and though it was a success in its day, to modern ears it sounds very predictable and more than a little hackneyed. Luckily, its six minutes are over quickly, yet the unimpressive musical content leaves us unprepared for the arrestingly beautiful work that follows. The Quartet-Concerto deliberately attempts to do Beethoven's Triple Concerto one better by including four soloists. Predictably, the four play mostly as a quartet with the orchestra mainly providing backdrop. But when the two mesh, the result is a wonderfully lush sonority that combined with Spohr's lyrical intensity makes for some arresting moments, especially as played by the excellent Leipzig String Quartet and the equally fine Leipzig Chamber Orchestra under Sebastian Weigle.

Spohr's Nonet was something of a path-breaking work in that its dimensions and material correspond more closely to that of a symphony than to the divertimentos of Mozart, Beethoven, or Schubert. Brahms was highly influenced by this composition, and in it you can hear early hints of that composer's style. The Nonet satisfies by its full-dress sonorities, beautiful themes, and brilliant invention. The slow movement contains an especially beguiling melody that remains in the ear long after the movement's end. The nine soloists of the Ensemble Villa Musica play with all the excitement of discovering a masterpiece--which perhaps they have. The recorded sound from both venues is rich, warm, and full-bodied.
--Victor Carr Jr., ClassicsToday.com


Product Description:


  • Catalog Number: 3070849-2


  • UPC: 760623084923


  • Label: MDG


  • Composer: Louis Spohr


  • Conductor: Sebastian Weigle


  • Orchestra/Ensemble: Leipzig Chamber Orchestra, Leipzig String Quartet, Villa Musica Ensemble