Despite the fact that new recordings of classical guitar music should be banned for the next several decades (if not centuries), there will always be exceptions. This is certainly one. Paganini wrote his 40-plus “whims” for a young lady guitarist. They consist of short vignettes, often based on music by famous operatic composers: Mozart and Rossini especially. They are delightful and wonderfully played here by Denis Sungho Janssens. The pieces make no apology for being simple and charming, and you can take them in small (or large) doses, as you please. The disc makes excellent background music but sustains the attention if that’s your pleasure. Indeed, pleasure is the entire point. Excellent engineering.

-- David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

Classical Music

The German daily newspaper Die Welt described a performance by the Boulanger Trio as “irresistible”, and Wolfgang Rihm wrote in a letter: “To be interpreted like that is surely the dream of every composer.” Founded in Hamburg in 2006, the 3 women now live in Berlin.

Verdi: Giovanna d'Arco

Classical Music

Winner of the 2012 Sydney International Piano Competition, the Canadian pianist Avan Yu (born 1987) devotes his Naxos CD debut to Schubert songs transcribed by Franz Liszt. He offers all but two of the 12 Winterreise transcriptions, plus 10 selections from Liszt’s piano version of the entire posthumously published Schwanengesang cycle.

Liszt’s lavish filigree may sound a little overloaded by purist standards, yet he always treats the melodies with respect and intelligent registral deployment. Many young virtuosos plow through these transcriptions with little indication that they know the original songs. Avan Yu, however, brilliantly reconciles Schubert’s melodic trajectory with Liszt’s intricate textures.

In Winterreise’s Mut, for example, Yu differentiates the accompaniment’s springing rhythms and the legato vocal line through touch and timbre, while Das Wirtshaus’ arpeggio waves maintain a discreet background, even at climaxes. In Schwanengesang I’m especially impressed by how Yu gives shape and meaning to Am Meer’s tremolos, rather than rattling them off in the manner of a silent movie pianist. Likewise, Kriegers Ahnung’s chromatic flourishes and double notes convey appropriate flair yet never overstep their supporting role.

It would have been nice if Liszt’s six remaining transcriptions from these cycles had also been included, but one shouldn’t complain in light of Yu’s highly appealing artistry. On the basis of the present release, plus a number of YouTube links that feature some excellent Debussy Etudes and a complete audio-only Liszt Sonata, I’d like to hear more of Avan Yu both on disc and in concert.

-- Jed Distler, ClassicsToday.com

Classical Music

It is no secret that Rossini never wasted his energy and, partly out of haste and partly out of laziness, he was always ready to resurrect pages of music which would have otherwise been destined to oblivion. Thus, when in 1822 he was invited by Prince Klemens von Metternich to commemorate with suitable music the Congress of the European heads of state which would take place in Verona-to "harmonize" the souls, as it were-this proclaimed "God of harmony" gladly accepted. Il vero omaggio ("sincere" act of devotion toward the Austrian Emperor) was a recycling of the pastoral cantata La riconoscenza, performed by Rossini in Naples the year before. The sequence of pieces which constitute Il vero omaggio confirm Rossini's own statement: the musical nature of the cantata is quite similar to the first act of a normal opera. As such, it was enjoyed by the public of the period, partly due to the fact that the performance was staged. What distinguishes such a cantata from an opera is not, indeed, the visual aspect, as one might assume, but rather the absence of a veritable dramatic design. The subject of the cantata was thus a mere pretense for staging a public panegyric to the Austrian Emperor by means of a grandiose concert of vocal music. The work is interpreted here by conductor Herbert Handt.

Nearly a quarter century separates the two recordings of the Turkish pianist, who with the Paganini Etudes demonstrates what a brilliant virtuoso she was, and with the Liszt Sonata-recorded in 2010-shows that she still is.

Classical Music

Classical Music

As featured at the 2013 London Proms on August 17th, Marin Alsop conducts Brahms's a German Requiem, which is almost certainly triggered by the death of his mother in 1865. It is of his greatest and most popular works, quite unlike any previous Requiem. With texts taken from Luther's translation of the Bible and an emphasis on comforting the living for their loss and on hope of the Resurrection, the work is deeply rooted in the tradition of Bach and Schuutz, but is vastly different in character from the Latin Requiem of Catholic tradition with it's evocation of the Day of Judgement and prayers for mercy on the souls of the dead.

Quite simply exemplary and splendidly recorded as well.

The in this series was what I called ‘a valuable corrective to the partial, more generally held view of Czerny as a composer of an exhaustive number of pedagogic studies.’ This view is simply reinforced by volume 2 which is, similarly, a two disc set and which offers the same tangible musical rewards as the earlier volume.
 
There is nothing in the second volume quite as extensive as the massive Sixth Sonata of 1827. Nevertheless we do get four powerfully proportioned sonatas from his maturity played, as before, with powerful eloquence by Martin Jones, one of the most exploratory and energising pianists before the public. The interesting thing about Czerny’s sonatas is that the primary influence is not that of Beethoven. Rather it often sounds to have been Schubert who exerted the greater pull. The opening movement of the Eleventh Sonata, for example, sounds like a Schubert finale, though Brahms’s name is evoked by sleeve note writer Calum MacDonald. The sonata’s slow movement is a romantic soliloquy, its finale a songful, almost Schumannesque one played with warmth and clarity. This sonata dates from 1843. Nearly a quarter of a century earlier his first effort shows similar virtues. It’s a sonata that was admired by Liszt, who dedicated his Transcendental Etudes to Czerny, and is a powerful, exciting and generous spirited five-movement work. In this nourishing piece the central Adagio is hard to overlook, so richly cantabile is it, and so finely played too. Czerny is careful to balance the two faster inner movements; his Prestissimo agitato is galvanically brisk, whereas the Rondo is altogether more relaxed.
 
The Second Sonata is not unlike the First in that it too has five movements, one fewer than the Sixth where, one feels, Czerny did at least emulate Beethoven’s multi-movement example in his late string quartets. It is however much more concise than the earlier work. It has a most touching slow movement and an Allegro agitato that reminds one of the similar movement in the First. Another link comes from Czerny’s schema which is to end both these sonatas with a Fugue. In the First sonata the fugue is linked to earlier material, but not in the Second where the fugue stands, in effect, as a separate entity. The effect is grand, but it does lessen the sense of cumulative tension that the earlier work generated. The Sonatine is more compact still, but belies its name by virtue of its elevated and highly personal powers of reflection. And there are two small pieces. The Chanson sans paroles is spiced with delicious filigree, whilst the Character Etude Op.755 is a lissom and decidedly lovely effusion.
 
There is one remaining volume in this series, and one awaits it with anticipation. Jones’s playing is, quite simply, exemplary and he has been splendidly recorded as well.
 
-- Jonathan Woolf, MusicWeb International

Like her previous album for Cedille, which paired concertos by Brahms and Joachim, everything about this release by violinist Rachel Barton Pine is exceptional, from the selection of couplings to the performances themselves. In the first place, it's wonderful to see a program built around concert pieces for violin and orchestra based on Scottish themes, since this permits a new view of an old chestnut and some welcome attention given to worthy but neglected repertoire. The chestnut in question is Max Bruch's Scottish Fantasy, a marvelous work seldom played or recorded today, but one that is more substantial in length and in may ways more imaginative in content than the ever-popular Violin Concerto No. 1, with which it is sometimes mated on disc.


For this performance, Barton Pine has consulted Scottish fiddler and folk-music authority Alasdair Fraser for some stylistic pointers on an authentic inflection of the tunes that Bruch borrowed for his work. The result is a tastefully ornamented solo line, most obviously in the slower music (check out the opening of the third-movement Andante sostenuto). This is not, I hasten to add, a case of tarting up the music in a garish or unidiomatic fashion. On the contrary, Barton Pine is acutely sensitive to Bruch's actual text, paying particularly close attention to dynamics and articulation (her soft playing in both the opening adagio and the andante is exquisite). The addition of some melodic turns and grace notes simply enhances the natural expressiveness of the melodies themselves, a quality heightened by Barton Pine's smooth, singing tone.


In rapid passages, her technique is perfectly secure, with multiple stops and octaves always in tune, and her sensitivity to the what is happening in the orchestra is second to none. The charming duet between violin and flute in the scherzo, for example, seldom has sounded better balanced or more effortless. The violinist is helped considerably by the excellent accompaniments provided by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra under Alexander Platt, which are notably refined and transparent but also offer plenty of the necessary rhythmic energy where called for (and to be honest, Bruch doesn't ask for much--it's mostly a gentle, lyrical piece).


The proceedings take on a bit more earthy vigor in the couplings. Mackenzie's Pibroch Suite is a marvelous and very substantial work (23 minutes) that ought to be better known. It has been recorded before, most recently by Hyperion, in a fine performance that Barton Pine betters by a slim margin, finding a bit more poetry in the opening Rhapsody and digging in for some extra character in the marvelous concluding Dance. McEwen's Scottish Rhapsody "Prince Charlie" evidently is new to CD, and it's equally enjoyable. What a pity that some enterprising violinist doesn't make a live program of some of the excellent short works for violin and orchestra that seem to exist these days only on disc! Sarasate's Airs ecossais is another gem whose technical fireworks Barton Pine handles with aplomb.


Closing out the disc is a Medley of Scots Tunes, selected and arranged for dueling violinists by Barton Pine and Fraser and expertly scored for orchestra by Barton Pine alone. The melodies, as might be expected, are wholly delightful, and the performance absolutely brilliant, bringing the program to a rousing conclusion. All together, you get more than 80 minutes of music on two CDs for the price of one, including a video documentary on how the project came together. I did not watch it, as the quality of the music-making speaks for itself, but others may be more interested in the visual element than I am. In sum, this collaboration between Barton Pine, Fraser, Platt, and the SCO is a triumph on all counts, a model of what a themed release ought to be, and it's all captured in demonstration-quality sound by Cedille's engineers. Without a doubt, this is one of the smartest and most purely lovable releases of the year. [7/16/2005]
--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

The Essential Beethoven

Beethoven: Orchestral Works

Verdi: Falstaff (Live)

Reminiscences is a collection of Chopin's best loved works for solo piano, each one of personal significance to Portuguese pianist Arthur Pizarro, who in turn delivers sensitive and thrilling performances. Originally released in 2005, Chopin: Reminiscences is re-issued as part of Linn's ECHO series that offers a second chance to enjoy the best of the label's award-winning catalog. The inspiration for the title came from Arthur's experience of Chopin frequently being played in his childhood home, as well as being the original name of the C sharp minor Nocturne. Arthur plays a Bluthner grand piano, which responds phenomenally to his dazzling articulation, while giving huge sonorous depth to the sound.

Donizetti: La favorita (Live)

Wagner: Die Walküre, Act I (Live)

Wagner: Tannhäuser, WWV 70 (Live)

Beethoven: Fidelio, Op. 72

Verdi: La forza del destino (Recorded Live 1954)

Verdi: Il trovatore

Verdi: Aïda (Recorded Live 1960)

Donizetti: Il Pigmalione (Recorded Live 1960)

George Szell leads taut, energetic, and texturally detailed performances of both symphonies--no surprise to anyone familiar with the other discs in this series. Szell's briskly paced Symphony No. 2 sits comfortably in the classical tradition from which it sprang, in contrast to Bernstein's expansive and romantic-style rendition with the Vienna Philharmonic. Once again comparison with period performance versions reveals Szell's ability to maintain clear textures without the need to resort to period instruments.


In the Fifth Symphony Szell doesn't go hell-for-leather in the first movement but nonetheless offers a gripping account that sets the stage for his superbly argued finale. With brilliantly judged tempos and stunning orchestral playing, Szell makes the finale the great summation it is often claimed to be. Every event follows with a satisfying sense of inevitability--just listen to how Szell heightens the drama by slowing the tempo for the development's great climax, just before the reprise of the scherzo's theme. Oh yeah, this is one of the great Fifths! Sony's remastering reveals a noticeable amount of tape hiss but not enough to deter your enjoyment of these well-engineered and naturally balanced 1964 recordings.
--Victor Carr Jr, ClassicsToday.com

SPONTINI: Chamber Songs

Paganini: Lucca Sonatas, Vol. 2

JULES MASSENET: Michelle Breedt; Patrizia Ciofi; Carmela Remigio; Teresa di Bari; Alessandra Palomba; Giorgio Surian; Nicola Ebau; Bruno Lazzaretti; Riccardo Novaro; Emenuele Giannino; George Mosley; AlessandroPerucca; Orchestra & Chorus del Teaatro Lirico di Cagliari/Emmanu JULES MASSENET: Cherubin.