Alfredo Casella identified three different periods in his composing career, and this disc features one work from each. The Suite in C major is early...

Alfredo Casella identified three different periods in his composing career, and this disc features one work from each. The Suite in C major is early Casella, a fascinating combination of influences from the French Baroque through Domenico Scarlatti to Mahler. War Pages are images of the horrific mechanised warfare of 1914–18, as seen on silent cinema newsreels: among the music’s admirers was Puccini. Casella himself felt that the Concerto, Op 61—a commission for the 50th birthday of the Amsterdam Concertgebouw Orchestra—was his ‘most complete achievement in the field of orchestral music’.

REVIEW:

You simply have to hear this. Alfredo Casella’s Suite, Op. 13 is an early work, ca. 1910, in which Mahler meets Sibelius in the best way, with both models given a jolt of additional energy by a talented young composer overflowing with enthusiasm and the sheer gusto of writing an orchestral extravaganza in the latest style, but without a shred of originality.

Pagine di guerra (“War Pages”) is a tiny suite in five movements lasting barely eleven minutes based on World War I newsreels. This is Casella in modern mode, with elements of impressionism and bitonality, the music consistently colorful and atmospheric. The concluding march, featuring Italian cruisers in the Adriatic carrying armaments, brings the piece to an eerie but at the same time triumphant conclusion.

Casella’s Concerto for Orchestra (1937) was commissioned by Mengelberg and the Concertgebouw Orchestra, and it’s a masterpiece. Its main theme, a surging melody that rises up beneath a bustling accompaniment (third sound clip) is very typical of the composer’s late work. His Partita for piano and orchestra features a very similar idea. This is music that absolutely deserves to be in the standard repertoire; it’s as good as anything written in the last century.

These performances are extremely fine. La Vecchia allows its Italianate lyricism to blossom naturally, while the neoclassical chatter of its rhythms never turns mechanical. The engineering also ranks with the best in this generally excellent ongoing series. Both the Suite and Pagine di guerra are recording premieres. This disc is a treat, and a major release.

-- ClassicsToday.com (10/10; David Hurwitz)