Joolerei

Edition Luigi Boccherini: Symphonies

KOMPONISTINNEN-PORTRAIT

Orchestral Music - Gossec, F.-J. / Vanhal, J.B. / Mahaut, A.

Fröhlich: Miserere - Motetten

Ex Libris Doctoris Amerbachii - Musikbücher des Basler Juris

REVIEW:

Aarre Merikanto’s career divided broadly into three phases, those of apprentice, radical and conservative, and there are works from each present on this valuable new issue. Critical hindsight accords (quite rightly) that the brief radical phase, roughly corresponding to the 1920s, was the most valuable, though at the time Merikanto’s modernistic approach – and that of his like-minded contemporaries, Ernest Pingoud and Vaino Raito – was derided. Only one piece here represents this period, the highly accomplished tone-poem, Pan (1924), a wonderful, evocative, yet robust score, possessed of a very Nordic brand of impressionism. The playing of the Tampere orchestra is perhaps not quite as refined as the Finnish Radio Orchestra under Segerstam, but Ollila catches more of the dangerousness of the goat-footed deity.

Lemminkainen (1916), by contrast to Pan, seems immature, and rather parochial. A Sibelian shadow lies heavily across its quarter-hour duration, yet without a trace of the older composer’s own Lemminkainen tone-poems. There is little of the latter’s emotional and psychological depth – or musical range – but instead a prevailing rollicking good humour broken occasionally by quieter, more serious moments. The remaining works all date from the early stages of Merikanto’s post-modern period, when he reverted to a simpler, more accessible idiom. The Four Compositions (1932), which barely exceed Pan in length, nevertheless make a very effective and satisfying set, and whereas the Andante religioso (1933) seems like a piece out of context, the Scherzo (1937) is entirely convincing on its own. Taken together, these five works make a much more positive impression than did the rather uneven Pingoud works (Ondine, 2/98), especially in performances as sympathetic and well-recorded as these. Quietly recommended.

-- Gramophone [8/1998]

Ballets - Delibes, L. / Chopin, F. / Adam, A. / Massenet, J.

Fedoseyev/Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra.

Classical Music

Classical Music

GRAM: Orchestral Works, Vol. 1

Rubinstein: Symphony No. 4, 'Dramatic'

OXFORD

The Places
Our tour takes us to Oxford, site of the oldest university in England, with scenes of the city and some of the colleges.

The Music
The music chosen to accompany our tour is by Joseph Haydn, whose Oxford Symphony was performed there to celebrate the award of a doctorate by the university. His Surprise Symphony was written for performance in London in 1791.

Picture format: NTSC 4:3
Sound format: PCM Stereo 2.0
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Running time: 52 mins
No. of DVDs: 1

Listen to the piano turn into a bumblebee, a donkey, trolls, a bird, a horse and a butterfly! Sometimes it isn't anything except a piano, but the music coming out of it is exciting and beautiful.

Sokolik/Arkhipova/Sakharenko/Fedoseyev/Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra.

Beethoven was a musical giant. He wasn't taller or fatter than everyone else, but his music is big and his name is important. Beethoven is like the Olympic champion of classical music.

Includes work(s) for orch by Arthur Honegger. Ensemble: New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. Conductor: Takuo Yuasa.

GRAM: Orchestral Works, Vol. 2 - Symphonies Nos. 2 and 3, Av

If you listen carefully to this CD, you will get to know one of the best composers in the world. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart lived 250 years ago but he carries on being famous-so he must have been special. He giggled a lot.

ALPHORN CONCERTOS

Japanese composer Akio Yashiro (1929-76) studied in Paris with both Nadia Boulanger and Olivier Messiaen and writes in a style reminiscent of a cross between Ravel and Dutilleux. Original he ain't, but there's nothing wrong with that. Indeed, his considerable craftsmanship and polish reflect the best in the French tradition, and anyone who loves the modern French school will feel very comfortable with these atmospheric and appealing works.


The Piano Concerto begins like some dreamy offspring of Messiaen and adds a touch of Bartók to the mix as well. Its marvelous central slow movement obviously owes its inspiration to Ravel's "Le Gibet" from Gaspard de la nuit, with its creepy persistent repeated notes and aura of Gothic horror. Hiromi Okada plays a pretty mean piano, as poetic in the music's softly impressionistic moments as in its more virtuosic passages. While hardly conventionally melodic, this brilliantly written piece offers no difficulties to any listener with a reasonably open mind and an ear for adventure.


The Symphony makes just as favorable an impression. It opens with sounds that could have come from some lost late tone poem of Sibelius. The vivacious scherzo shares the same "perpetual ostinato" technique as the comparable movement from Debussy's string quartet. It all culminates in a lengthy and melancholy Lento, featuring some lovely wind solos and long, lyrical phrases that carry the melodies effortlessly over the bar lines. The finale owes a lot to Messiaen: it begins with a few characteristic bird-like "whoops" and then takes off like a rocket. The ending paraphrases the climactic chorale and frantic dash to the finish line of the Turangalila-symphonie, complete with extravagant cymbal and tam-tam crashes.


It would be easy to dismiss this music as excessively derivative, but it works so well and sounds so confidently written that in the end it winds up striking you more as a friend you believe you might have met in a previous life than some sort of cheap imitation of a beloved master. Takuo Yuasa leads the Ulster Orchestra in exciting, flamboyant, very well recorded performances of both works, reminding us that in the arts what matters is not so much who does something first, but who does it best. Yashiro was, without question, one of the best.
--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

The All-Star Orchestra gives you a front row seat to the world's greatest music, performed by top players chosen from over 30 great American orchestras, and conducted by Gerard Schwarz. The programs feature complete performances of popular masterpieces and world premieres of new works by leading American composers. Filmed in High-Definition with 19 cameras during a once-a-year 'summit' in New York's historic Grand Ballroom at Manhattan Center, the All-Star Orchestra celebrates the symphonic experience in the 21st century. Program #1 Music for the Theatre (Igor Stravinsky: Suite from the Firebird; Maurice Ravel: Daphnis and Chloe Suite No. 2; Bright Sheng: Prelude to Black Swan) the legendary impresario Serge Diaghilev of Les Ballet Russes commissioned from Stravinsky and Ravel some of the greatest music for the ballet. His influence stretched from St. Petersburg to Paris to the New York City Ballet founded by Diaghilev's collaborator Georges Balanchine. Former NYCB Composer in Residence Bright Sheng captures the beauty of the dance with his Prelude to Black Swan. Program #2 What Makes a Masterpiece? This program is an exploration of the creative process, tracing the genesis of Beethoven's iconic symphony, and the development of a new work by a modern master. Introductory features will demonstrate how short rhythmic and melodic motives evolve into vast symphonic organisms. Interviews include leading Beethoven scholars and the All-Star musicians.

The All-Star Orchestra gives you a front row seat to the world's greatest music, performed by top players chosen from over 30 great American orchestras. The programs feature complete performances of popular masterpieces and world premieres of new works by leading American composers. Filmed in High-Definition with 19 cameras during a once-a-year 'summit' in New York's historic Grand Ballroom at Manhattan Center, the All-Star Orchestra celebrates the symphonic experience in the 21st century. Program #7 Music's Emotional Impact This program delves into Tchaikovsky's dramatic personal life, his brief marriage, and his intense correspondence with his patroness Nadezhda von Meck whom he never met, and to whom he dedicated his 4th Symphony. The dramatic brass fanfares that for Tchaikovsky symbolized Fate find a modern echo in David Stock's Blast! Program #8 Mahler: Love, Sorrow and Transcendence Mahler's turbulent passions are expressed through his music. His settings of poems by Friedrich Rueckert explore themes of love, nature, and otherworldliness. Mahler was haunted throughout his life by the premonition of his own death. The first movement of his 2nd Symphony, which Mahler called 'Totenfeier' ('Funerary Rites'), draws stark contrasts between the composer's premonition of doom, and his vision of life. Modern reflections on these themes can be found in 'Adieu' by Bernard Rands and 'Of Paradise and Light' by Augusta Read Thomas.

This charming disc (containing newly recorded and previously issued works) begins with a suitably brooding if not spectacular Finlandia, and then proceeds from one delight to the next. Outstanding items include: Madetoja's Elegy for Strings, Melartin's Festive March, Rautavaara's Fiddlers, Sallinen's Sunrise Serenade, and two pieces (Prelude and Berceuse) by Järnefelt. The other items have less substance but plenty of tuneful and easygoing appeal. As an advertisement for the attractions of Finnish music beyond Sibelius, this collection serves an admirable purpose, particularly as all of the items are well played and recorded. As has become particularly clear over the past two decades or so, the 20th century musical legacy of Finland is every bit as rich and varied as that of any other country, and is well worth exploring. Here's a fine place to start if you're curious but like to keep things on the light side. --David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com