Ben van Oosten numbers among today's best-known organ virtuosos. His complete recordings of the organ works of Marcel Dupré, Louis Vierne, and Charles-Marie Widor are nothing short of legendary. It is thus not surprising that his invitation for a portrait of the grand Stahlhuth/Jann organ in Luxembourg's Dude-lange resulted in a "Festival of French Organ Music." This full CD program extending over almost eighty minutes captures a fascinating performance on a his-torical instrument of supreme tonal beauty.

Classical Music

Classical Music

RUSSIAN STRING QUARTETS • Leipzig Str Qrt • MDG 307 1758-2 (76:56)


AFANASIEV String Quartet, “Volga.” RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Chorale and Variations. Fugue, “In the Monastery.” RACHMANINOFF Romanze and Scherzo. BORODIN String Quartet No. 2


This release couples three little-known works with one of the most familiar (and best) chamber works to emerge from 19th century Russia. In one case, the composer also is very obscure, although he enjoyed a long career and had some success during his lifetime. Nikolai Iakovlevich Afanasiev (1821-1898) received musical training from his violinist father but had no formal training in composition, none being available in Russia at the time. He performed as a violinist and conductor, including a stint as concert master of the Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra. He is said to have written 12 string quartets, as well as symphonies, concertos, and several operas, including one based on the same Gogol story set by Tchaikovsky in Cherevichki and Rimsky-Korsakov in Christmas Eve , but much of his music remains unpublished. His “Volga” String Quartet was one of his most successful works, receiving a prize from the Russian Musical Society in 1860. Its use of Russian folk material guarantees a substantial level of melodic interest, but the attempts at thematic development seem tentative. The most pleasing of its four movements is unfortunately the shortest, the Allegretto second movement, where engaging melody combines with lively, dance-like rhythm and the simple tripartite form doesn’t tax the composer’s technical abilities. In that movement there is a motif that is curiously similar to the one associated with the witch Ježibaba in Dvo?ák’s Rusalka , written 40 years later. Another melody strongly suggestive of Dvo?ák occurs in the final movement.


As I noted in my review of his 1897 Piano Trio (35:6), Rimsky-Korsakov didn’t think much of himself as a composer of chamber music, having concluded, after leaving that work unfinished, that “chamber music is not my area.” The two pieces on this disc date from an earlier period but suggest a similar discomfort with the chamber-music medium. Rimsky composed his String Quartet, No. 2, “On Russian Themes,” in 1878-79 but was dissatisfied with it and withheld it from publication. He subsequently reworked the first three movements into his Sinfonietta on Russian Themes, op. 31, leaving the fugal final movement, In the Monastery , as a stand-alone piece in its original form. The notes for this recording claim that he also reused the material from this movement in Sadko , but I don’t hear anything that I recognize as being in that opera. I don’t know what the tempo marking is for this piece, but it sounds to me like it would benefit from a quicker pace than that employed by the Leipzig players. The other Rimsky piece, Chorale and Variations, dates from 1885 and lasts less than five minutes. It is another neobaroque exercise that may have been part of Rimsky’s self-instruction in compositional technique.


Unlike Rimsky, Borodin and Rachmaninoff had a genuine affinity for chamber music, as is evidenced in Rachmaninoff’s case especially by his ravishing Cello Sonata. The two quartet movements offered here date from 1889, during the composer’s student years at the Moscow Conservatory. Even as a student, Rachmaninoff was capable of writing music of lasting value, for instance, his one-act opera Aleko . The quartet movements, however, strike me as being more at the apprentice level. The sweetly lyrical, rather Tchaikovskian Romanze is pleasing if a bit repetitious. The Scherzo seems somewhat thin in terms of invention and development. The Leipzig performances are straightforward and matter-of-fact, perhaps too much so. More expressivity and shaping might make a better case for these pieces.


I am quite taken, however, with the Leipzig players’ reading of Borodin’s familiar quartet, the one truly accomplished work on the disc. Here the balance among the instruments is finely judged, textures are clear, detail is firmly etched, and continuity of line is consistently maintained. Tempos are well integrated and for the most part firmly sustained, but with subtle application of rubato. The Leipzig players take a broader approach in the outer movements than the Borodin or Pražák Quartets (Chandos and Praga, respectively). After an unusually pensive, lyrical, and serene first movement, the Scherzo is quick but graceful. The famous Notturno flows appealingly at a tempo that seems ideal, and an expansive finale concludes the work in a manner consistent with the overall conception.


This recording benefits from open and detailed sound, a realistic image, and an extended frequency range. The cello’s contributions register with gratifying solidity and impact. On my system at least, the sound can also be a touch abrasive at higher dynamic levels.


I can recommend this release for its fine and distinctive performance of the Borodin work. In addition, it will be of interest to those wishing to explore the byways of Russian chamber music, although the other works are not of great significance. Other recordings exist of the Rimsky and Rachmaninoff pieces, but I haven’t heard them. Afanasiev is otherwise unrepresented in the catalog, and from a historical standpoint it is valuable to have him added to it.


FANFARE: Daniel Morrison

Béla Bartók set out with the phonograph to collect and research the folk music of Transylvania, Hungary and Romania. At this time 3,000 kilometres further southeast, the monk Komitas had already gathered a magnificent archive of songs and dances, both religious and folk, from his culture, ancient Armenia. In an unusual double portrait, Steffen Schleiermacher shows the differences and similarities between these two artistic personalities, whose compositions are decisively influenced by their engagement with the original music of their homeland. Steffan Schleiermacher is a German composer, pianist, and conductor. His recording releases include most works by composers such as Erik Satie, Philip Glass, Morton Feldman and Arnold Schoenberg. For Musikproduktion Dabringhaus und Grimm he has recorded the complete piano music of John Cage.

Friedrich Christian Samuel Mohrheim was educated by J.S. Bach. The later Kapellmeister at St. Mary's Church in Gdansk combines the solid craftsmanship he received from the great Thomaskantor with the elegantly light tone of his time to great advantage. In the tenth installment of "Musica Baltica", Andrzej Szadejko and his Goldberg Baroque Ensemble again present world premiere recordings, including cantatas from Mohrheim's oeuvre, yet another highlight in this series rich in surprising highlights. Mohrheim must have been very busy in Gdansk; about a hundred works are documented from his pen, most of which he composed before he succeeded his father-in-law Freislich (MDG 902 2209-6) in the position. Today, many of these works are lost or have survived only in fragments. For the great occasions in St. Mary's Church, he also composed works for several choirs, such as the magnificent cantatas "Uns ist ein Kind geboren" (To us a child is born) and "Ehre sei Gott in der Höhe" (Glory to God in the highest) - entirely to the taste of his demanding Gdansk audience. But time and again Mohrheim finds enchanting timbres in smaller ensembles as well, from which the gallantly sensitive arias in particular benefit. Siri Karoline Thornhill, Franziska Gottwald, Virgil Hartinger and Stephan MacLeod once again provide an exquisite ensemble of soloists. The overwhelming sound in the Trinitatiskirche in Gdansk is also due to the large Merten-Friese/Wegscheider organ, which provides a rich foundation for the mighty choirs. The double-choir cantatas thus gain an almost unbelievable depth, which comes to the fore in an overwhelming way in the three-dimensional reproduction of this high-resolution Super Audio recording.

Concertos for wind instruments with orchestra are a rarity in the late Romantic period. All the greater, then, is the merit that Friederike Roth, Robert Langbein and the Philharmonie Baden-Baden under Pavel Baleff have earned with the discovery of three works by Egon Gabler. The Horn Concerto, Clarinet Concerto and Concert Piece are more than stopgaps, however, for this premiere recording proves: Gabler knew his craft. And he admired Wagner and Liszt. It is precisely the infinitely flowing melodic stream that one encounters again and again in his concertos. In this respect, the composer's intimate knowledge of the instruments naturally suited him: Gabler served as a clarinetist first in the military, later in the royal chapel in Hanover. Gabler also learned from the great models in instrumentation. For the comparatively small orchestra, he finds refined sound mixtures. And when the solo clarinet enters the canon with the orchestral horn, one appreciates the virtuoso handling of form and color. In the classicist Weinbrenner Hall of the Kurhaus Baden-Baden, this music is in the best of hands. The enchanting acoustics offer the best conditions for everything from chamber music to an opulent wide-screen sound reminiscent of film music.

The debut of the Vienna Piano Trio on the MDG label set a new standard. Their brilliant recording of all of Franz Schubert's piano trios was praised by the BBC as the benchmark: best available version. It is now available for the first time as a double album. In addition to the two great trios in E-flat and B-flat, this carefully prepared edition also includes the enchanting Notturno and the original version of the E-flat major finale. As a special treasure, an early sonata movement is heard which the young Franzl may have originally prepared for lessons with Salieri. Apart from this early work, Schubert only began to work on the piano trio towards the end of his life. The large-scale works, which today undoubtedly rank among the top of the chamber music literature, are correspondingly mature and complex. The pieces of their compatriot fit the Viennese piano trio like a tailor-made suit: the Austrians make music so glowing and stirring that you wouldn't want to hear it any other way. The meticulousness with which the musicians approach Schubert's cosmos certainly contributes to this. Extensive study of the sources, including insight into the precious autographs of the Austrian National Library, brings many a frequently overlooked detail to light and reveals something astonishing: the sheer number of corrections and improvements that the 14-year-old Schubert made to his op. 28 is overwhelming... Only the best is good enough for Schubert's piano trio: what applies to the interpretations of the Viennese piano trio also applies to the sound of the carefully balanced recordings made in the historic Fürstliche Reitbahn Bad Arolsen - top-quality classical music for very unique listening moments!

Throughout his life Johannes Brahms composed songs, including several cycles for two or more vocalists. Accompanied by Doriana Tchakarova, Felicitas and Judith Erb now present the duets in a finely tuned Super Audio album. With Magnus Dietrich, the ladies are joined by a truly youthful and radiant tenor for the clearly "male" pieces - a real asset, not only for the great ballads! The folksong-like tone runs through numerous duets. How Brahms, despite - or precisely because of? - the simplicity of the melody, is grandiose: for example, in the popular "Schwesterlein", or also in the dramatic ballad "Edward" with its piano part like an arch-king. Only for about half of the duets is the performance with two singers compulsory; Brahms even expressly intended the "Romances and Songs" op. 84 for one or two singers. The Erb sisters turn the tables and reinterpret many a Brahms song: "Der tote Gast", for example, or "Da unten im Tale", as well as the aforementioned "Schwesterlein", appear in a completely new light in the performance for two. On the Steinway concert grand "Manfred Bürki" from 1901, Doriana Tchakarova performs the piano part with somnambulistic certainty and a great sense for the intense mood of the individual works. From intimate to dramatic, from lyrical to sweeping, everything is there - a true listening pleasure, and not only in the three-dimensional reproduction!

That's what happens when you let yourself be guided by prejudices: Emilie Mayer's contemporaries in the mid-19th century were unaware of the outstanding quality of her compositions because they only saw a woman rather than hearing the composer. You might think you missed something when you listen to the brand-new Super Audio album of the Mecklenburgische Staatskapelle: with chief conductor Mark Rohde on the podium, the musicians from Schwerin succeed in a salvation of honor that could not be more attractive.

Financially independent at an early age, Emilie Mayer was able to devote herself entirely to her passion for composing. Her misfortune: instead of salon music, thought of as the best women could hope to compose, she ventured into the grander forms. Eight symphonies alone came from her pen, as well as several overtures, of which only the "Faust" overture appeared in print during her lifetime. Interestingly, in her interpretation of Faust, Mayer places Gretchen at the center, the brooding seriousness receding in favor of Margareth's naivety and piety. In her earlier works, the composer orientates herself on classical models; the overtures No. 2 and 3 hint at memories of Haydn and Mozart. But she is also no stranger to the Romantic, and the D minor overture unfolds a world of sound reminiscent of Bruckner. The most extensive work of this commendable new publication is the "Sinfonie militair", whose genesis can perhaps be traced back to the influence of Mayer's teacher, the Prussian military musician Wieprecht. But here, too, Mayer finds a very individual approach: instead of triumphant sounds, an adagio of deep seriousness ends the half-hour opus - an ending that leaves room for far-reaching associations.

Cosmopolitan like his hometown Alexandria: in Dimitris Papadimitriou's work, traditional European music meets folklore from the Mediterranean, ancient Greek tonality combines with modern contemporary sounds. George Petrou has now recorded Papadimitriou's orchestral works with the Athens State Orchestra, together with Titos Gouvelis, who lends power and brilliance to the solo part of the piano concerto. The Piano Concerto is the main work on this finely balanced Super Audio album. The focus is on the relationship of the individual to his environment - sometimes affectionately turned towards, sometimes indifferently passive, sometimes militantly aggressive. Especially in the large-scale third movement, conflict dominates, with the huge orchestra threatening to swallow up the soloist from time to time. The excerpts from the suite "Miniatures" form a good overview of Papadimitriou's oeuvre. "Incompleteness" refers to Gödel's Incompleteness Theorem with its indissolubility striving from dissonance to dissonance, and "Pollock" sets up a sounding monument to the inventor of "action painting" with the musical recreation of fractal structures.

At the same time as (and independently of) Arnold Schönberg, Josef Matthias Hauer developed a very individual system for twelve-tone composition. The works of the two Austrians could not be more different, as Steffen Schleiermacher has impressively documented in several album productions. Now the versatile pianist has addressed Hauer's earliest works, providing an exciting insight into an important chapter of 20th-century music history. Hauer calls his opus 1 "Nomos", which implies a great claim: like a law of nature, this composition already contains everything that makes up music - new works are only further elaborations. Of course, the public at the time could not follow Hauer in this: the premiere of the orchestral version did not even take place until 30 years after Hauer's death. Of the few works by Hauer that make it onto today's program from time to time, the "Nachklangstudien", which in their delicate texture develop a very special aura, are probably the best known. Quite different are the "Five Little Pieces" from the same year, which, with their reminiscences of Max Reger and other late Romantic contrapuntalists, seem almost traditional. The cycle "Music-Film" is downright enigmatic. The 21 character pieces have programmatic titles, as if they were meant to illustrate a silent movie - or are they even a parody of this genre? In any case, Hauer actually wanted to publish the collection under a pseudonym. And indeed, the pieces have nothing in common with Hauer's other tonal language. Steffen Schleiermacher, however, approaches this work with the same seriousness as he does the other pieces, and he succeeds in a fascinating rehabilitation for someone who has been unjustly almost completely forgotten.

A double stroke of luck: the Sauer organ in the "Glocke" concert hall in Bremen has survived almost unchanged since 1928, despite all attempts to adapt the instrument to contemporary taste and fashion. The original pitch of 435 Hz has also been preserved - actually too low for ensemble playing today. However, the Franz Kuhn Trombone Quartet led by the enterprising Juan Gonz�les Mart�nez can fall back on an original trombone set from the 1920s. With this and together with organist Lea Suter, the four gentlemen bring remarkable literature from the heyday of virtuoso trombone playing to life in an authentic way. A wonderful addition to the first organ recital on the previous album. For a long time, cantabile playing in particular was denied the trombone. It was the then acclaimed virtuoso Paul Weschke who was the first professor in Germany to revolutionize trombone playing. Weschke added instructions for innovative playing techniques to his numerous transcriptions; thus legato became possible without producing a glissando - an indispensable prerequisite for vocal playing. Together with the romantic trombone instrument developed by Franz Kuhn, Weschke's pioneering playing techniques produce an immensely colorful sound that harmonizes most advantageously with the warmth of the Sauer organ in Bremen's "Glocke". This can be experienced excellently in the arrangements from Rossini to Reger, which were found in Weschke's extensive archive and are performed by Mart�nez and Suter with style and admirable esprit. The trombone quartets by Arno Hansen and August H�nsel are an ideal complement to the virtuoso program, allowing us to immerse ourselves in a world of sound long thought to be past. In the carefully balanced and spatially impressive recording, it can be grasped with the ears - just like the dimensions of this special organ in one of the most beautiful concert halls in Germany.

Like hardly any other musical genre, the art song is created to express extreme human states of mind. The preoccupation with dying and death, with the loss of loved ones and with one's own transience is therefore always at the centre. Baritone Hanno M�ller-Brachmann and pianist Hendrik Heilmann have chosen Mahler's "Kindertotenlieder", Frank Martin's "Jedermann-Monologe" and "Vier ernste Ges�nge" by Johannes Brahms from among the rare cyclical works that deal with this theme in different and yet always deeply moving ways. The "Kindertotenlieder" are certainly among the most moving that music and poetry have ever produced. In more than 400 poems, Friedrich R�ckert deals with the loss of his only daughter and one of his sons, who died of scarlet fever when they were children. Gustav Mahler's selection from the enormous bundle combines all extremes of human emotion: from grief and despair to repression in the dreamlike to the hope of salvation and reunion in the afterlife. Brachmann and Heilmann explore these extremes, for example in "Indieser Wetter, indieser Braus", in which the voice has to scream against the storm, only to find solace in an almost heavenly lullaby shortly afterwards. Martin's "Jedermann-Monologues" begin where Hoffmansthal's famous "Jedermann", already abandoned by all earthly friends, looks to his end. The former philanderer, initially plagued by fear of death, finally finds his way to his creator: it's fascinating how Martin knows how to put this transformation into music with Hoffmansthal's Knittelverses! Brahms, on the other hand, takes texts from the Bible as a basis for his "Four Serious Songs", from the litanies of transience of the preacher Solomon to the "Song of Love" from the first Epistle to the Corinthians. Whether the losses that Brahms had to mourn at the time of writing, or even a premonition of his own death left their mark on the composition only a short time later, must remain open.