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Lansky: Music Box, Chatter of Pins, The Joy of F-Sharp Minor
Bridge Records Dec 2006
CD
$18.99

Wolf-Ferrari: String Trios, Quartets & Quintet

Brilliant Classics

$16.99 Aug 09, 2024

Wolf-Ferrari was a composer of great artistic merit, Italian by nationality but raised in Germany, unfairly forgotten and deserving of rediscovery. His works meld compositional and spiritual elements with a preference for melodic purity and smooth harmonies, a passion for clear and linear forms inspired by Classical-era Vienna, and a meticulous approach. His aversion to complexity and his love of clarity and simplicity - as far removed from the operatic verismo movement as from the experiments of the avant-garde - meant he was, in a certain sense, an isolated figure, yet he knew that, despite the nostalgia in his writing, he had his own vibrant and original voice. His writing for strings displays expert compositional technique and a thorough technical knowledge of the instruments. The youthful String Trio in B minor and the related String Trio in C minor are edited by Luca Incerti based on the manuscript held at the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich (Mus. Ms. 21366). The first trio is divided into three movements: Allegro, Larghetto and Scherzo (Allegro vivace). The second trio reuses the opening Allegro (raised to C minor) and Larghetto, adding a different ending in two new movements: Scherzo: Allegro molto and Adagio molto. The String Trio in A minor (Op.32) is divided into three movements - Allegro moderato, Pastorale (Andante tranquillo) and Allegro - and was written in 1945, during the composer's mature period. The String Quartet in A minor was composed in 1894 and has also been edited by Luca Incerti, based on another manuscript held in Munich (Mus. Ms. 23144-2). It comprises four movements: Allegro moderato, Adagio non troppo, Allegro vivacissimo and Allegro assai. The String Quartet in E minor is likewise split into four movements - Allegro, Andante cantabile, Capriccio (Allegro pesante) and Allegro - but it's date of composition is unknown. However, by contrast it certainly stems from Wolf-Ferrari's later years, when all the composer's unique artistic traits came to the fore. As this quartet makes clear, in the context of the early 20th-century avant-garde, Wolf-Ferrari provided an alluring return to Classicism, but it was his own personal interpretation of the style, rather than an attempt to restore it. His neoclassicism appears more modern today than it would have done to his contemporaries. The String Quintet (2 violas) in C is recorded from another Luca Incerti edition, based on individual parts published by Thomi-Berg. It was written in 1942 and therefore belongs to the composer's mature period. It has four movements: Allegro assai quasi presto, Larghetto, Prestissimo, and Molto mosso alla breve.

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Wolf-Ferrari: String Trios, Quartets & Quintet
Brilliant Classics Aug 2024
CD
$16.99

Prinz Louis Ferdinand Von Preussen: Complete Piano Trios Vol 3 / Trio Parnassus

MDG

$23.99 Feb 01, 2009

LOUIS FERDINAND Andante with Variations, op. 4. Piano Quartet, op. 5. Larghetto with Variations, op. 11 • Tr Parnassus; Thomas Selditz (va); Stanislau Anishchanka (db) • MDG 303 1549 (71:49)

You might say that the Trio Parnassus owns the music of Prince Louis Ferdinand, at least his chamber music for small ensemble—piano trios, quartets, and one quintet (op. 11, listed above) with the same scoring as Schubert’s “Trout” Quintet. Titled “Complete Piano Trios, Vol. 3,” the present volume, in fact, has no trios at all; the “complete trios” is more accurately a compilation of most of his chamber music. At present, the Trio Parnassus appears to be alone in recording any of the rather small but worthy corpus of music composed by Louis Ferdinand. (The unfortunate Prince, killed in battle in 1805 at the age of 34, completed a total of just 13 opuses, of which 10 are chamber works with piano.)

The Trio Parnassus has made a vital contribution to the discovery and performance of many forgotten musical treasures from the 19th century, including works by Hummel, Bargiel, Scharwenka, and Rheinberger. Prince Louis Ferdinand, a highly talented and accomplished pianist/composer whose teacher was Jan Ladislav Dussek, certainly deserves inclusion in such a group. He was admired by none other than Beethoven, who, after hearing him play, called him a “true musician” and dedicated his Third Piano Concerto to him.

Louis Ferdinand had a gift for writing attractive melodies, and also a fertile imagination when it came to varying them. Variation movements are common in his œuvre, and although he follows the traditional style of variations—increasing rhythmic figuration and tempo, and including a minor key variation, e.g.—there are often surprises, especially since his harmonic writing at times anticipates the music of Schubert and Schumann. His music—especially the piano parts—is technically difficult and brilliant, no doubt intended to demonstrate the virtuosity of the composer.

The dedication of the Trio Parnassus, aided by excellent collaborators, is evident in the high quality of its performance. The ensemble is precise and the intonation of the strings is spot on. I have commented before on the outstanding work of the pianist, Chia Chou, who in addition to handling the demands of the virtuoso piano-writing with seeming ease, also knows when to fade into the background and leave the spotlight to his colleagues. His playing has polish and refinement as well as brilliance.

MDG once again demonstrates the success of its excellent technique in producing a recording using “the natural acoustics of specially chosen concert halls.” The balance among the instruments is perfect, and the sound is warm and vivid. In sum, this is most attractive music, put together with inspiration and skill. Strongly recommended.

FANFARE: Susan Kagan

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Prinz Louis Ferdinand Von Preussen: Complete Piano Trios Vol 3 / Trio Parnassus
MDG Feb 2009
CD
$23.99

SCHUBERT: FOUR HANDS

ERATO

$18.36 Jan 16, 2026

Pianists Bertrand Chamayou and Leif Ove Andsnes join forces to record Schubert's magnificent Fantasia in F minor, presenting a landmark Schubert 4 Hands album. This release arrives 40 years after Radu Lupu and Murray Perahia's legendary CBS recording and 60 years after Benjamin Britten and Sviatoslav Richter's historic Aldeburgh Festival performance. The duo delivers breathtaking interpretations that could establish this recording as the new reference for Schubert's Fantasia. The album pairs the Fantasia with other Schubert four-hand works composed in 1828, the year of the composer's death, offering a deeply intimate and historically informed program.

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SCHUBERT: FOUR HANDS
ERATO Jan 2026
CD
$18.36

Mix & Match

Mendelssohn, Fibich, Rabl: Smetana Trio

Supraphon

$25.99 Nov 06, 2026

Three gems of 19th-century Romantic music played by the Smetana Trio The Smetana Trio's new album presents three compositions that capture the diverse forms of 19th-century Romantic chamber music. Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy wrote his Piano Trio No. 2 in C minor, Op. 66, during his artistic maturity. It combines the dramatic energy of the outer movements with the tender lyricism and delicate poetic character of the central movements. Alongside the virtuosic piano part, the work stands out for it's finely balanced dialogue among the three instruments and it's refined motivic development. The second composition on the album is Zdenek Fibich's early Piano Trio in F minor, the work of a young composer inspired by the legacy of Robert Schumann. It combines the ardour of Romanticism and lyrical warmth with a carefully conceived formal design and a sensitive interplay between the piano and the strings. The album concludes with the Fantasy Pieces by Walter Rabl, a composer who today remains on the fringes of the concert repertoire. This cycle of brief character pieces delights listeners with it's melodic freshness, tender lyricism, and cultivated, Brahmsian sound. In all three works, the Smetana Trio reaffirms it's exceptional standing among Czech chamber ensembles. Jitka Cechova, Marketa Janouskova, and Jan Palenícek offer an interpretation combining technical mastery, stylistic refinement, and profound comprehension of the Romantic musical style.

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Mendelssohn, Fibich, Rabl: Smetana Trio
Supraphon Nov 2026
CD
$25.99

C.P.E. Bach: Sonatas for Flute & Fortepiano / Lazarevitch, Taylor

Alpha

$20.99 Mar 11, 2022

With these sonatas by C.P.E. Bach, François Lazarevitch continues the exploration of the jewels of the flute and recorder repertory he has embarked on with Les Musiciens de Saint-Julien or as a soloist with recordings of music by Bach, Telemann, Vivaldi, and van Eyck. François Lazarevitch and Justin Taylor now bring their sensitivity and virtuosity to bear on the sonatas for flute and obbligato harpsichord of Carl Philipp Emmanuel Bach.

The majority of these works date from the years 1745-66, when he was in the service of the flute-playing King Frederick II. Two solos complete the program: the famous Sonata in A minor for unaccompanied flute and the Fantasia in F# minor for keyboard, which testifies to Emanuel’s improvisational artistry.

Situated at the epicenter of the Enlightenment era, Bach’s second son was the key figure of Empfindsamkeit (Sensibility), the movement that explored the deep and unfathomable stirrings of humanity and nature, countering the learned style of the early eighteenth-century masters with freedom of inspiration and hence emancipation of form. The artist now sought above all to express the impulses of the soul, displaying unexpected traits that sometimes verge on the bizarre.

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C.P.E. Bach: Sonatas for Flute & Fortepiano / Lazarevitch, Taylor
Alpha Mar 2022
CD
$20.99

Vaughan Williams, R.: Sea Songs / Bass Tuba Concerto in F Mi
Genuin Jan 2006
CD
$20.99

MOZART: THE COMPLETE MULTIPIANO CONCERTOS

HYPERION

$18.33 Apr 02, 2021

The Larghetto and Allegro in E flat major is mature Mozart - contemporary with Idomeneo and Die Entfu¨hrung - but remains incomplete. Tomer Lev has finished the job brilliantly, making it the perfect companion for Mozart's official multipiano concertos.

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MOZART: THE COMPLETE MULTIPIANO CONCERTOS
HYPERION Apr 2021
CD
$18.33

Hummel: Sonata In E Flat Major, Sonata In F Major / Alexander-Max

Chandos

$21.99 Nov 17, 2009

HUMMEL Piano Sonatas: No. 2 in E?; No. 3 in f. Bagatelle in A?, “La contemplazione” • Susan Alexander-Max (fp) (period instrument) • CHANDOS 765 (67:11)

Johann Nepomuk Hummel (1778–1837) is an important transitional composer, especially from a pianistic viewpoint, between the late-18th and early-19th centuries; he is, unfortunately, also a composer who is underrepresented in the recording catalog. Among currently available recordings, Stephen Hough seems to be the only figure of international standing performing today to have devoted any effort to him. Two recordings that I think have stood out in the last 20 years have been the aforementioned one by Stephen Hough of three sonatas for Hyperion (67390), recorded back in 2003, and Dana Protopopescu’s album for Koch Discover (920237) of three sonatas, recorded in 1995. They both bring a virtuoso technique and a good musical sensibility.

Though I am no fan of the fortepiano, Alexander-Max is a good advocate for both the instrument and the repertoire. Her playing has sensitivity and a good attention to articulation and detail. Sometimes though, it is her attention to these small elements that hampers the overall flow of the music. Her tempos in the fast movements tend to be on the slow side: this provides her ample opportunity to bring out many details, but also tends to make the rapid scale and arpeggio patterns sound a bit sluggish. In comparing just the timings of the final movement of the F-Minor Sonata’s finale, marked Presto , Alexander-Max clocks in at 5:22 to Hough’s 3:59! There is no repeat in this movement, so the temporal difference is not reflected in the omission of any material. Even Protopopescu, who does not play this movement nearly as fast as Hough, clocks in around 5: 01—still over 20 seconds faster than Alexander-Max.

Tempo is not the only factor that makes the fast movements seem sluggish though; it is also the lack of intensity brought to many of the figurational patterns that lead to important beats. The focus for example in the E? Sonata’s finale, this time marked Allegro con spirito , seems to be more on the clarity of notes than on the constant surging motion. In the passage from 00:20 to 00:24, Hummel marks a crescendo moving from piano to forte in the span of two measures. In this performance, though a small crescendo does exist, the kind that Hummel requires does not. The tension and release inherent in the sudden dynamic buildup and rest, held with a fermata that follows this passage, is lost. Though the passagework is clean and articulate, the musical excitement is absent. There is a lack of drama.

There are many good aspects to this album as well. My favorite piece that the pianist plays here is the Bagatelle in A?. Marked Larghetto , it is a fantasy in which much of the beginning material comes back with added figuration. Here, Alexander-Max chooses not only a good tempo, one that flows and allows the movement to progress naturally, but also brings all of her interpretative skills to the fore. She maintains an acute sense of articulation and voicing, and a quality of freedom, almost improvisatory at times—all essential for a fantasy. Her ending pianissimo is as delicate and beautiful as any I’ve heard.

This is a fine addition to the recorded discography of Hummel’s music. I would especially recommend it for period-instrument enthusiasts, though the two previously mentioned recordings, by Hough and Protopopescu—both on modern grand pianos—provide good, in some cases excellent, readings of this much-neglected repertoire.

FANFARE: Scott Noriega

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Hummel: Sonata In E Flat Major, Sonata In F Major / Alexander-Max
Chandos Nov 2009
CD
$21.99

Kraus: Solo Piano Music / Ronald Brautigam

BIS

$21.99 Mar 01, 2006

This disc is a gem, yet it's also one of those releases that you might overlook in the deluge of new, and frequently marginal, titles each month. But that would be a mistake, and if you enjoy keyboard music of the classical period, from C.P.E. Bach to Mozart and Haydn, then you will certainly want to hear this recital. Joseph Martin Kraus (a.k.a. "the Swedish Mozart), like his illustrious colleague, had an almost exactly contemporaneous and equally short life. He was born in 1756 and died in 1792. His music was much admired by his contemporaries, including Haydn, both for its formal mastery and progressive tendencies, both of which are very much in evidence in the two major works here, the Piano Sonatas in E major and E-flat major.

Composed in the late 1780s, these sonatas are large-scale pieces as advanced as anything that Haydn and Mozart were turning out at the time. The E major work lasts nearly half an hour, and in its size alone it anticipates the large early sonatas of Beethoven. Both pieces have three movements, one of which is a big theme and variations (the finale in the E major sonata, the middle movement in the E-flat piece). Ronald Brautigam plays this music with uncommon ebullience and enthusiasm, in particular characterizing these lengthy variation sets with unfailing intelligence and imagination. This, combined with the bright, sweet timbre of his fortepiano, gives the music the same immediate appeal that typifies his Haydn piano music cycle.

The other pieces are less important but nevertheless exude charm and personality. Both the Rondo in F major and the Scherzo con Variazioni are relatively substantial single movements, and the Swedish Dance will pique the interest of folk-music enthusiasts--its principal tune sounds remarkably like a sort of simplified Haydn rondo. The other two pieces, Zwey Neue Kuriose Menuetten and the Larghetto, are both tiny chips from the master's workbench. This is one of the most purely delightful discs of classical keyboard music to come along in quite a while, a discovery whose musical substance far exceeds its curiosity value. [7/26/2006]
--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

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Kraus: Solo Piano Music / Ronald Brautigam
BIS Mar 2006
CD
$21.99

Minor Major / Oslo String Quaret

Blu-Ray with SACD

$44.99 Aug 18, 2017

The present recording features both one of the longest and one of the shortest quartets in the string quartet repertoire. There is no denying that Schubert´s last string quartet is great in every sense of the word, but Beethoven´s “Quartetto Serioso”, although minor in size, is by no means dwarfed by it when it comes to sheer artistic quality; both quartets are indeed major works and a staple on the diet of any string quartet of merit. Even so, the concept of minor and major immediately springs to mind when contemplating putting these two completely different masterpieces on the same album. Duration apart, there is the obvious question of tonality: one work in F minor, the other in G major, which is simple enough and by itself justifies the album title. But things get more complicated the moment we subject the two works to a closer scrutiny. Oslo String Quartet is widely recognized as one of the most versatile string quartets of our day. Since it was founded in 1991 it has established a reputation as an ensemble that unites high artistic standards with a degree of playfulness and an absolute integrity. The quartet’s concerts and recordings have consistently received acclaim, both by the public and by critics. A strong attachment to the music of Beethoven has resulted in several performances of his complete string quartets, for example in the quartet’s festival “The Beethoven Code” in 2006. Their programmes range from the classic string quartet repertoire to the works of contemporary composers, but also include music in other genres, and their unique versions of, for example, Peer Gynt and Tosca break with what is normally expected of a string quartet.

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Minor Major / Oslo String Quaret
2L Aug 2017
Blu-Ray with SACD
$44.99

Handel: Concerti grossi, Op. 6 / Christie, Les Arts Florissants

HARMONIA MUNDI

$11.99 Aug 28, 2020

This is William Christie's valedictory disc for Harmonia Mundi before seeking pastures new with Erato. All five works belong to Handel's last and greatest set of concertos, Op. 6, printed in London in 1740. They are splendid pieces and I never tire of listening to them. Christie has chosen three of the four concertos for which optional oboe parts have survived (Nos. I. 2 and 6), as well as the seventh and tenth concertos of the set. It is as good a choice as any if choices have to be made and Christie brings the music to life with all his characteristic enthusiasm and feeling for Handelian idiom. The orchestra of Les Arts Florissants sound on good form, too, achieving a pleasant warmth of string timbre and a greater unanimity of sound than has sometimes been the case in earlier issues.

On the whole I like the presence of oboes in the aforementioned concertos, though the music loses nothing by their absence. Perhaps they are a shade too prominent in the G major Concerto (Op. 6 No. I) but I doubt if this seemingly slight imbalance will bother readers. What I did find more disconcerting, though, were some of the embellishments and cadential elaborations which felt too extended or spun out. One such instance occurs at the close of the Larghetto andante e piano of the F major Concerto (Op. 6 No. 2), where the continuo archlute launches into a veritable solo, albeit in miniature; and again, at the conclusion of the following Allegro the oboes, aided and abetted by the archlute, indulge in imitative flights of fancy. Such moments are neither unimaginative nor lacking in taste but my ears tell me that they are really not necessary. Perhaps I'm just being too English about it—beware of Channel tunnels!

Apart from this reservation, I found Christie's approach refreshing and full of vitality. The playing is wonderfully articulated and the rhythms clear-cut without being at all stiff or unyielding. There are moments, too, of great delicacy as, for example, in the languorous Musette of the G minor Concerto (Op. 6 No. 6), which is eloquently shaped and plentifully endowed with affecting contrasts. Then, at the opposite end of the scale, so to speak, are infectious movements like the Hornpipe of the B flat Concerto (Op. 6 No. 7), and the robust French overture which begins the D minor Concerto (Op. 6 No. 10). Christie enlivens these admirably—though the Hornpipe is, perhaps, a little restrained---responding with spontaneity to Handel's engagingly wide terms of stylistic reference. In short, a stimulating and enjoyable performance, notwithstanding reservations which may worry some ears much less than others.

-- Gramophone [5/1995]
reviewing the original release of this title

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Handel: Concerti grossi, Op. 6 / Christie, Les Arts Florissants
HARMONIA MUNDI Aug 2020
CD
$11.99

Raff: Piano Trios No 1 & 4 / Trio Opus 8

CPO

$18.99 Jun 01, 2001

Joachim Raff's (1822-82) First and Fourth trios exhibit many of the same qualities found on the previous CPO disc of Nos. 2 & 3, reviewed earlier. A consummate craftsman, Raff paid particular attention to such things as motivic and rhythmic development and careful part-writing, which, combined with a flair for expressing genuine emotion, give his chamber works a distinctive sound and compelling character. This is especially evident in Trio No. 1 (1861), the most popular of the four and one of two in the minor mode. A grim introduction soon leads to a roiling, passionate allegro. Next, a galloping scherzo seems to be taking the first movement material out for a night-ride, while the following langsam movement is a song-like rhapsody that once again displays Raff's talent for melodies that speak from the heart. The finale closes the work in a demonically Beethovenian vein, with some dance music thrown in for good measure.

Trio No. 4 (1870) launches in a challengingly fast 12/8 meter, creating an effect not unlike Schubert's Trout Quintet. Most interesting however is the Andante quasi larghetto, with its mournful Venetian Gondola Song first heard on the solo cello. From this opening Raff builds an Elegy of considerable expressive power before closing with a reprise of the plaintive melody. After this exquisite movement, the material of the robust finale seems rather prosaic, and it takes all the energy, imagination, and commitment Trio Opus 8 can muster to hold your interest. That they do is testament to the superlative talent of these three fine musicians, who shine in the remaining movements of both trios as well. As before, CPO's recording is close in perspective but manages to capture more bass information this time around. Both discs in this series are excellent, but this one is the top choice.
--Victor Carr Jr., ClassicsToday.com

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Raff: Piano Trios No 1 & 4 / Trio Opus 8
CPO Jun 2001
CD
$18.99