Focusing attention on forgotten composers of the classical and romantic periods, the new Joachin Wollenweber Edition utilizes new sheet music editions which are created in collaboration with musicologists and top artists, which are published at the same time as the CD recordings. This release is the fourth album in the series and is dedicated to the late Romantic composer Philipp Scharwenka, who despite his lack of popularity today, gained the respect of his contemporaries such as Max Reger. Natalia Prischepenko is the featured violinist on this album. Hailing from Siberia, her mother, a famous USSR teacher, brought her up in music, and remains her mentor even today. After winning multiple national competitions, she began touring the globe as a soloist.

This Coproduction of TYXart and the new Joachim Wollenweber Edition refocuses the publics attention on forgotten composers of the classical and romantic periods. This second album of the Joachim Wollenweber Edition series introduces a trio and two duos by the Austrian composer Robert Fuchs (1847-1927), representing gems of chamber music Iiterature that are performed much too seldom. Famous pupils such as Gustav Mahler, Jean Sibelius and Richard Strauss studied with him in Vienna. The great artists Mate Szucs (viola), Noah Bendix-Balgley (violin) and Oliver Triendl (piano) bring these works to life through a balance of virtuosity and well-developed musical sensibility.

ZYMAN Piano Concerto 1. ROLÓN Piano Concerto, op. 42. 1 El Festin de los Enanos • 1 Claudia Corona (pn); Gregor Bühl, cond; Nuremberg SO • TYXART 13024 (58:33)


It is always gratifying when musicians seek out obscure works to record, thereby broadening our knowledge of the repertoire. Although I have listened to many anthologies of 20th-century Mexican music, José Rolón (1876–1945) has never come to my attention before. He was a pianist, teacher, orchestra founder, and composer who studied in Paris with, among others, Paul Dukas and Nadia Boulanger. His two works on this disc reveal a French influence in their orchestral finesse and polish, combined with the rhythms and melodic contours of Mexican folk music. Along with this large-scale Concerto he wrote symphonic poems, a Symphony, and a String Quartet, all of which I would very much like to hear. (One movement of the Quartet is accessible on YouTube, but there does not seem to be a complete recording available.)


The Concerto, begun in 1928 but not completed until 1935, is in three movements, played without a break. It has been performed rarely if at all since its 1936 premiere. For this recording pianist Claudia Corona revised and clarified the orchestral parts—a true labor of love. The work abounds in Lisztian figuration and colorful orchestral textures; the Piano Concerto it reminds me of is that by Khachaturian, composed around the same time, except of course that the themes have a Mexican rather than Armenian flavor. Structurally it is somewhat ramshackle, but its high spirits and the profusion of ideas keep it interesting. Rather like certain works of Villa-Lobos, you simply have to relax and go with it. Corona and the Nuremberg forces under Bühl attack the work with all the gusto it requires, especially the frenzied closing section.


The eight-minute symphonic scherzo Feast of the Dwarfs, op. 30, is built on a syncopated rhythmic figure (a triplet followed by a duplet), which the composer dresses up in sophisticated orchestral textures and develops skillfully. Dukas’s influence is obvious here, although the piece is no mere imitation. Again the mood is joyous.


Samuel Zyman (b. 1956) is the more familiar name. Born and educated initially in Mexico, he now resides in the U.S. and has taught at Juilliard since 1987. This Piano Concerto may be an expanded arrangement of an earlier Concerto for Piano and Chamber Orchestra; the latter is the only Piano Concerto mentioned in Zyman’s list of published works. That chamber concerto was recorded in 1989 (by Mirian Conti), whereas this new recording is advertised as the premiere of the “symphonic version.” It was first played by Corona in concert in 2005. Again in three movements, it is similarly a large-scale showpiece but more tightly structured and tougher than the Rolón. The piano’s relentless scale passages in the first movement and the somewhat monolithic lyricism of the second both bring to mind the Concerto by Chávez (which recently received an excellent new recording, coupled with solo works by Zyman and others: see reviews by Peter Burwasser and myself in Fanfare 37:1). Zyman is warmer than Chávez, and this warmth comes to the fore in the vivacious Presto movement that closes the work. That final movement also contains a quiet, introverted passage of lyrical beauty for the piano, before scampering off towards the abrupt final cadence.


I cannot over-emphasize the care and zest with which these musicians approach this enjoyable program, and the recording quality is excellent. Without question, this disc is a delightful discovery.


FANFARE: Phillip Scott

Norbert Duchtel plays a wonderful program of organ works for Christmas on the new Mathis Organ (2010) at the Church of the Assumption of Mary in Rieden/South Bavaria (Germany). The music is from the Baroque and Romantic eras and allows US to experience the full tonal variety of the instrument in sophisticated and sensitive interpretations, and includes a world premiere recording of Paul Geist's Weilhnachts.

Hermann Goetz (1840-76) had observed Wagner and Liszt, the avant-garde of his times, with interest, yet there is almost nothing of it in his musical language, firmly anchored in the First Viennese School and early Romanticism. + His melodies often have a seductively lyrical charm. + Of all his generation’s recognized masters, he is to be found most appropriately placed at the side of Edvard Grieg. + This TYX Art CD release marks the launch of new series based upon publication of new sheet music editions dedicated to refocusing attention on forgotten composers of the classical and romantic periods.

It is hard to categorize Robert Groslot. His music is always based on musical intuition, thus not permitting any clear delineation. Rather than filling rigid formal structures with musical material, Groslot uses a bottom-up method: based on a certain key idea (a melodic or rhythmic motif, a mood or a color) his music develops, as it were, in a natural and spontaneous manner. This album contains a number of works for chamber music, in which the flute in particular is given a prominent position: thus, the composer explores the possibilities of an instrument that has all too often been treated as a poor relation. Indeed, the relatively limited known repertoire for the flute is contrasted starkly by the almost endless technical possibilities and unsurpassed agility of this precious silver instrument. Groslot brings the instrument back into the spotlight in a sonorous adventure that wanders through many paths without losing the way.

With this album series, TYXart in co-production with the new Joachim Wollenweber Edition refocuses the public’s attention on forgotten composers from the baroque period all the way into the modern age. New sheet music editions are created in collaboration with top artists, musicologists and radio stations, with recordings being published at the same time. This sixth album of the series introduces an especially active and unconventional representative of neo-romanticism with a horn quintet, a clarinet sonata, and two works for horn and piano: Felix Draeseke. In spite of suffering from a hearing defect, he created not only chamber music, but also virtuoso concertos and sacred compositions the styles of which are truly remarkable. These chamber music recordings with wind players and strings available again for the first time are a true treasure in this edition.

Making exclusive use of their own adaptations of masterworks, the Deutsche Saxophone Ensemble have embarked on a project to rework nearly the entire German musical tradition with the youngest of all musical instruments - the saxophone! DSE brings new clarity to polyphonic masterpieces with these fresh arrangements that must to be heard to be believed.

Encores are works with strong expressive power. Here original music and own arrangements. At the age of 48, Hervé Joulain has already performed concerts of Haydn, Saint-Saëns, Strauss, Britten... In the year 2000 he made his debut in America and Canada with Strauss and Mozart with 110 different orchestras. The French hornist performed with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France (1987–1997), with the Orchestre National de France (1997), and with the Orchestre de Paris under the direction of renowned conductors like Leonard Bernstein, Zubin Metha, Daniel Barenboim, Pierre Boulez, Maazel, Seiji Ozawa, Eliahu Inbal, Kurt Mazur, Charles Dutoit, Riccardo Muti, Bernard Haitink, Claudio Abbado. Since December 2002 he has been the solo French hornist in the Symphonica Toscanini (Italy).

François Couperin (1668-1733) published his first book of Pièces de Clavecin-containing five suites or, as he called them, Ordres, for harpsichord-in 1713. This was followed by his harpsichord method L'Art de toucher le Clavecin in 1716, and a second book of harpsichord pieces in 1717 (two more books followed in 1722 and 1730). L'Art de toucher le Clavecin in a way ties the first two books of Pièces de Clavecin together, as it includes eight Préludes for some of their suites. While we still do encounter traditional dance movements in these Ordres, they are interspersed with characterful, poetic and brilliantly creative compositions with (often whimsical) character titles. Some of these titles represent an idea Couperin had in mind when composing the piece. Others are portraits of living persons, known to his contemporaries. This release presents selections from three Ordres from the first and second books of Pièces de Clavecin, each preceded by the matching Prélude from L'Art de toucher le Clavecin in the same key. The Premier Prélude in C major is a sunny, carefree piece in which Couperin exploits his signature style luthé, where the bass note provides the beat, or cadence, and the upper voices fill in the chord in an arpeggiation. The gloomy Troisiême Ordre in C minor is a reflection on the French court's devastating year of 1712, when three Dauphins died in short succession. The selection presented here contains several pieces written in the tradition of the musical Tombeau, although not titled as such.

“Strauss | Reger - Lieder mit und ohne Worte” includes lieder with and without Words by Richard Strauss: 12 original lieder for soprano and piano are juxtaposed with 12 lieder arrangements for piano solo by Max Reger. On this album, Sheha Tehoval sings a dozen of the most beautiful Strauss lieder, accompanied on the piano by Georg Michael Grau. Tehoval has selected some of Strauss‘ best-known lieder, especially those that he repeatedly performed with his wife, Pauline Strauss-de Ahna, during joint lieder recitals. However, there are also rare gems of his lied writing represented within the selection of twelve lieder. Another dozen are performed by the young pianist Grau without text, as “Lieder ohne Worte / Songs without Words” for piano. The Munich-based publisher Eugen Spitzweg, nephew of the famous painter and owner of the Josef Aibl music publishing house, came up with the brilliant idea of having the lieder of his protégé Strauss arranged for solo piano by Max Reger. From these arrangements, Georg Michael Grau has in a way put together a Strauss-Reger piano cycle. Soprano Sheva Tehoval and pianist Georg Michael Grau present these recordings in a unique interpretation.

This release features works such as “Summertime”, “What a Diffrence a Day made”, “You don’t know what Love is” or “Spiegel im Spiegel” for piano and double bass from the wide fields of jazz and classical music, “embraced” by a very special sound of the “duo Roeck Jaeger”. The musicians write about their album, which was produced in the “silence”, but by no means in “musical stagnation” of recent times: “Blue sound. Deep focus. Embracement. This is what awaits you with this recording. Not condensed or complex harmony? the tone, the sound characterizes our recording, borne by the spirit of internalization. The silence between the notes creates a connection. Improvisation sometimes demands too much. We, on the other hand, long for simplicity: for a sound that expresses what is essential, a sound that goes inward and slows everything down.”

Of the most prolific and world-famous composers from Switzerland, none fell into oblivion faster after his death than Emile Jaques-Dalcroze. With the late Romantic Joseph Joachim Raff, born in Lachen (Canton Schwyz), he shares the multitude of compositions in various genres, with his friend Arthur Honegger the multitude of publishers in France, England and Switzerland. When Emile Jacques-Dalcroze died in Geneva on 1 July 1950, a few days before his 85th birthday, he left behind a life's work of overwhelming abundance as a composer. First and foremost, the long-out-of-print compositions for violoncello and piano deserve to be returned to concert practice. The promising prelude to this album with exclusively world premiere recordings is the "Trois Morceaux op. 48" (Strasbourg 1902). With a dialogue introduced by the cello as a soloist, the multi-part "Lied romantique" in G major begins in a very unusual, free way. In the four "Rythmes d�laiss�s" (Paris 1924), the composer uses rhythmic formulas such as short ostinati to combine them with singable melodic lines. The odd metres with which the first piece (C minor) begins in five-eighth time and with strikingly intoned arpeggios, and the frequent bar changes return in No. II (A major). The "Suite op. 9" is dedicated to his friend Adolf Rehberg, the brother of the much better known pianist and composer Willy Rehberg. For the French-speaking Swiss cellist, who taught at the Geneva Conservatory, Jaques-Dalcroze also suited the "Lied romantique" op. 48 Point 1. The "Pi�ces faciles" published in 1907 go back to a children's concert performed by six- to sixteen-year-old students of the composer. Most of them are set for piano of two or four hands, those composed for violoncello and piano form an enchanting addition under the title "3 Esquisses".

Are the songs on this new double album musical letters between the brilliant composer siblings Fanny and Felix Mendelssohn? Through their joint musical education, the children of a pianist and a respected Jewish banker were musically soul mates; Music was her soul language. Later they exchanged their compositions in many entertaining and poetic letters. The three years older sister was the closest advisor of the "child prodigy" Felix throughout her life. According to those who knew her, she was equal to him as a pianist and composer. But while Felix made an international career, his sister, who according to Goethe was "equally gifted", performed almost exclusively in the semi-public of her well-known "Sonntagsmusiken" in his parents' palace in Berlin. At the same time, she regulated practical and social affairs for Felix and for her husband, the court painter Wilhelm Hensel, and raised her son. Her many compositions - mainly songs and smaller chamber music works (the genre "Songs without Words" goes back to her) - were only heard by a close circle of friends and family; or they ended up completely unheard "in the drawer": Felix wanted to protect his sister from social hostility in the tradition of his father and was clearly against the publication of her works. The lack of perception caused Fanny problems throughout her life and also led to tensions with her brother again and again. At the age of 40, she finally decided, encouraged by her husband and friends, to publish. A short time later, she died of a stroke. Her brother, who was deeply affected by the sudden death of his beloved sister, composed only a few songs and followed her half a year later.

The magic, enigma and uniqueness of Ludwig van Beethoven’s (1770–1827) Sonata “Kreutzer” in A major Op. 47 have influenced not only music history but also literature from Tolstoy to Dürrenmatt, and it takes a long search to find a chamber music work that has a similar nimbus. Wild and untamed not only the work itself but also its history of creation appears. Beethoven wrote the “Kreutzer Sonata” for the violinist George Bridgetower (1778–1860), who spent some time in Vienna in 1803 and became friends with Beethoven. After an unusually short period of creation by Beethoven’s standards, the sonata was premiered at the Augarten in Vienna by Bridgetower and the composer at the piano. Bernd Alois Zimmermann (1918–1970) was the great loner of classical music in Germany after the end of the war and wrote one of the most interesting chamber music works of those years with the Violin Sonata from 1950. Zimmermann has spent his entire life dealing with Beethoven and his music is often interwoven with Beethoven’s work, so that a coupling of the sonatas is obvious. The Violin Sonata (1950) is a great example of his “pluralistic” compositional style in which different styles, past and present merge. While Beethoven and Zimmermann are indeed looking to the future with their works, Johannes Brahms' (1833–1897) Viola Sonata in E flat major Op. 120/2 is a work of retrospect. Brahms had announced “two modest sonatas” for clarinet after his new encounter with clarinetist Richard Mühlfeld in Ischl/Austria in the summer of 1894, and conceived his last two instrumental works simultaneously for viola and piano. The Sonata in E flat major is Brahms' last instrumental work, followed only by the “Four Serious Songs” and the chorale preludes op. 122.