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Bach: Concertos for Harpsichord & Strings, Vol. 1 / Masato Suzuki, Bach Collegium Japan

BIS

SACD

$21.99 Jun 05, 2020

The extant concertos by Johann Sebastian Bach for one harpsichord and strings were all composed before 1738, which makes them some of the first, if not the first keyboard concertos – a genre destined to become one of the most popular within classical music. In all likelihood Bach wrote them for his own use (or that of his talented sons) – probably to be performed with Leipzig’s Collegium Musicum of which he had taken over as director in 1729. The fresh and exuberant character one finds in the concertos seems to reflect how much Bach enjoyed the opportunity to engage with his fellow musicians. But much of the music itself was in fact not new – despite how idiomatic they may sound, many of Bach’s harpsichord concertos are almost certainly transcriptions of earlier works written for other instruments. Some of these original works are no longer extant, but it is nevertheless possible to trace the ancestry of BWV 1052 and the outer movements of BWV 1056 to lost violin concertos, while BWV 1053 is a reworking of three cantata movements which in turn probably hailed from a lost organ concerto.

A similar case is BWV 1059, which is known to us in a nine-bar fragment in Bach’s original score. But an earlier version of the piece – a concerto for organ – has survived in the form of three movements of Cantata No. 35, Geist und Seele wird verwirret, and these have served as basis for Masato Suzuki's reconstruction of the work included on the present album. It is also Masato Suzuki who performs the solo parts, while directing his colleagues in Bach Collegium Japan.

REVIEWS:

The idea of a dynasty is present in the history of the Bach family, so it is not inappropriate to mention the same idea in connection with the father-and-son combination of Masato and Masaaki Suzuki in terms of that remarkable enterprise, Bach Collegium Japan. Masato features here as keyboard virtuoso, directing the performances from the harpsichord. His remarkable virtuosity is beautifully projected by BIS’s excellent SACD recording. Every note is clear in a wonderfully ambient acoustic.

This generously compiled combination of masterworks, with its added bonus of a new rarity, will bring great enjoyment to the listener, in terms of both the excellent sound and the sparkling performances.

-- MusicWeb International

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Bach: Concertos for Harpsichord & Strings, Vol. 1 / Masato Suzuki, Bach Collegium Japan
BIS Jun 2020
SACD
$21.99

Bassoon Recital: Kudo, Junko - GLIERE, R. / RATHAUS, K. / CA
Haenssler Classic Sep 2007
CD
$20.99

Busoni: Piano Concerto / Lively, Gielen, SWR Symphony

SWR

$20.99 Mar 08, 2024

Originally recorded and released in 1990 for Koch Schwann.

Ferruccio Busoni began his career as a child prodigy, studying piano and composition at the Vienna Conservatory at the age of 9. As a composer, he initially dedicated himself to the tradition of Schumann, Chopin and Mendelssohn, but soon also created works with extended tonality and sometimes bitonal approach. Busoni regarded his monumental piano concerto neither in the style of the brilliant virtuoso concertos nor in that of the symphonic concertos by Beethoven and Brahms. He rather aimed at a subtle intertwining of piano and orchestra, which manifests itself in the fact that the piano hardly ever presents a theme in its original form, but mostly decorates and transforms the material introduced by the orchestra.

The French-American pianist David Lively is familiar with technically daunting symphonic concertos, that due to their monumentality are hardly ever performed. His innate virtuosity makes him a champion of New Music and he identifies particularly with twentieth-century American music. He was assisted in this recording by conductor Michael Gielen, a lifelong advocate of Busoni's work and also a specialist of modern music. The SWR Symphony Orchestra has recorded over 600 works spanning three centuries, many of which have won awards such as the German Record Critics' Award (Ehrenpreis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik), the Special Achievement Award of the International Classical Music Awards and a Grammy nomination.

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Busoni: Piano Concerto / Lively, Gielen, SWR Symphony
SWR Mar 2024
CD
$20.99

Beethoven: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 / Subdin, Vanska, Tapiola Sinfonietta

BIS

SACD

$21.99 Apr 07, 2017

On two previous albums, Yevgeny Sudbin and Osmo Vänskä have released Beethoven’s three last piano concertos to critical acclaim. Distinctions include Editor’s Choice in Gramophone and top marks from the Italian magazine Musica and the German website Klassik-Heute.de, and performances have been described as ‘electrifying’ (classicfm.com), ‘absolutely stunning’ (Fanfare) and ‘a Beethoven experience you will not want to miss’ (ClassicsToday.com). For the final release in their cycle, Sudbin and Vänskä have travelled to Helsinki to team up with Tapiola Sinfonietta, one of the top Nordic ensembles, and well suited for these earlier and more classical of Beethoven’s concertos. Of the two, the one we now know as the Second was actually begun several years before Concerto No. 1, and indeed even before Beethoven left Bonn for Vienna. During the following decade, Beethoven returned to the score repeatedly and made substantial revisions – including composing a new final movement – and ultimately the C major concerto reached publication first. Both concertos were conceived long before Beethoven's involvement with the symphonic genre, and the influence of Mozart and Haydn is evident in the interaction between the orchestra and the soloist – but Beethoven's individual spirit is nevertheless unmistakeable.

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Beethoven: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 / Subdin, Vanska, Tapiola Sinfonietta
BIS Apr 2017
SACD
$21.99

GALUPPI: Concerto a 4, Nos. 1-7
Dynamic Nov 2006
CD
$18.99

BARTOK: DIVERTIMENTO MUSIC FOR STRINGS

RUBICON

$19.99 Nov 21, 2025

The two works on this album were commissioned by conductor Paul Sacher in the 1930s for the orchestra he founded in 1926, the Basel Chamber Orchestra. This orchestra was famous for it's adventurous programing, often combining baroque repertoire with contemporary works. Bartok's Divertimento nods at the baroque concerto grosso in it's use of individual groups of players, and the title 'divertimento' recalls Mozart's many examples of this form. By contrast, the earlier of the two commissions avoids any musical category - Bartok simply called the work Music for Strings, Percussion & Celeste. 'Strings' in this works title includes harp and piano, 'percussion' adds not only timpani, but snare drum, bass drum, cymbals, tam-tam and xylophone, and of course the sparkling sound provided by the celeste. It is a beautiful score, culminating in a brilliant finale with dance rhythms and folk dance syncopations.

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BARTOK: DIVERTIMENTO MUSIC FOR STRINGS
RUBICON Nov 2025
CD
$19.99

Mix & Match

Bach J.s.: Violin Concertos Bwv 1041-43
Naxos Apr 1990
CD
$19.99

BachL Brandenburg Concertos Nos. 1-3
Brilliant Classics Jan 2001
CD
$13.99

Giuseppe & Giovanni Battista Sammartini: Concerti

Deutsche Harmonia Mundi

$17.99 Jun 05, 2008

"We have an enjoyable disc of a range of music from two talented and influential brothers who inhabited a transitional period between baroque and early classical. Their career paths were quite different, Giovanni being born and then dying in Milan while Giuseppe eventually settled in bustling London for the last twenty or so years of his life. Giuseppe’s more cosmopolitan existence is reflected in his music on the disc which displays a pragmatic ability to adjust his style. The violoncello piccolo concerto, for example, is very italianate, clearly influenced by Vivaldi whereas his delightful oboe concerto, excellently played by Hans-Peter Westermann, is more Handelian in style. His recorder concerto is also very tuneful and is a standard repertoire piece for skilled players. Michael Schneider is a distinguished performer and I thought his playing one of the best things about the disc which otherwise contains renderings that are highly competent but not particularly special. He features also in Giuseppe’s Trio in F major for 2 recorders which for me was the most enjoyable work in spite of its three movements lasting little more than five minutes. The slow movement with the recorders’ clashing semi-tones and tones is exquisitely intense.

Giovanni died a quarter of a century after his brother and his two chamber works here (he does not get a concerto on this disc of "concertos"!) were probably written after his brother’s death and are understandably more classical in feel. Both involve transverse flute and I liked the spirited playing in works that I found neatly formed but relatively dull compared with brother Giuseppe’s contributions."

-- John Leeman, MusicWeb International reviewing DHM 77852

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Giuseppe & Giovanni Battista Sammartini: Concerti
Deutsche Harmonia Mundi Jun 2008
CD
$17.99

Mozart Horn Concertos

PENTATONE

$19.99 Oct 16, 2026

On Mozart Horn Concertos, Ben Goldscheider joins the Munchener Kammerorchester in performances of all four concertos by Mozart, combining clarity, energy, and a strong sense of musical direction. Written for Mozart's friend, the horn player Joseph Leutgeb, these works remain central to the horn repertoire, balancing virtuosity, lyricism, with a uniquely conversational relationship between soloist and orchestra. For Goldscheider, these concertos have been a constant presence throughout his musical development, accompanying him from his early years as a horn player to major international solo appearances. This long familiarity informs an interpretation shaped by both experience and curiosity. Presented in reverse order, from the Fourth Concerto to the First, the album offers a fresh perspective on their overall arc. Ben Goldscheider makes his PENTATONE debut with this release, while the Munchener Kammerorchester appeared on the acclaimed recording of Four Seasons with Arabella Steinbacher in 2020.

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Mozart Horn Concertos
PENTATONE Oct 2026
CD
$19.99

Milken Archive - Schoenfield: Viola Concerto, Etc

Milken Archive

$10.99 Aug 01, 2004

Paul Schoenfield (b. 1947) writes music that is easily grasped but not easily forgotten. A quote from the booklet note states that his works “do for Hassidic music what Astor Piazzolla did for the Argentine tango.” If what is meant by this is that Schoenfield’s music is animated by a strong rhythmic component informed by certain Klezmer-like dance elements, I guess I would go along with the characterization. But there is nothing dance-like about the extraordinarily sorrowful and moving “Soliloquy” of the Viola Concerto. Here is a major new concerted work for viola and orchestra (and how many of them are there?) that is sure to be snapped up by every viola player of note. The piece was written in 1997–98 expressly for Robert Vernon, concertmaster of the Cleveland Orchestra, who gave its premiere performance in 1998, and who plays it here on this CD. Clearly, the work has it origins in Israeli and Eastern European folk song and dance, as well as Hassidic liturgical sources. This is especially evident in the last movement, titled “King David Dancing before the Ark,” a kind of Jewish saltarello, but the overall impression of this concerto is not of a lightweight, pops-concert piece. I believe it is an important new contribution to the viola literature. Vernon is in top form.

The Four Motets, each indicated only by a tempo marking, are settings of four of the seven verses from Psalm 86: “Incline Your ear, O Lord, answer me, for I am poor and needy.” These may be the most beautiful pieces William Byrd ever wrote. I jest of course, but the writing bears a strong resemblance to the Church style of Byrd and Tallis, with just enough 20th-century “irregularities” in voice leading and harmonic progression thrown in to assure you that you haven’t entered a time-warp. Benjamin Britten was quite masterful at writing this type of choral music too.

Schoenfield’s opera, The Merchant and the Pauper, is based on a tale by the great 18th-century Hassidic Rabbi, Reb Nahman. As usual, Neil Levin, author of the encyclopedic notes, and artistic director behind the Milken Archive of American Jewish Music project, goes on for pages of microscopic-print about who Reb Nahman was and the role he played in the evolving Jewish mythology and mysticism that are central to the Hassidic movement. Suffice it here to say that he was a highly controversial figure, as were many of his tales that—through allegory, riddles, and symbolism—drew many fervent believers. The plot of the Merchant and the Pauper presents an original twist on a familiar theme. The Pauper’s wife is kidnapped, but safely returned by the Merchant. The wives of both Pauper and Merchant give birth, the former to a daughter, the latter to a son. In gratitude to the Merchant for the rescue of his wife, the Pauper promises his newborn daughter’s hand in marriage to the Merchant’s son. Meanwhile, as the daughter blossoms into womanhood, her beauty increases, as do the Pauper’s wealth and fortunes. Soon, power and greed corrupt the Pauper, who now no longer wishes his daughter to marry the Merchant’s son. To prevent the marriage, he goes to great lengths to ruin the Merchant, and eventually to have the Merchant’s son abducted, put into a sack, and thrown into the sea (shades of Rigoletto). But this story has a happy ending for all except the Pauper. The son escapes, to be reunited with the Merchant’s daughter in “everlasting joy” (right!), and through the magic of fantasy the Pauper is once again returned to “pauperdom” and the Merchant to “merchanthood.” The story is no sillier than many an opera libretto. What matters is the music. On that score, I can say that even in these relatively short chunks excerpted from act II Schoenfield demonstrates a real flair for the stage and dramatic writing. There is some gorgeous music here, and all of the participants are excellent.

Another winner from this tremendously important project. I recommend it enthusiastically.
Jerry Dubins, FANFARE

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Milken Archive - Schoenfield: Viola Concerto, Etc
Milken Archive Aug 2004
CD
$10.99

Bach: Concertos for Recorder / Bosgraaf, Ensemble Cordevento

Brilliant Classics

Vinyl

$28.99 ~~$37.99~~ Save 25% Nov 17, 2025

A high-grade LP transfer for a superbly engineered album of Bach at his most life-enhancing. JS Bach may not have composed any concertos specifically for recorder – none have survived, at any rate – but he scored for the instrument elsewhere in his output, most unforgettably so in his earliest surviving cantata, the ‘Actus tragicus’. In any case the uniquely adaptable nature of his inspiration lends itself to the kind of sympathetic adaptation undertaken here by Erik Bosgraaf in partnership with the musicologist and art historian Thiemo Wind. Three of the concertos here have beenadapted from pieces which survive in a scoring for solo harpsichord and string orchestra: BWV 1053, 1055 and 1059. A fourth concerto has been constructed by Wind from transcriptions of cantata arias, adapted from the secular cantata Preise dein Glücke, gesegnetes Sachsen BWV215 and Liebster Jesu, mein Verlangen BWV32. The idea is humble but ingenious, answering the question: what might Bach have done, or could he have done, if he had written concertos for the recorder? In doing so, Bosgraaf and his colleagues are following good precedents: after all, Bach himself created and performed many such transcriptions. His oeuvre demonstrates that a composition wasnot regarded as an unchanging work of art, and during his lifetime it was standard procedure to make quite radical adaptations according to the relevant circumstances. In any case, Bosgraaf and the one-per-part musicians of Cordevento perform these concertos with an unfailing sensitivity to the momentum and poetry of Bach’s originals. Now, on 180-gram vinyl, these recordings gain a special warmth and depth while losing none of their pin-point clarity. ‘Erik Bosgraaf’s recorder-playing is fluent and lively in fast music, and his five colleagues provide accompaniments that are lean, stylish and precise.’ (Gramophone)

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Bach: Concertos for Recorder / Bosgraaf, Ensemble Cordevento
Brilliant Classics Nov 2025
Vinyl
~~$37.99~~ $28.99

Full Moon in the City
Oberlin Music Nov 2015
CD
$16.99

Mendelssohn, Felix: Concerto For Violin, Piano And String Or
BIS Feb 1996
CD
$21.99

Jauchzt, ihr frohen Christenscharen

Musicaphon

SACD

$16.99 Jun 05, 2020

The Thuringian composer Christoph Förster was born on 30 November 1693 in Bibra. He received his first musical training from the local organist Pitzler. Starting in 1710 he had instruction with Johann David Heinichen in Weissenfels and subsequently with Georg Friedrich Kaufmann in Merseburg, where he soon was also active as concertmaster in the court chapel. Journeys to Leipzig and Dresden are documented in 1719. In 1723 Förster traveled to Prague for the coronation of Charles VII of Bohemia and met important musical personalities including Johann Joseph Fux, Antonio Caldara, and Francesco Conti. After the death of the Duke of Saxony-Merseburg, he applied for the position of Vice-Kapellmeister in Rudolstadt in 1743 - in the absence of a vacancy, however, without pay - which he held until his untimely death on 6 December 1745. According to a roster from 1743, the Rudolstadt court chapel, with twenty-five musicians, was a rather large ensemble and, aside from strings and keyboard instruments, had at it's disposal flutes, oboes, bassoon, trumpets, timpani, and horns, as well as choirboys. Förster's oeuvre encompasses numerous church cantatas, psalm- and Sanctus-settings, a Mass, and copious instrumental music, including orchestral works, such as overtures and symphonies, instrumental concertos, and small-scale chamber pieces. Förster's instrumental compositions are already strongly influenced by the gallant and sensitive style and point the way from the late Baroque to the early Classical periods. The change in style is clearly perceptible in the individual works. His compositions were well known during his lifetime and recognized by the musical world. Thus, Marpurg, in his Legende einiger Musikheiligen (1786), placed him "among the best melodists of his time." In 1730 Förster subscribed to Georg Philipp Telemann's Tafelmusik and Parisian Quartets.

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Jauchzt, ihr frohen Christenscharen
Musicaphon Jun 2020
SACD
$16.99

Haydn: Concertos/ Müller-brühl, Babanov, Hoeren, Schuster

Naxos

$19.99 Jul 29, 2008

Spritely performances of real winners.

Perhaps it’s a terrible admission to make, but much as I love Haydn, I have never really warmed to his concertos. Here, I thought, was the father of the Symphony as we know it today, the String Quartet as we know it today, and the foundation of opera. OK, I know that Mozart had an hand in the development of all these forms but it was Haydn who got things going. Sure enough, there’s drama and poetry aplenty in the pieces mentioned but concertos? Where’s the dramatic interplay between soloist and orchestra? Where’s the element of man standing alone against the crowd?

Then along comes this disk and I suddenly have to re–think my position. It had never dawned on me that the concept of protagonist and lynch mob hadn’t been invented at the time Haydn was writing his concerted works. So now I can see them in a different light for what they are – wonderful entertainment music with prominent parts for solo instruments.

I’m glad that I’ve been able to change my views and can now enjoy these works for they are delightful. The Horn Concerto which opens the disk is full of good things, the writing for horn is certainly virtuosic – the range which Haydn demands of his performer is phenomenal – and here Babanov is quite happy whether he plays in the highest or lowest registers. Haydn goes to both extremes and exploits the full range of the instrument. The work also includes two quite taxing cadenzas. It is thought that the work was written for Joseph Leutgeb, the recipient of Mozart’s four Horn Concertos - he must have been some player! And what a lucky man to have five such magnificent works created for him!

The Harpsichord Concerto is full of great jokes. I especially love the jumping frog impression which the keyboard undertakes at 1:37 in the first movement. There’s lots of interplay between soloist and orchestra, more than in the wind concertos, but this is probably because Haydn knew that his soloist wouldn’t be overwhelmed by the accompaniment as easily as in the other works. The slow movement contains many little jokes with grace notes cheekily sticking their noses into the serious business of tunefulness. The finale is simply a fast romp.

The Double Concerto is thought to have started life as a work for organ. It is considered to have been performed for the solemn profession of Therese Keller, Haydn’ future sister–in–law, as a nun in 1756 – the proof being that the range used by the fortepiano is restricted to the range of the contemporary Viennese organ. Certainly, this is a more serious work, more stately, than the others contained herein. The two soloists never engage in overt display and more often than not they connect in harmonious duet. Rather lovely it is, too. The finale is fast and joyful, but there’s still a serious undertone to the music.

Thanks to the solo trumpet repertoire being quite small, until contemporary composers started writing for it, Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto has become very well known. It’s a true virtuoso work with a gorgeous slow movement and a racy finale.

The performances here are first class, with lots of life and a real period feel. There’s nothing prissy or restrained about them - they’re really very alive. Thoroughly enjoyable.

I must make two points. First of all, in almost every movement, for reasons best known to himself, Müller–Brühl insists on making huge rallentandi at the ends of movements. This ruins the flow of what has gone before. It is a blemish on the performances.

My second point is rather more important. The sound is in Naxos’s best manner – bright and clear. In the Trumpet Concerto the balance between soloist and orchestra is perfect. The whole sound is well focused and there is a good relationship between listener and performer. However, in the other three works the recording is very close which slightly distorts the sound-picture as everything comes across as being overblown. The obviously small string orchestra ends up sounding like a small orchestra which has been over–amplified. This is most noticeable in the slow movements where a more intimate atmosphere is required than in the faster pieces. If you turn the volume down in the hope of taming the sound you lose some of the presence of the performances. This is a shame for these are spritely performances which are real winners and will do much to make these works better known to the public.

This is well worth having, despite my reservations about the sound. If you can tame it ever so slightly – it doesn’t need much – you’ll have a really good time listening to very pleasurable music.

-- Bob Briggs, MusicWeb International

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Haydn: Concertos/ Müller-brühl, Babanov, Hoeren, Schuster
Naxos Jul 2008
CD
$19.99

Devienne, Donizetti, Beethoven, Morlacchi-Torriani: Bassoon Trios / Data, Carbotta, Barbareschi

Brilliant Classics

$13.99 Apr 29, 2016

This album presents the bassoon used in duo and trio arrangements, and centers around the often-neglected Bassoon Trio WoO37 by Beethoven. Along with Beethoven’s bassoon trio, this release also features Devienne’s Sonata in C for flute and bassoon, Donizetti’s Trio in F for flute, bassoon and piano, and Morlacchi’sDuetto concertato for flute, bassoon and piano on the motif of Maestro Verdi. Performing these works are Italian soloists Massimo Data, Mario Carbotta, and Piero Barbareschi.

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Devienne, Donizetti, Beethoven, Morlacchi-Torriani: Bassoon Trios / Data, Carbotta, Barbareschi
Brilliant Classics Apr 2016
CD
$13.99

Three New Concertos for Bass Clarinet

Toccata

$20.99 Oct 03, 2025

Concertos for bass clarinet are rare enough; this album brings three new ones to swell those limited ranks. It presents the fruit of a series of interlocking international co-operations, between orchestras in Sweden, the UK and USA, with American, British and Swedish composers and, at the heart of the undertaking, the bass clarinettist of the Malmo Symphony Orchestra, Carl-Johan Stjernstrom. All three composers exploit the huge range of colours the bass clarinet can offer, in music that ranges from the fierce and dramatic to the sunny and easy-going. The album also inaugurates a Toccata Next series providing a platform for the musicians of the Malmo Symphony Orchestra.

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Three New Concertos for Bass Clarinet
Toccata Oct 2025
CD
$20.99

Mix & Match

Ginastera: Cello Concertos / Kosower, Zagrosek, Bamberg Symphony

Naxos

$19.99 May 31, 2011

Alberto Ginastera was one of the most admired and respected musical voices of the twentieth century, who successfully fused the strong traditional influences of his national heritage with experimental, contemporary, and classical techniques. The two Cello Concertos are among his most innovative, brilliant and technically formidable compositions. The First Concerto, the definitive version of which was premièred by Ginastera’s second wife Aurora Nátola in 1978, is notable for the provocative singing lines, Latin dance rhythms and virtuosity of its solo part, and the intense colours and abundant percussion of the orchestral accompaniment. The Second Concerto, composed as a 10th wedding anniversary tribute ‘To my dear Aurora’, makes more prominent use of Argentine folk elements. It includes a brilliant depiction of the rising sun, percussion instruments portraying sounds of the jungle, and a celebratory rustic finale.

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Ginastera: Cello Concertos / Kosower, Zagrosek, Bamberg Symphony
Naxos May 2011
CD
$19.99

Telemann, Weber, Baska & Bruch: Viola Concertos / Kefer, Kerschbaum, Vorarlberg Symphony

Nimbus

$20.99 Feb 03, 2017

Herbert Kefer was born in Austria in 1960. At the age of five he received his first musical education on the violin. He continued his studies with Professor Karl Frischenschlager in Leoben and with Professor Karl Stierhof at the University of Music in Vienna. He graduated with distinction in 1986. In 1980 he founded, together with three colleagues, the Artis-Quartett. From 1984 to 1985 they spent one year in Cincinnati, Ohio with the LaSalle-Quartet to profit from their knowledge as much as possible. After that, an international career including concerts at all well known festivals began. The quartet has made more than thirty recordings, some of which have been honored with the Grand Prix du Disque and the Diapason d'Or. In 1991 Herbert Kefer was appointed to head of Viola at the University of Music in Graz. From 2005-2010 he was director of the Weinklang-Festival. He is in demand as a soloist as well as a sought after partner for chamber music groups.

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Telemann, Weber, Baska & Bruch: Viola Concertos / Kefer, Kerschbaum, Vorarlberg Symphony
Nimbus Feb 2017
CD
$20.99

Vivaldi's Children - 6 Concerti, Op. 10
Nimbus Jan 2012
CD
$20.99

Aho: Concertante Works for Recorder, Sax & Accordion / Lasonpallo, Saimaa Sinfonietta

BIS

SACD

$21.99 Sep 01, 2023

Concertante works featuring the recorder, tenor saxophone and accordion are few and far between. Stimulated by daring soloists, the prolific Finnish composer Kalevi Aho has composed such works, contributing in his own way to the development of an original and attractive repertoire. The Concerto for Recorder requires the soloist to play four types of recorder, from bass to sopranino. The work explores extended techniques and also does not shy away from flashbacks to the golden age of the instrument. Aho received the initial impetus for his Concerto for tenor saxophone after a concert by Esa Pietilä. Aho wrote a concerto with contrasting sections that gradually exploits the full potential of the tenor saxophone and also makes use of an oriental goblet drum (darabuka) that sometimes also takes centre stage. The origins of the Sonate Concertante for accordion and strings goes back to Aho’s first Sonata for accordion of 1984. Noting its orchestral character, soloist Janne Valkeajoki suggested making a concertante version with strings. Here, Aho sought to extend the technical possibilities of the instrument to the maximum and to write for it a work of astounding virtuosity, like Franz Liszt’s most demanding piano compositions.

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Aho: Concertante Works for Recorder, Sax & Accordion / Lasonpallo, Saimaa Sinfonietta
BIS Sep 2023
SACD
$21.99

Haydn: Symphonies 45, 94, 101

Naxos

$19.99 Apr 07, 1995

Haydn's Farewell Symphony was written in 1772, occasioned by the prolonged stay of Prince Nikolaus Esterházy at his Hungarian palace. Some of the musicians had been compelled to leave their wives behind in Eisenstadt when the Prince took up his summer residence. The Symphony, in the final Adagio of which the musicians leave one by one, was intended as a delicate hint that the time had come to return to Eisenstadt, although some contemporary sources suggest that the subject of complaint was the possible reduction of the musical establishment. The Symphony, in the key of F sharp minor, is scored for the usual Esterháza forces of pairs of oboes and horns, bassoon and strings. The first movement opens with the principal theme, descending arpeggios played by the first violins against sustained wind chords and the urgent syncopation of the second violins. Sonata form is treated with considerable freedom, the second subject making it's D major appearance in the development and the following recapitulation inviting an unusual further development of the principal theme. The A major second movement allows muted violins to announce the main theme, the wind having very little to add during the course of the movement. An F sharp major Minuet follows, with a Trio that allows the French horns momentary prominence. This leads to a finale that modulates to introduce the unexpected slow conclusion, in which player after player leaves the platform, until only two muted violins are left. Symphony No.101 belongs to the group of six symphonies written for Haydn's second visit to London in 1794. It was played there at a concert on 3rd March, followed by operatic songs, a performance by Viotti of a violin concerto and by Fiorillo of a Chaconne. Again, as with most of the London symphonies, there is a slow introduction, this time in D minor, an eerie preface to a bright D major movement from which the symphony derives it's nickname, The Clock, it's source the accompanying figure with which the movement opens. The Minuet returns from G major to the key of D major, it's Trio providing a lop-sided clock accompaniment to the initial flute melody. The symphony ends with a finale in which the second subject is a clear variant of the first. There is a D minor section, replaced by the major key to bring the work to a dramatic conclusion.

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Haydn: Symphonies 45, 94, 101
Naxos Apr 1995
CD
$19.99

Luigi Gatti: Chamber Music

MDG

$23.99 Feb 01, 2010

GATTI Serenata a più stromenti di Concerto. Sestetto • Calamus Ens • MDG 603 1589-2 (63:01)

Yet another forgotten contemporary of the great classicists, Luigi Gatti (1740–1817) was born in Italy’s lake district; studied in nearby Mantua, where he also became a priest; and established himself as a singer, conductor, and composer of note. In the latter capacity his esteem was such that his works were accepted for performance at Milan’s La Scala. In 1783 he was appointed music director of the court of Archbishop Hiermonymus Colloredo in Salzburg, where he served for the remainder of his life. The best-known of the musicians under his supervision there was music’s most famous doting parent, Leopold Mozart, his celebrated son Wolfgang having since departed for Vienna. After the younger Mozart’s demise, Gatti helped his sister, Nannerl, find and preserve some of the scores that had been left in the court’s archives. Gatti himself left a legacy of more than 150 works, ranging from operas, of course, to service music, but also including occasional music, two samples of which are here recorded. These are substantial works. The 34-minute Serenata consists of four movements in symphonic sequence (Allegro, Adagio alla Romanza, Menuetto, Allegro). The Sextet, with a five-movement configuration more typical of a divertimento, has a healthy running time of 29 minutes. Of the two the Serenata may have more staying power, but both are tuneful and obviously the work of a skilled craftsman and clearly not the model for Mozart’s Musical Joke . While one could not make a case for the elevation of Gatti to the pantheon on the basis of these two genial works, both probably fulfilled their function as entertainments at the court. I suspect that this disc came my way because of the scoring: The Serenata calls for oboe, bassoon, two horns, and string quintet; the Sextet for English horn, bassoon, and strings. MDG’s notes indicate that the oboe was Gatti’s wind of choice in his compositions—not at all surprising, since neither the flute nor the clarinet were fully established members of 18th-century orchestras. The double reeds here are not the center of attention, but serve instead as foils to the characteristically dominant first violin, as one might expect in a typical serenade of the period. This release is for the curious and/or adventurous. The performances could not be better.

FANFARE: George Chien

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Luigi Gatti: Chamber Music
MDG Feb 2010
CD
$23.99

BACH: BRANDENBURG CONCERTOS

HARMONIA MUNDI

$21.99 Sep 17, 2021

Johann Sebastian Bach and the Akademie f�r Alte Musik Berlin go back a long way together. This recording, made with the welcome participation of Isabelle Faust and Antoine Tamestit, follows the complete violin concertos (2019), which left a lasting impression. Ever since a memorable first recording in the late 1990s, the Berlin musicians have returned regularly to the inexhaustible source of the Brandenburgs. They have achieved a sovereign mastery of what is not a single work, but six. In their hands, they become successive episodes of a piece of musical theater in love with dance, transparent sound and freedom.

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BACH: BRANDENBURG CONCERTOS
HARMONIA MUNDI Sep 2021
CD
$21.99