Starter Packs

Complete your collection with these curated titles, grouped at a special discount.

Shop Now
Casella: La Donna Serpente; Introduzione, Aria E Toccata; Partita / La Vecchia, Rome SO
Naxos

Casella: La Donna Serpente; Introduzione, Aria E Toccata; Partita / La Vecchia, Rome SO

$9.99
$19.99 Save 50%

Details

Composer
CASELLA
Artist
Francesco La Vecchia, Sun Hee You
Format
CD
Label
Naxos
Released
Nov 13, 2012
Catalog #
8573005
UPC
747313300570

About


The composer that Casella most resembles in his chameleon-like musical personality is probably Martinu, and this is nowhere more true than in the Partita for piano and small orchestra. Scored for the distinctive combination of oboe, two clarinets, bass clarinet, three trumpets, timpani and strings, the work is an unalloyed delight. Listen to the end of the first movement recapitulation, and you’ll be hooked. Like Martinu’s Sinfonietta giocosa, the lightweight title in fact conceals a work of genuine substance, lasting (in this case) just over half an hour. The central Passacaglia (a form much exploited by Casella) is profoundly beautiful, and its evocative use of trills reveals that Casella learned a trick or two from the first Nachtmusik of Mahler’s Seventh, which he arranged for piano four-hands.

The Introduzione, aria e toccata again recalls (or foreshadows) Martinu–in this case the Toccata e due canzone. Like that piece, this is a substantial, at times brooding work brimming with memorable invention. The music’s stylized, neo-Baroque idiom couldn’t be farther removed from the nearly contemporary orchestral fragments from Casella’s only opera, La donna serpente (The Snake Woman), after a play by Gozzi. These “fragments” are actually pretty extensive, lasting a full half an hour, and if they pay homage to anyone I’d have to mention Rimsky-Korsakov. The Military March that ends the first suite evokes a fairytale atmosphere similar to that of The Golden Cockerel or Tsar Sultan, but there’s nothing Russian about the melodic material, which is completely personal.

This disc marks the conclusion of Naxos’ Casella series, and it has been a wonderful journey. As with the other discs, the performances are excellent. Sun Hee You does a wonderful job in the Partita, offering effortless virtuosity and an aptly light touch. There’s only one other recording available, featuring the very good Joshua Pierce, coupled to concertante works by Respighi and Rachmaninov, but conductor Franceso La Vecchia proves himself more imaginative an accompanist the Anton Nanut, and he also has the better orchestra and engineering. Casella truly was a great composer. The evidence on this disc is incontestable.

– David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

Tracklist 12 tracks

  1. 1 Introduzione: Largo e solenne 06:06
    Track
    1
    Title
    Introduzione: Largo e solenne
    Duration
    06:06
    Composer
    Alfredo Casella
    Ensemble
    Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma
    Conductor
    Francesco La Vecchia
  2. 2 Aria 06:07
    Track
    2
    Title
    Aria
    Duration
    06:07
    Composer
    Alfredo Casella
    Ensemble
    Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma
    Conductor
    Francesco La Vecchia
  3. 3 Toccata: Allegro un poco moderato e man mano movendo 06:59
    Track
    3
    Title
    Toccata: Allegro un poco moderato e man mano movendo
    Duration
    06:59
    Composer
    Alfredo Casella
    Ensemble
    Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma
    Conductor
    Francesco La Vecchia
  4. 4 I. Sinfonia 09:44
    Track
    4
    Title
    I. Sinfonia
    Duration
    09:44
    Composer
    Alfredo Casella
    Performer
    Sun Hee You
    Ensemble
    Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma
    Conductor
    Francesco La Vecchia
  5. 5 II. Passacaglia 11:42
    Track
    5
    Title
    II. Passacaglia
    Duration
    11:42
    Composer
    Alfredo Casella
    Performer
    Sun Hee You
    Ensemble
    Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma
    Conductor
    Francesco La Vecchia
  6. 6 III. Burlesca 08:48
    Track
    6
    Title
    III. Burlesca
    Duration
    08:48
    Composer
    Alfredo Casella
    Performer
    Sun Hee You
    Ensemble
    Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma
    Conductor
    Francesco La Vecchia
  7. 7 I. Musica del sogno di re altidor: Andante 03:04
    Track
    7
    Title
    I. Musica del sogno di re altidor: Andante
    Duration
    03:04
    Composer
    Alfredo Casella
    Ensemble
    Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma
    Conductor
    Francesco La Vecchia
  8. 8 II. Interludio: Andante moderato 01:20
    Track
    8
    Title
    II. Interludio: Andante moderato
    Duration
    01:20
    Composer
    Alfredo Casella
    Ensemble
    Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma
    Conductor
    Francesco La Vecchia
  9. 9 III. Marcia Guerriera: Tempo di marcia 05:14
    Track
    9
    Title
    III. Marcia Guerriera: Tempo di marcia
    Duration
    05:14
    Composer
    Alfredo Casella
    Ensemble
    Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma
    Conductor
    Francesco La Vecchia
  10. 10 I. Sinfonia: Allegro vivacissimo 06:00
    Track
    10
    Title
    I. Sinfonia: Allegro vivacissimo
    Duration
    06:00
    Composer
    Alfredo Casella
    Ensemble
    Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma
    Conductor
    Francesco La Vecchia
  11. 11 II. Preludio: Lento, ma non troppo 08:52
    Track
    11
    Title
    II. Preludio: Lento, ma non troppo
    Duration
    08:52
    Composer
    Alfredo Casella
    Ensemble
    Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma
    Conductor
    Francesco La Vecchia
  12. 12 III. Battaglia - IV. Finale: Allegro vivacissimo 04:32
    Track
    12
    Title
    III. Battaglia - IV. Finale: Allegro vivacissimo
    Duration
    04:32
    Composer
    Alfredo Casella
    Ensemble
    Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma
    Conductor
    Francesco La Vecchia