Naxos
Kuhlau: Piano Sonatinas Op 55 & 88 / Jeno Jandó
$9.99
Details
- Composer
- KUHLAU, FRIEDRICH
- Artist
- Jeno Jando
- Format
- CD
- Label
- Naxos
- Released
- Jun 24, 2008
- Catalog #
- 8570710
- UPC
- 747313071074
About
Some delightful piano works in the spirit of Haydn and Mozart.
This release marks another disc in the lengthening series of Kuhlau’s compositions on Naxos.
Kuhlau, born in 1786 to a musician with the German Army, began his musical education in Lüneburg with piano, and also began to compose at that time. Around 1800 he studied with C. F. G. Schwenke, the man who succeeded C. P. E. Bach in the position as Hamburg Stadtkantor. By 1804, Kuhlau was in the process of launching his career as a pianist in earnest. Blind in one eye since childhood, Kuhlau fled to Copenhagen under an alias to avoid mandatory military service; his half-blindness evidently did not compel the authorities to exempt him. He eventually became a naturalised citizen of Denmark and established his base there for the rest of his life.
Known to this reviewer primarily for his compositions for flute — various discs have been released recently of his flute sonatas and trios on Naxos and other labels. Kuhlau also produced a number of other pieces, primarily for chamber ensembles.
The works on offer on the present disc are short and charming, with most movements lasting no longer than three minutes. Jandó does right, I think, in keeping the performances simple and straightforward. The object of these pieces is not to impress or give a listener a good deal of food for thought. These are meant primarily to entertain. They are likely to be familiar to piano students worldwide. There isn’t much here that would surprise the listener, but there are a few moments of particular interest, such as the unexpected similarity of the opening movement of the Sonatina in A minor, Op. 88 No. 3 to Beethoven’s 1810 Für Elise. Another standout is the opening Allegro maestoso of the Op. 55 No. 6 Sonatina in C which, with its length of just over seven minutes, allows for a bit more mulling over of its thematic material.
The recording aesthetic for this disc is just what one would expect from Naxos: warm ambience without losing presence or definition. Jandó gives these pieces a clean and clear performance. Quite a pleasant disc for casual listening.
-- David Blomenberg, MusicWeb International
This release marks another disc in the lengthening series of Kuhlau’s compositions on Naxos.
Kuhlau, born in 1786 to a musician with the German Army, began his musical education in Lüneburg with piano, and also began to compose at that time. Around 1800 he studied with C. F. G. Schwenke, the man who succeeded C. P. E. Bach in the position as Hamburg Stadtkantor. By 1804, Kuhlau was in the process of launching his career as a pianist in earnest. Blind in one eye since childhood, Kuhlau fled to Copenhagen under an alias to avoid mandatory military service; his half-blindness evidently did not compel the authorities to exempt him. He eventually became a naturalised citizen of Denmark and established his base there for the rest of his life.
Known to this reviewer primarily for his compositions for flute — various discs have been released recently of his flute sonatas and trios on Naxos and other labels. Kuhlau also produced a number of other pieces, primarily for chamber ensembles.
The works on offer on the present disc are short and charming, with most movements lasting no longer than three minutes. Jandó does right, I think, in keeping the performances simple and straightforward. The object of these pieces is not to impress or give a listener a good deal of food for thought. These are meant primarily to entertain. They are likely to be familiar to piano students worldwide. There isn’t much here that would surprise the listener, but there are a few moments of particular interest, such as the unexpected similarity of the opening movement of the Sonatina in A minor, Op. 88 No. 3 to Beethoven’s 1810 Für Elise. Another standout is the opening Allegro maestoso of the Op. 55 No. 6 Sonatina in C which, with its length of just over seven minutes, allows for a bit more mulling over of its thematic material.
The recording aesthetic for this disc is just what one would expect from Naxos: warm ambience without losing presence or definition. Jandó gives these pieces a clean and clear performance. Quite a pleasant disc for casual listening.
-- David Blomenberg, MusicWeb International
Tracklist 26 tracks
-
1 I. Allegro 02:50
- Track
- 1
- Title
- I. Allegro
- Duration
- 02:50
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
2 II. Vivace 01:31
- Track
- 2
- Title
- II. Vivace
- Duration
- 01:31
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
3 I. Allegretto 02:21
- Track
- 3
- Title
- I. Allegretto
- Duration
- 02:21
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
4 II. Cantabile 01:50
- Track
- 4
- Title
- II. Cantabile
- Duration
- 01:50
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
5 III. Allegro 02:14
- Track
- 5
- Title
- III. Allegro
- Duration
- 02:14
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
6 I. Allegro con spirito 03:46
- Track
- 6
- Title
- I. Allegro con spirito
- Duration
- 03:46
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
7 II. Allegretto grazioso 02:20
- Track
- 7
- Title
- II. Allegretto grazioso
- Duration
- 02:20
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
8 I. Allegro non tanto 02:58
- Track
- 8
- Title
- I. Allegro non tanto
- Duration
- 02:58
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
9 II. Andantino con espressione 01:38
- Track
- 9
- Title
- II. Andantino con espressione
- Duration
- 01:38
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
10 III. Alla polacca 03:02
- Track
- 10
- Title
- III. Alla polacca
- Duration
- 03:02
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
11 I. Tempo di marcia 03:10
- Track
- 11
- Title
- I. Tempo di marcia
- Duration
- 03:10
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
12 II. Vivace assai 02:07
- Track
- 12
- Title
- II. Vivace assai
- Duration
- 02:07
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
13 I. Allegro maestoso 07:06
- Track
- 13
- Title
- I. Allegro maestoso
- Duration
- 07:06
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
14 II. Menuetto 04:20
- Track
- 14
- Title
- II. Menuetto
- Duration
- 04:20
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
15 I. Allegro 02:23
- Track
- 15
- Title
- I. Allegro
- Duration
- 02:23
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
16 II. Andantino 01:30
- Track
- 16
- Title
- II. Andantino
- Duration
- 01:30
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
17 III. Rondo: Allegro 01:45
- Track
- 17
- Title
- III. Rondo: Allegro
- Duration
- 01:45
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
18 I. Allegro assai 02:07
- Track
- 18
- Title
- I. Allegro assai
- Duration
- 02:07
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
19 II. Andante cantabile 01:15
- Track
- 19
- Title
- II. Andante cantabile
- Duration
- 01:15
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
20 III. Vivace 01:29
- Track
- 20
- Title
- III. Vivace
- Duration
- 01:29
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
21 I. Allegro con affetto 03:00
- Track
- 21
- Title
- I. Allegro con affetto
- Duration
- 03:00
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
22 II. Andantino 01:29
- Track
- 22
- Title
- II. Andantino
- Duration
- 01:29
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
23 III. Allegro burlesco 02:00
- Track
- 23
- Title
- III. Allegro burlesco
- Duration
- 02:00
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
24 I. Allegro molto 01:55
- Track
- 24
- Title
- I. Allegro molto
- Duration
- 01:55
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
25 II. Andante con moto 02:00
- Track
- 25
- Title
- II. Andante con moto
- Duration
- 02:00
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó
-
26 III. Rondo alla polacca 02:19
- Track
- 26
- Title
- III. Rondo alla polacca
- Duration
- 02:19
- Composer
- Friedrich Kuhlau
- Performer
- Jenő Jandó