First Listen: Petrenko's Shostakovich Symphony # 14

I have loved the enigmatic and moving Shostakovich 14^th Symphony since I first heard the RCA Ormandy, Curtin/Estes, Philadelphia recording on vinyl back in the 70's as a classical music crazed teenager. I frankly have heard it so many times, words and musical passages are imprinted on my mind. Whether you wish to think of it as a symphony or a song cycle a la “Das Lied von der Erde” matters little. It is really, if you look at it all closely, Shostakovich's most intimate and emotional masterpiece.

Vasily Petrenko began his Royal Liverpool cycle on Naxos in 2009 with an excellent 11^th Symphony. It seems only the incredible and under-performed “Babi Yar” 13^th is left after the release of the 14^th this month (April 2014). Most have been quite good, challenging the highly regarded Kondrashin and Barshai recordings. Naxos' bargain price is a plus, since the Kondrashin is hard to find (and the complete cycle is now priced in the stratosphere) and Barshai is most easily available in a complete cycle not individually.

So what is my first impression of the sometimes chilling, sometimes nostalgic and often neurotic 14^th? First and foremost, the all-important vocal soloists, Gal James, Soprano and Alexander Vinogradov, bass, are usually in good form. Only hiccup (pun intended) is James' unconvincing “Kha, kha, kha, kha, kha. I ya khokhochu” sobs in “Madam, posmotrite!” Vinogradov gives us an overall powerful performance, with a most expressively eloquent “O Delvig, Delvig”. The important and colorful percussion is uniformly excellent throughout.

The weak points are the sometimes tentative, weak Liverpool strings, especially noted at the very beginning of the symphony and in the last climactic death rattle at the end. They redeem themselves with a gut wrenching col legno episode in “At the Santé Prison” movement, the abandoned prisoner pacing in his gloomy has rarely been so realistically portrayed. The "Lorelei" episode is exciting, but a touch frenetic. 

Petrenko gives us a well paced performance, around 50 minutes, leading to a rather skimpy disc. But really, what else could accompany a work like this? Sound, played through my computer speakers via the Naxos Music Library, seems to be good. Finally, it appears the usual fine, informative performance notes are included with this recording, another plus of the Petrenko cycle.

Overall, an excellent performance but I still can not live without the Barshai led performances with Vishnevskaya/Reshetin or with Simoni/Vaneev in the Cologne recording. Barshai was there at the beginning and has the music in his veins. The Curtin/Estes Ormandy is a sentimental favorite, with some of the most impressively ghoulish cover art ever devised. Avoid Bernstein's and the Haitink sung (in a version sanctioned by the composer) in the original languages... it just doesn't sound right.

Shostakovich Symphony # 14 (1969)

Gal James, Soprano, Alexander Vinogradov Bass

Vasily Petrenko Royal Liverpool Philharmonic

Naxos 8.573132

Kodály and Bartók Quartets from The Alexander String Quartet

In this generous and lavishly presented three disc album, the Alexander String Quartet programs eight of the 20^th century's most fascinating string quartets from two composers linked as contemporaries and countrymen, Béla Bartók and Zoltan Kodály. Bartók's canon of six quartets have long been a part of the standard repertoire for all the great string quartet ensembles of the past 50 years. Kodály's have been less fortunate, with just a few recordings of his two quartet essays. Combining the two composers' quartet oeuvre is a brilliant stroke, making this recording more than just another Bartók cycle.

Kodály's two string quartets were almost exact contemporaries to Bartók's First and Second Quartets. Paring them allows for some illuminating comparisons. Even Bartók's earliest quartets tend to be highly contrapuntal and more harmonically and structurally complex. Kodály who played violin, viola and cello, produced quartets that were idiomatic and well grounded in form and style. Yet unlike Bartók, his works did not break new ground. Both of Kodály's works, the First Quartet, in particular, sound more like the quartets of Debussy and Ravel and have been combined with them on recordings. French in spirit they may be, but thoroughly tinged with the rhythms, sounds and pungent harmonies of Hungarian folk music, they are unique and totally satisfying works. The third movement of the 1^st quartet lets loose with some distinctly Hungarian-like music, very reminiscent of Kodály's masterpiece, the Sonata for Solo Cello.

The Alexanders dig into this music with technically secure, well paced performances; especially important in the Kodály 1^st, which at approx 38 minutes can descend into longeurs if not careful. Given their French inclinations, Kodály's quartets come across a tad more relaxed and melodic than Bartók's. The Alexanders realize this, bringing out the innate lyricism and tenderness of the music especially in the second quartet's somewhat threadbare “andante quasi-recitativo” section.

Thoroughly enjoyable, interesting and colorful works that are shamefully neglected. Perhaps this new recording (and one by the Dante Quartet on Hyperion, that I have not heard) will open some eyes and ears to the satisfying charms of these two works.

My (and I am not alone) benchmark for the Bartók quartets is the classic 1963 Julliard set on Sony (Columbia). The Takács and Emerson cycles give them a run for their money in more modern sound and similar performances. Thus the Alexander's cycle on their own Foghorn Classics label enters into some good company and faces some strong competition.

Bartók's quartets are often described as tough, dense and gritty and that would generally be true. The Alexanders' performances are dramatic, lean and intense, but never unpleasant or forced. Clean, clear and on pitch pizzicati are noteworthy throughout the three discs, especially important in the 4^th quartet's all pizzicato movement, which comes off swimmingly. The quartet has a fine feel for the folk music elements and relish them at every turn without exaggerating or even detaching them from the overall texture.

Highlights: the mysterious, skittering, hair raising “Prima Parte: Moderato” of the 3^rd Quartet. The deeply expressive “Lento” opening movement of the 1^st Quartet, with dark, resonant cello and redwood-like viola passages. The aforementioned 4^th Quartet scherzo (along with the controlled mayhem of its “Prestissimo con sordino” movement, and the whole dramatic and even demonic 4^th quartet for that matter) and the slightly jazz tinged 5th Quartet's scherzo.

As with every Foghorn Classics release I have encountered, complete, legible and intelligent notes are part of the package. Add these always intelligent, intense, musical, satisfying and well recorded performances to the list of recordings that challenge and may surpass the classic Julliard recording. Combine the fine and rare Kodály quartets and you have a special release indeed.

Bartók And Kodály String Quartets Foghorn Classics #2009 3 discs

A Brahms and Schumann Revelation from The Alexander Qt and Joyce Yang

Brahms Schumann Piano Quintets

Joyce Yang, Piano/Alexander String Quartet

Foghorn Classics FCL2014

First off, I was most impressed with this recording of two towering masterpieces of the Quintet form, the Schumann Quintet for piano & Strings in E-Flat Major, Op. 44 and the Brahms Quintet for Piano and Strings in F Minor, Op. 34 performed by the terrific Alexander Quartet with Joyce Yang piano. In a nutshell, these are gutsy, lively, exciting and maybe even a bit edgy performances. That statement merits a bit of full disclosure on my part. I generally am not a huge fan of the music of Brahms or Schumann yet I fully realize their genius and popularity. My “thing” is 20^th and 21^st century music, so I (and maybe others so inclined) relate to and enjoy these very visceral, very “modern” performances.

However... these are not dry, hard or cold readings; on the contrary, there is plenty of Romantic warmth and passion. Both quintets are products of young composers and were seen as adventurous, exuberant works at their debuts. The Alexander Quartet and Yang simply allow the composers' youthful energy to shine through.

As the notes to the recording state “The piano quintet is an unusual form. It combines two completely different sonorities: the percussive sound of the piano and the sustained, resonant sound of the string quartet.” Thus, a recording of a piano quintet requires first rate sonics, detailed, out front and bright yet balanced. This Judy Sherman produced disc more than meets that requirement. Although bright and close, the piano rarely comes across too forward or overwhelming. The strings are solid and never mushy and the viola's darker color is always distinct from the other strings.

Brahms composed his only Piano Quintet between 1862 and 1864 when he was around 30 years old. As did several of his works, it had a protracted birth, starting as a sting quintet, then arranged for two pianos and finally recast in its definitive form in 1864.

The first movement of this massive work is a musical adventure unto itself. From the dramatic, arresting opening measures, musical ideas, melodic lines, intriguing harmonic progressions and pulsing cross rhythms flow forth. The forces here bring out all of the music's complexity but always drives the movement forward, never letting the details bog everything down.

The tender “Andante, poco Adagio” leans more to the andante side than the adagio yet still maintains an almost Schubertian lilt. Listen to the gently rocking flow of the very beginning, the recording captures the gentle interplay of the piano and strings. Worth the price of the disc itself.

The C minor scherzo is a revelatory study in musical drama. Moving forward like an elemental force of nature, Yang and the Alexanders pounce into this darkly brooding movement. The devilish syncopated march is muscular and tight, emerging from the murky, funereal opening. The lyrical trio is but a quick respite from the drama before all plunges back into the fray. Totally mesmerizing playing.

The ensemble deftly negotiates its way through the episodic rondo finale. Tender at times, powerful when needed ending with a satisfyingly rushing coda. A fitting a powerful end to a most recommended performance.

Unlike Brahms, the 32 year old Schumann took only a few weeks to complete his Piano Quintet in the fall of 1842, the crowning achievement of his celebrated “Chamber Music Year”.

The energetic and virtuosic “Allegro brillante” opening movement is certainly “brillante” in the hands of Yang and the Alexanders; intelligently paced, sparkling and technically perfect. The deftly contrasted second theme is dolce but never cloying.

The second movement is often referred to as a “funeral march” but Schumann only alludes to a funereal mode, calling the movement “In modo d'una Marcia”. If it is a funeral march, the Yang/Alexander quintet make it a most stumblingly macabre one, likely as Schumann intended.

If one can not imagine a missile streaking towards the heavens while listening to the opening moments of the scherzo, then there is something wrong with you. The ensemble launches the ascending theme with power, grace and firecracker intensity, yet brings welcome contrast to the lyrical trios. Just simply some of the most exciting chamber playing on record.

Whereas the Brahms ends in a bit of a disappointing finale, the Schumann concludes with a dramatic double fugue including the main theme of the first movement. Every entrance and melodic line is precise and clear never bogging down in an unintelligible mess.

San Francisco based Foghorn Classics provides concise but intelligent notes including bios on the artists and a listing of their instrument makers to complete this attractive package. Yang and the Alexander Quartet rouse these grand old gentlemen from their “La-Z-Boys” and make them feel young again to everyone's great benefit. Most recommended.

Brett Dean and Beethoven in St Louis

A trip to St Louis for this concert with the St Louis Symphony, read about it at I Care I You Listen

http://www.icareifyoulisten.com/2014/02/st-louis-symphony-conncects-brett-dean-beethoven/

Miraculous Metamorphoses: KC Symphony Hindemith, Bartók, Prokofiev

Gone forever, it seems, are the days when the major orchestras of the US and Europe churned out new recordings by the dozens every month for the great labels of the era…Columbia, Deutsche Grammophon, Decca… conducted by the giants of the time. Filling that gap are smaller labels like Reference Recordings who produce a few expertly prepared recordings each year. Lucky for all us recorded music fans, Reference has forged a bond with the Kansas City Symphony culminating in a series of well received recordings. Their newly released 4th (a 5th is “in the can”) collaboration was recorded in February 2012 at the then brand new Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts in Kansas City.

I also have to give the Kansas City Symphony, Reference Recordings and all involved great credit for daring to record major standard repertoire pieces that often have some very heady competition. No unknown composers or works on this latest disc containing three 20^th century orchestral showpieces, Prokofiev’s “Love for Three Oranges” Suite, Bartók’s “Miraculous Mandarin” Suite and Hindemith’s “Symphonic Metamorphosis of Themes by Carl Maria von Weber.” The program, titled “Miraculous Metamorphoses”, captures some of the best playing yet heard from the Symphony. The ensemble is crisp and visceral, lyrical when called upon combined with Stern's trademark brisk yet not excessive tempi.

Michael Stern’s very first concert as Music Director included a performance of the Hindemith “Metamorphosis” that wowed the audience. This one is even better with the orchestra's now trademark sparkling winds, burnished brass and ringing, clean percussion. One of Hindemith's more colorful and splashy scores, “Metamorphosis” can easily become mere fluff in the wrong hands. Stern relishes the driving, dancing rhythms of the opening movement (reminding us of its origins as a ballet score) followed soon thereafter by a tender and elegant Andantino 3rd movement. The liner notes describe the “Turandot Scherzo” second movement as “giving the percussion a stunning workout”. The percussion of the Kansas City Symphony are more than up to the task at hand and the sonics let the pitched percussion glow while capturing the deep resonance of the drums.

The clarion horn calls over the chattering winds in the march finale are just breathtaking simply one of those recording moments you just have to put on repeat and relish as long as you can. But do not linger too long, the mad rush to the climax is thrilling and powerful.

The Prokofiev “Love for Three Oranges Suite” verily crackled with wit and snap. The whole set is brisk and fresh and the usual clear Reference Recordings sound highlighted the often clever wind and string detail to advantage. The tender elegance of “The Prince and the Princess” movement was nicely contrasted with its more sardonic suite mates, for example the almost too familiar “March” with its absurd wit. Stern fully realizes “Love for Three Oranges” is a charming and farcical romp full of jesters, witches, royalty and magic but never degenerates into mere silliness. Far from dry and foursquare, this is a fine performance that would stand with my favorite Dorati/London or Marriner/London performances.

The violent and complex score of the Bartók “Miraculous Mandarin Suite” was breathtakingly realized by Stern and his forces aided by the stellar recording. Note, for example, the clear ting of the tambourine and the rumbling organ pedals making themselves heard through the din of the street in the opening prelude. The seduction games sections are wonderfully sleazy and decadent. The details that Stern and the recording bring into focus are instrumental in setting this mood, not just an end into themselves. The concluding “chase” fugue is bracing and quick, but not too wild, controlled brutality would be a good description. The important, driving percussion is clearly heard along with the gutsy, frantic strings bringing the suite and the program to an exciting close.

Readable, enlightening CD booklets are almost a surprise in this day of skimpy multi-lingual booklets or no information at all when listening to a download or music service. “Miraculous Metamorphoses'” notes by Richard Freed are intelligent and informative and also include bios of Stern, the recording crew, a brief history of the orchestra and a roster of the musicians.

Produced and engineered by two of the recording world's geniuses, David Frost and Keith O. Johnson, “Miraculous Metamorphoses” has an envious pedigree. I noted that the sound on this release, the first from Helzberg Hall in the Kauffman Center, is a bit dryer, cooler and less reverberant than the previous recordings in the cavernous Community of Christ Auditorium. Details abound however, most welcome in the thickly scored Bartók, and you still want to reach out and touch the instruments that seem to be right with you.

Performances that can stand with the best of them and sonics that sound fabulous even on my built-in computer speakers combine for another Reference Recordings/Kansas City Symphony “hit”.

“Miraculous Metamorphoses”

Hindemith, Prokofiev, Bartók

Kansas City Symphony, Michael Stern Music Director and Conductor

Reference Recordings RR-132

newEar Does L'histore du soldat and Some Bach Thrown in Too...

On February 22, newEar, Kansas City's foremost (and only) contemporary music ensemble, presented a most interesting, slightly strange and ultimately partly satisfying concert at the Community Christian Church, a venue that can frankly be described in the same manner, A collaboration between newEar and the Bach Aria Soloists ensemble, the highly anticipated concert (a local reviewer called it the best thing since Mr Reese and Mr Hershey combined their wares) was billed from "Bach to Stravinsky" an exploration of the baroque influence on contemporary music. The forces combined to perform the rarely heard complete narrated Stravinsky L'histore du Soldat. The first half was billed, since the beginning of the season, as selected baroque works influencing contemporary music.

For some reason I think something went astray in the execution.

The first half was solely a single work by Bach, the Sonata for Violin and Basso Continuo in E-minor, BWV 1023. Elizabeth Suh Lane (violin), Jeff Harshbarger (bass) and Elisa Williams Bickers (harpsichord) all members of the Bach Aria Soloists gave a fine, committed performance of the work. Sprightly and precise as it should be and slightly on the gritty side as I kind of like my Bach. The harpsichord was all but inaudible, possibly thanks to the acoustics in the hall, yet the bass was nicely integrated with the busy violin.

No one could argue that both Bach and Stravinsky were influential composers, Bach more so after his death. Stravinsky was more influential during his life time. That was part of the connection for sure as was the Stravinsky's very linear writing in his Neoclassical works in general and in L'histore in particular. It would have been more interesting to hear some contemporary composers' transcriptions, orchestrations and arrangements of Bach and other baroque forms, but likely limitations of the ensemble size prevented that.

Whatever the case, we were treated to a fine Bach performance and a thought provoking program.

The evening was all about the Stravinsky really. Performances of the complete L'histore du soldat are likely much more rare than the instrumental suite. In its full form (as Stravinsky noted it is a work "to be read, played, and danced") L' histoire is an engaging, timeless and cynical look at material wealth and selling one's soul to attain it. In this case the work was played and read but with no dancing or acting, just the musical ensemble and the narrator taking both the parts of the Devil and the Soldier. The ensemble was made up of members of the newEar core group, the Bach Aria Soloists members and brass from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Mark Robbins narrated with William Schrickel conducting the forces.

The ensemble was impeccable, fully capturing Stravinsky's sec, linear and quirkily metered music. Balance (with an ensemble of violin, double bass, clarinet, bassoon, cornet, trombone and percussion not always easy) was excellent, only occasionally swallowing the narrator in the more thickly scored sections. Shrickel kept things moving along in brisk but breathing tempo. Elizabeth Suh Lane, the all important violin, never let her tone get unpleasant but kept the gritty, dry quality Stravinsky wanted. The exposed brass duo were outstanding as were all the members of the septet. The final "Triumphal March of the Devil" was most effectively snarling, arrogant and cynical.

Robbins was a fine narrator and deftly differentiated the soldier's lines from the devil's (often divided between two performers) with inflection of voice, posture and volume. As with the music, he kept things going even when the words were spinning ferociously. The un-credited English translation from the original French was generally faithful to the story. However to me the attempt to modernize C. F. Ramuz's original libretto with references to every current fashion designer known to man (in the scene where Joseph the Soldier starts his meteoric rise to super-salesman on the Home Shopping Network) and current investment and banking language smacked of being more a cheap laugh than anything genuinely funny. Yet these contemporary references served to ground the moralistic tale in our time, making its bitter message more relevant than if it was a distant fairy tale.

I should just quit being analytical (a friend who used to accompany me to concerts before she moved away told me she could see me writing a review in my mind as the concert progressed) and sit back and enjoy the fact that I was able to hear an excellent Bach Sonata and finally experience a live performance of a work I have known and loved since Christ and I were both teenagers.

The Annual We Three Pugs Post

It is that time of year again, as we have done since 2007 or so, our annual Christmas Greeting from all of us at the Palace.

We Three Pugs

(to the tune of We Three Kings)

We three Pugs of Orient are

Snuffling low we can not go far

Bellies dragging, tails a'wagging

Hounding the Milk Bone Jar

Oh! Oh!

We love treats and we love hugs

We love all 'cause we are pugs

Licking, sneezing, snoring, wheezing

Guide us to the warmest rugs!

Merry Christmas

Happy New Year

From Puggingham Palace

And Pictures on Silence

D & O

13 for '13: Baker's Dozen Best Recordings of the Year

As has become custom, here is my 13 for 13, the baker's dozen best CDs for the year. When compiling this list, I realized I did not do one for 2012, don't have a clue why. This is a quite subjective list and often includes recordings that may have been released earlier but just got around to hearing (or listing in this case) this year. If you note an abundance of Cedille and Naxos recordings listed, it is not because I am paid by them or have any connection. Those two labels just happen to be releasing some fine recordings of interesting repertoire as opposed to the junk (sorry... my opinion) that the “majors” are offering. And since it my list and my rules, there are two Havergal Brian recordings on the list, as usual.

So here are the chosen ones, not in any order whatsoever:

Kubelik Complete Masterpieces.

Mahler, Bartok, Brahms, Mendelssohn, Martinu, Janacek, Bruch, Mussorgsky, Smetana, Hindemith, Schoenberg, Mozart

Rafael Kubelik, various orchestras

Membran Documents 600038 10 CDs

Far from complete and mostly pre 1959 recordings from various places. Inexpensive, with good period sound and pressings. Worth the bargain price alone for the 1950's Chicago Symphony recordings which were wonderfully recorded but often manhandled when released on CD.

Havergal Brian

Symphony #10, Symphony # 30, Concerto for Orchestra, English Suite # 3

Martyn Brabbins Royal Scottish National SO

Dutton Epoch CDLX 7267 

Long overdue new recording of the 10^th and first recordings of the other works. Fine conducting and sound. A new Symphony cycle? We can only hope.

Havergal Brian

Symphonies 22, 23 and 24, English Suite # 1

Alexander Walker New Russia State SO

Naxos 8572833

A revival of the Naxos cycle? The earlier Penny/Leaper cycle seems to have stalled and there is precedence for Naxos not finishing a cycle for various reasons. Symphonies 23 and 24 are first recordings and thus invaluable for us Brian fanatics.

Sergei Rachmaninoff

Symphony # 3, Symphonic Dances

Detroit SO, Leonard Slatkin

Naxos 8573051

Slatkin is back in the recording studio and so is the Detroit Symphony in brilliant sound and fine performances. Slatkin is a first rate Rachmaninoff interpreter; he takes the dramatic end of the Symphonic Dances just right and lets the gong “LV” and decay just as it should be. Top of my list for one of my favorite pieces.

Delights & Dances

Lees: Concerto for String Quartet and Orchestra, Abel: Delights and Dances for String Quartet and Orchestra, An-Lun Huang: Saibei Suite No. 2: Saibei Dance , Fleischer: “West Side Story” Concerto for String Quartet and Orchesta (after Bernstein)

Mei-Ann Chen, Chicago Sinfonietta, Harlem Quartet 

Cedille 141

YAY! A new recording of the fascinating (and Kansas City premiered) Benjamin Lees String Quartet Concerto. Performed by Szell, Slatkin and others over the years but only a long out of print Igor Buketoff, Royal Philharmonic RCA LP to show for it. Fine performance in an excellent modern recording. The other works may appeal to some, but for me the Lees is worth the whole disc.

The Rascal and the Sparrow - Poulenc Meets Piaf

Francis Poulenc, et al

Antonio Pompa-Baldi Piano

Steinway and Sons 30015

A brilliantly conceived program mixing piano transcriptions of songs by the “rascal” Poulenc with transcriptions of songs by various composers made popular by the “sparrow” Edith Piaf. Not parlor music at all but tastefully well done. Of course included are “Non, je ne regrette rien” and “La vie en rose”.

“Drama Queens”:

Arias by Orlandini, Porta, Handel, Hasse, Cesti, Keiser, Monteverdi, Giacomelli, and Haydn; Joyce DiDonato, Alan Curtis, Il Complesso Barocco

Virgin Classics/Erato 2654

This is a 2012 recording that would have been on the list if I did one. Home town girl (I have a picture of me with Joyce to prove it) makes good in this wonderful collection of Royalty having a true operatic hissy fit.

Sean Hickey

Concerto for Cello, Concerto for Clarinet

Dmitry Kouzov, Cello Alexander Fiterstein, Clarinet. Vladimir Lande, St Petersburg State SO

Delos 3448

I reviewed these for www.Icareifyoulisten.com and you can read the whole thing here: http://www.icareifyoulisten.com/2013/09/sean-hickey-concertos-on-delos-recordings/ Decidely conservative in form and sound but unlike a lot of newer works, I have tended to listen to them frequently since they both have something to say.

Sir Edward Elgar

Enigma Variations, Vaughan: Williams Fantasia on Greensleeves, Vaughan Williams: The Wasps Suite

Kansas City Symphony, Michael Stern

Reference Recordings RR 129

Again the Kansas City Symphony and Reference Recordings dazzle with a superbly recorded disc of British repertoire. Even the Brits liked it, so you know it has to be good. The end of the Elgar with the subtle but present organ is the best on record.

The Soviet Experience Vol. 4: String Quartets by Dmitri Shostakovich and his Contemporaries.

Shostakovich String Quartet # 13, #14 and # 15, Schnittke String Quartet # 6

Pacifica String Quartet
Cedille 115

Great concept of pairing the Shostakovich String Quartets with an example of one of his contemporaries. Incredible performances and great sound in all 4 volumes. Replaces the classic Fitzwilliam cycle in my book.

John Cage: Works For Two Keyboards, Vol. 1

Suite for Toy Piano, Music for Amplified Toy Pianos, A Book of Music for 2 Prepared Pianos

Xenia Pestova, Pascal Meyer pianos

Naxos 8559726

Some of Cage's most colorful and listenable music. Excellent performances that transcend the gimmicks to make a revelatory listening experience.

Carlos Chavez, José P. Moncayo García, Samuel Zyman

Chavez: Concerto for Piano, “Meditación” for solo piano; Moncayo Garcia: “Muros Verdes”; Zyman: “Variations on an Original Theme”
Jorge Federico Osorio, piano, Carlos Miguel Prieto, Orquesta Sinfonica Nacional De Mexico
Cedille 140

I reviewed this for www.icareifyoulisten.com as well: http://www.icareifyoulisten.com/2013/06/carlos-chavez-piano-concerto-cedille-records/ A most welcome recording of Chavez's brash and big concerto. Other works are well done and quite good. Concerto was recorded live and captured a clean, exciting performance.

Morton Feldman

Early Piano Pieces

Sabine Leibner Piano

Wergo 6747

18 short solo piano works from 1950-1964 plus the later (1977), half hour long “Piano, for Piano”. Interesting contrasts between the atmospheric shorter works and the more characteristic long and meditative “Piano”. Leibner is simply the reference for Feldman's piano works. Check out her earlier recordings of Feldman's bigger piano works such as “For Bunita Marcus”. A disc for those who enjoy and appreciate Feldman's unique sound but do not have the hours to listen to his major works.

How I Feel

Substitute writing for talking and that is sometimes how I feel about "Pictures on Silence". I think I am reasonably good at music writing, not good enough for some people, but better than the hack jobs I have read in some publications. I get a few reads here and more at the actual publication to which I contribute now and then, but I will never make a living at it.

So it is a labor of love, it feels a need I have to express my voice. I should do it more often, I suppose, but I am really a terrible dancer.

Kansas City Symphony: Dramatic Works by Saint-Saëns, Strauss and Tchaikovsky

When 18 year old Park University student Behzod Abduraimov won the London International Piano Competition in 2009, he not only became a local musical hero but garnered world wide attention and acclaim. He has performed world wide, inked a contract with Decca recordings and performed with some of the world's great ensembles... all before his 24^th birthday. As with many of his generation he has talent and formidable technique to burn. Unlike many of his contemporaries, he has an undeniable sense of musicality.

The Saint-Saëns Piano Concerto No 2 in g Op. 22, which he performed as soloist with the Kansas City Symphony, Micheal Stern, Music Director conducting, verily defines the terms flashy and showy. Abduraimov milked the flash and show to be sure, but thankfully never fell into the banging and pounding trap. A committed and sensitive pianist, he (with Stern's able guidance of the orchestra) found this  music's charm, wit, elegance and drama often hidden behind the challenging performance demands.

Abduraimov imbued the dramatic solo that opens the work with deep, rich organ-like sonority. Fitting since over the years many critics and writers have compared this passage with a Bach organ prelude. Abduraimov, a native of Uzbekistan, also infused this intense cadenza with a bit of “Russian” soul, linking it the later works of Rachmaninoff. The orchestra rode along superbly in the brisk and forward performance.

Sadly, about 1/3 of the way through the Saint-Saëns on Saturday, November 2^nd, Abduraimov suddenly stopped playing. After a few moments of awkward and confused glances between Stern and Abduraimov, Stern announced they would be right back. Returning to the stage, they began the movement from the beginning. The second time around was free of any mishaps and was a most satisfying and brilliant performance. From my perch, I could not hear Abduraimov's obviously heartfelt and sincere apology and explanation. It didn't matter, things happen (although I am racking my memory as to anytime I have witnessed a performance break down by a professional... but it happens for sure) and all was quickly forgiven if not forgotten.

The 2^nd movement, all charming dance, rippling piano passages and infectious rhythm, received a clear, ringing performance. Stern and the orchestra saw this movement as a dialog (not a contest) and the resulting interplay between the orchestra and piano was simply a marvel. Abduraimov's brilliant technique served the music well; each phrase was perfectly articulated, making melody instead of mind numbing repetition.

The concluding tarantella was brisk with a subtly dark and demonic streak. The middle section with its sequence of trilled figures in the piano was lithe and breathtaking. The climatic pounding chords were clarion clear and powerful, aided by a precise and sympathetic orchestra.

The concert opened with Schumann's rarely heard Overture, Scherzo and Finale op 52 from 1841. This little symphony sans slow movement (the composer even called it his Second Symphony for a time), pales in comparison with his four numbered symphonies but makes for an interesting change of pace opener. Stern and the orchestra provided as fine and vivid performance as one could ask.

The second half was not lacking for musical drama either. Richard Strauss' early tone poem “Tod und Verklärung” (Death and Transfiguration) led off followed by Tchaikovski's “Overture Fantasy Romeo and Juliet”.

“Tod und Verklarung” began appropriately hushed and atmospheric. The subtle tympani pulsed under the glowing clarinet, harp, violin and oboe solos. Reluctant entrances (especially the very beginning of the work) and a general weakness in string numbers diminished the intensity of the agitated central section. The brass were guilty of a few blatty entrances as well, and the final death stroke could have used some more oomph overall. The all important horns were usually at their best tonight, often soaring as required over the rich textures.

However, the final transfiguration pages were a revelation; dignified and imbued with a cool radiance, achingly, agonizingly rising to the beautifully offered statement of the transfiguration theme. The audience was simply transfixed by the simple grandeur of the closing moments, the prominent harps taking the soul on its journey.

The full program ended with a passionate but never drippy Romeo and Juliet. A well paced, lyrical and dramatic performance, notable for the fine wind work (the wind chorale in the lovers' funeral dirge was

intimate and tender, a highlight of the whole work) and a lush, full of ardent longing but certainly not cliched love theme. The battle music episodes were taught and powerful as well. A most enjoyable and welcome rendering of a work that can be almost too familiar.

Kansas City Symphony: Dvorak, Mendelssohn and Rachmaninoff

Opening nights for a concert or subscription often serve to set the tone for the rest of the season. Themes to be explored, focus composers, emphasis on a certain era are introduced to the crowds, providing a taste of evenings yet to come. The opening weekend concerts of the 2013-2014 Kansas City Symphony was a prime example. The program, much like the season to come, focused on standard repertoire favorites, popular guest soloists and a chance to hear orchestral showpieces in the new sound of Helzberg Hall. Music Director Michael Stern was in town to conduct three vibrant works in the romantic tradition, the Dvorak Scherzo capriccioso op 66, the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto with Stefan Jackiw and to conclude, the Symphonic Dances op45.

After the opening sing along of the Star Spangled Banner (an opening weekend tradition started by Maestro Stern a couple of seasons ago) Stern took a moment to recognize the accomplishments of Conductor Emeritus Russell Patterson who died last week at 85. If it were not for Patterson and his supporters, Kansas City would not have the internationally recognized symphony or opera company it has now. In tribute, Stern and the orchestra performed the majestic and solemn “Nimrod” from Elgar's “Enigma Variations”.

Written between the 6^th and 7^th symphonies, the Scherzo capriccioso has been, since its premiere in 1883, one of Dvorak's most continuously popular works. Sunny and good natured, yet with a just a hint of wistful nostalgia in the waltzing second theme, this substantial scherzo, lovingly and robustly performed by Stern and his forces, made for a most radiant and satisfying opener. The orchestra was in fine form, Stern took his usual brisk but not rushed tempo, keeping the folksy dance rhythms taught yet supple. The harp (Deborah Wells Clark), English horn (Kenneth Lawrence) and massed horns added special moments in their important solos.

Stefan Jackiw is no stranger to Kansas City, having performed solo concerts with the Harriman-Jewel series and performing the Bruch Scottish Fantasy in his last appearance with the Kansas City Symphony.

Jackiw brought a level of youthful energy and musical intelligence to the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto. His technical brilliance, shimmering, lithe tone combined with the able contribution of the orchestra created a most memorable performance of this immensely popular work. Jackiw is a thoughtful soloist, technically able as noted, but not flamboyant or mannered. Never did the opening of the first movement or the whole of the second movement become flowery and sticky. The hushed return of the Andante's famous flowing theme was magically transparent and almost other worldly. Cadenzas were rapid fire and showy without being vulgar or out of place. Stern's well paced tempi and trademark attention combined with Jackiw's flexible, musical tone reminded us this concerto, abundant of melody and song, was also often tinged with a bit of underlying drama and tension. Nowhere was this more evident in the brisk, dancing and brilliant finale, the opening moments a shade darker than expected soon erupting in propulsive energy taking the work to a exuberant but again never vulgar end. As fine a performance of this chestnut as one could ever want.

The last half of the concert comprised a single work, Sergei Rachmaninoff''s valedictory orchestral work,"Symphonic Dances" op 45 of 1940. Stern and company gave a focused and energetic performance, relishing the many tempo changes, snappy rhythms and colorfully scored passages of Rachmaninoff's valedictory work. Helzberg Hall's livelier, clearer sound, allowed the more delicate details emerge, the important glittering harp passages, the deep, thick piano chords and subtle wind passages. Bravo to the uncredited alto saxophone solo, well done and nicely integrated into the orchestral fabric. Only wish was for a stronger string section to really dig into the many animated, machine like passages in the final movement, especially in the break-neck coda.

I admit to being a Symphonic Dances snob, and find it the one Rachmaninoff piece I turn to most often. Thus I waited throughout the performance for the one moment that, for this warped mind, makes or breaks the performance. For the performance to not be ruined forever, the conductor should follow the composer's "LV" (let vibrate) notation for final stroke of the gong. It should reverberate for a few seconds after the orchestra stops and allowed to fade, not just be a loud cymbal crash. Stern took the “Goldilocks” approach and let the gong ring “just right”, letting it fade into silence after its commanding entrance.

UMKC Composition Workshop

From I Care If You Listen my review of Moments for Viola, Clarinet and Piano as presented in the opening concert of the University of Missouri Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance's annual Composition Workshop:

Premiere of Moments

Kansas City Symphony:Recording Preview Concert

In addition to being uniformly excellent, the Kansas City Symphony can also be called “gutsy”. A new recording from the New York Philharmonic seems to be a world wide event due to its rarity, and we here little or nothing out of former recording giants Cleveland, Philadelphia and Chicago. So here is our local band awaiting the release of its 5th recording, is in the process of recording its 6th and has the 7th in the planning stages. How things have changed.

The Kansas City Symphony is also gutsy in its choice of works to record. Often, regional orchestras record works that perhaps they have premiered, have a local connection or are not exactly standard repertoire. The Kansas City recordings have featured works by Britten, Vaughan Williams, Elgar, Prokofiev and Bartok, to name a few, that are standard repertoire or have “definitive” recordings. The current project, again being recorded by Reference Recordings, is a blend of the familiar and rare: an all Saint-Saëns disc with the Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso for Violin and Orchestra op. 28 , the less known “La Muse et le Poete”, op 132 for Violin, Cello and Orchestra and the popular Symphony # 3 “Organ” op 78. Concertmaster Noah Geller is the violin solo, Principal Mark Gibbs is on cello and Jan Kraybill handles the Cassavant organ. Michael Stern was on the podium.

"La Muse et le Poète," for solo violin, solo cello and orchestra orchestra is undoubtedly the least known of the three works. A Late work, La Muse shows the influence of Debussy, Ravel and the younger French school, with its denser harmonies, lush orchestration and rhapsodic form. The two soloists are rarely heard together, the work is more of a spirited conversation than any deep, dramatic encounter. Both violin and cello are treated to many virtuoso passages, which both Geller and Gibbs negotiated with poise and flair. This recording has some competition, notably with Joshua Bell and Steven Isserlis that seems to be out of print, but on first hearing, this well recorded and passionate performance should stand up nicely.

The Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso is a much earlier work (1863 ), written in Spanish mode for the virtuoso Pablo de Sarasate. Plenty of competition for this short but always entertaining chestnut, but on first hearing this performance stands well with the rest. Geller's tone was always precise and clear, his rubato in the famous rondo theme was just right, the many double stops perfectly executed and always sympathetic orchestra accompaniment. The dramatic introduction was pleading and romantic, a perfect foil for the more animated rondo.

The well known Symphony # 3 “Organ” will complete the disc and thus was the finale for the evening's program. The orchestra chose this work to inaugurate the organ back in June of 2012 and this performance, with Jan Kraybill at the organ instead of Paul Jacobs, was quite similar. Impressive then as now was how well the organ was integrated into the whole orchestral fabric. The whole performance was stately with a quite slow second movement that might not find favor with all but certainly accentuated the lushness of the movement. The organ's grand entrance in the final movement was grand but not earth shattering; again it was more integrated to the texture. Stern kept the final moments under control as well, not letting the tympani blows turn into a frenzy of uncoordinated sound and fury. A cool-ish performance, some might want it more white hot, but this one concentrated on the music not the showmanship.

Another star of the evening was the array of microphones arranged for the recording. Not only did they threaten to send Maestro Stern and the soloists flying off the stage, the raising of the microphone stand to capture the organ got a hearty ovation itself.

Look for a new Reference Recordings Kansas City Symphony release soon: Prokofiev “Love for Three Oranges”, Hindemith “Symphonic Metamorphosis on Themes by Carl Maria von Weber” and the Bartok Suite from the Miraculous Mandarin.

Kansas City Symphony Finale: Mozart and Strauss

Two grand symphonic statements by Mozart and Richard Strauss comprised the final program of the 2012-2013 subscription season of the Kansas City Symphony. Mozart's late masterpiece the Symphony # 40 in g K 550 and Strauss' last symphonic poem, a monument to his beloved Alps, the Eine Alpensinfonie op 64 of 1915. Michael Stern was on the podium.

Mozart's Symphony # 40 in g K 550 was completed on July 25, 1788 in that remarkable summer which also produced the 39th in June and the monumental 41st in August. Although fairly short and, with the exception of the revised version with the added clarinets, very conventionally scored, Mozart was looking on to Beethoven and Schubert, not to the past. With this symphony and its brothers, he was creating the standard for symphonic works that would stand for a century.

Stern was not in anyway trying to recreate the symphony as Mozart may have heard it. This was Mozart in the mode of Bruno Walter or George Szell, big, bold and symphonic.

The deservedly popular and familiar first movement was nervous and charged, brimming with restless energy. The weight and heft of Beethoven was present in the The second movement, somewhat on the brisk side, still sang and flowed with just the right sigh of regret.The minuet danced, to be sure, but there was more than a touch of the more complex and substantial scherzo feeling in the performance. The finale was taken at a fair clip, charged with anguished intensity, which fit in with the generally quick tempi of the other movements.

The orchestra was well blended and responsive throughout. Stern led with great clarity and focus, free of sentimentality and fussiness. The usually fine winds were also in great form as were the pair of horns, especially clear and blended in the trio of the Minuet. Not the most subtle and elegant Mozart I have heard, and rightly so, this is Mozart at his most dramatic and almost romantic. A vital and valid performance.

Strauss' ultimate symphonic poem is not a symphony in the formal sense nor is it a piece brimming with long, developed melodies and motifs. An Alpine Symphony is tone painting and musical story telling at its epitome. For this sprawling work to be a satisfying musical experience, it simply can not sound like a series of vignettes and unrelated episodes or just a  great deal of noise from a huge  orchestra. It is a journey through a day above all, albeit a rugged, colorful and exciting adventurous day; from a slow, misty morning, through the sunrise, the climb, the mountain top, storm and descent to a quiet night.

The atmospheric opening (marred a touch by some iffy brass intonation) set forth an exciting and well paced performance that never bogged down. The brass certainly redeemed their minor foible with a commanding, burnished sound even when heard en masse with the Wagner tubas, extra tubas and trombones. The large off stage brass contingent was well co-ordinated and just distant enough to make its affect and yet be totally audible. The winds were at their best, even the rarely heard or seen heckelphone. The organ, when called upon, blended well and provided the deep, resonate foundation that is required.

Now and then we heard some strained entrances and the brass and winds overwhelmed the strings occasionally. But the percussion fueled storm raged, the sun glinted in high woodwinds and trumpets from the icy summit and he sun set with poignancy, fading quietly and hauntingly into the night.

Maybe 4-5 seasons ago, the orchestra would not have been able to handle such a monumental work. Of course, most of the orchestra would not have fit on the old lyric stage, there would have been a feeble electronic organ and the sound muddled. Then also, the level of playing has risen annually as to where one has to remember we are in Kansas City and not say New York or Chicago.

A most glorious way to end a fine season of music with one of the nation's finest orchestras.

Kansas City Symphony: Berg, Schubert and Ruggles

Two “greats” from different eras comprised the penultimate and highly anticipated program of the 2102-2013 Kansas City Symphony season. Michael Stern, Music Director, conducted. The first half featured the Violin Concerto by Alban Berg, Gil Shaham as solo. The last half was comprised of Schubert's last symphony, the glorious C major number 9.

As a bonus, Maestro Stern selected American composer Carl Ruggles’ brief yet haunting “Angels” for muted brass to open the evening. This strange, ephemeral work blended brilliantly with the mood and tone of the Berg. The brass intonation was a tad off in spots and the entrances were a bit ragged, but the over all effect was achieved. As the final note of “Angels” faded, the lights illuminated the whole orchestra and soloist Gil Shaham launched into the equally ephemeral opening passage of the Berg concerto, barely at audible level. A fine piece of programming.

If any work can convince a skeptic that the twelve-tone school of composers did not always write “ugly music” it would be the exquisite Alban Berg Violin Concerto from 1935. A touching and glowing instrumental requiem for Manon Gropius, daughter of Architect Walter Gropius and Mahler's widow Alma, the Violin Concerto has emerged as Alban Berg's most popular work. It was also his last completed work.

Berg carefully chose the notes of his tone row; which frequently teeters on the edge of tonality, placing the work between the Vienna of Beethoven and Johann Strauss and that of Schoenberg and beyond.

In that light, Stern correctly read the concerto as a requiem cast as a grandly unfolding waltz laced with Bach and folk song.

Berg conceived his Concerto in two movements, each then subdivided into two parts. The opening Andante presents the twelve-tone row on which the concerto is based, immediately establishing a tonal and contemplative mood. The more animated second half, marked Allegretto, serves as a scherzo with two trios and was described by the composer as a portrait of Manon Gropius. In this section, we hear music associated with the vivacious young actress including folk dances, waltzes, and even a section that is to be played “Wienerisch” or 'Viennese”. With the entrance of the folk song, the movement quickly becomes bitter and colder; death is approaching.

From this nostalgic and wistful movement, we plunge into the more dramatic and funereal second. The allegro first section, which the composer designated “Catastrophe,” serves as the concerto's dramatic cadenza, building to the work’s climax. After the shattering climax, the work relaxes in a mood of resignation. Berg quotes a Bach chorale “Es ist genug,” (It is Enough) from his cantata O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort ( Eternity, you thundering word), a cantata of farewell and acceptance of death.

The conclusion, marked “Deliverance,” develops the chorale theme into a rhapsodic “Requiem for Manon”. Themes from earlier sections are quoted, reflecting times past.

The performance was leisurely, thoroughly Romantic and lush, one that took time to explore and highlight the torrent of melodic cells, harmonic nuances and rhythmic vitality inherent in Berg's masterpiece. Shaham was a sympathetic soloist, completely absorbed in the concerto's message of life, death, and deliverance. His tone bit and snarled as required in the agitated passages and just as easily sweetly sang when called upon. The second movement's opening cadenza had an appropriately improvisatory feeling. In the quiet final moments, some of the most sublime music ever penned, both the orchestra and the violin were shimmering and luminous; a glimpse of transfiguration.

Schubert's music, whether instrumental or vocal, is the epitome of song. Thus any fine performance of his music simply must sing. Stern's performance of the “Great” was brisk, with the latent power on full display but under fine control. And yes, it sang... never losing sight of Schubert's long, lyrical lines. The horns were magnificent in their opening call to prayer answered by the solemn alleluia of the strings. The whole first movement progressed like a force of nature from this solemn opening to the ecstatic final measures. The andante second movement was beautifully shaped and again on the brisk side rising to a most terrifying but not hysterical climax. A well proportioned scherzo with a lyrical, waltzing trio and a gone-like-gangbusters stomp of a finale completed this colorful, energetic and stylish performance.

The whole concert, the iffy brass in “Angels” an exception, featured some of the most committed playing from all sections of the orchestra this season. And what can serve as a better finale than this? The grand and glorious Strauss “Ein Alpensinfonie” concludes the season June 7-9.

Kansas City Symphony: Fisch Conducts Mozart, Mahler and Brahms

Israeli conductor/pianist Asher Fisch, long time music director at the Vienna Volksoper and Israeli Opera and soon Music Director of the West Australia SO, returned to Kansas City this weekend, May 17-19 with one of the more interesting and unusual concerts of the season. The concert opened with Mahler's gently lyrical “Blumine” once part of the first version of the Symphony # 1. The first half concluded with the Piano Concerto # 17 K453 by Mozart with Fisch as soloist and conductor. The program concluded with the Brahms Piano Quartet in G op 25 as orchestrated by Arnold Schoenberg.

In “On the Horizon” I discussed the background of the Mahler and Schoenberg, noting that performances of these pieces are not exactly everyday occurrences.

Lucky for those in attendance, Fisch led a gentle, flowing, detailed and overall very successful performance. The mysterious opening for tremolo strings was pure atmosphere, barely at audible level, a texture and feeling more than just mere notes. This was a restrained “Blumine” as it should be, a pastoral interlude singing and a touch melancholy. Special kudos for principal trumpet Gary Schutza's lyrical and tonally beautiful which is the backbone of this fine little tone poem. The final moments of the work, with hushed strings in the highest register and the final quiet flourish of the harp was magical.

Fisch and the orchestra continued the concert with the alternately mercurial and dramatic Mozart Concerto # 17, written and premiered in 1784. The opening movement is typical of Mozart's gracefully lyric style. Fisch is an accomplished pianist with a singing tone and fine technique. The orchestra winds were in their usual fine form, deftly interjecting and commenting on the piano, especially in the charming and witty opening measures of the movement.

The middle andante, in contrast, is one of Mozart's more dramatic concerto movements. Fisch took the movement at a particularly brisk tempo which could of worked, but with his concentration divided between playing and conducting, it led to a some shaky moments and tentative entrances. Fisch was sensitive to the drama of the movement, accenting and highlighting the more dramatic passages. The Variations-Finale unfolded with the same charm and brisk tempo of the preceding movements.

What was missing was the feeling of unbridled melody and graceful expression that is a hallmark of a successful Mozart performance. Fisch and the orchestra were certainly not flat or dull, but the extra effort in keeping the orchestra and piano together, led to an overall restrained and mechanical feeling.

Fisch and the orchestra relished the Brahms Quartet, revealing the genius of Schoenberg's orchestration and Brahms' sense of form and order. A brisk performance, which is always a good thing in Brahms, Fisch and his forces still took time to luxuriate in the melodies that flowed from Brahms' fertile imagination. Fisch and the orchestra brought out all the Brahmsian character, drama and charm inherent in the Quartet. Fisch's attention to detail aided by Schoenberg's spot lit orchestrations illuminated how Brahms deftly crafted the first movement's melodic content from the opening declamatory motif. The Intermezzo and Trio, functioning as a scherzo, was well controlled yet infused with the right degree of moto perpetuo force. The grand Andante con Moto was swiftly flowing as an movement so marked should be. The concluding Rondo, marked “alla zingarese” was a total tour-de-force, Fisch and the orchestra pulling out all stops for a bravura finale. Even Schoenberg's xylophone and percussion touches seemed totally appropriate and part of the thick, rich texture instead of being a strange afterthought.

A thoughtful program of some off the beaten path works, rare and quite well done.

What I am Listening to Today

Havergal Brian (1876-1972) is one of those composers more notorious and talked about than actually heard.  Every so often, he is "rediscovered" and a new batch of recordings and performances pop up here and there. Then his star fades again for a while... waiting for a new champion.

I have managed to be a fan of this fascinating and quirky composer since my college days. A former University of Illinois music student Paul Rapoport (who went on to be a popular record reviewer with Fanfare Magazine and a noted professor of music in his native Canada) had left behind research and scores in the Music Library which I managed to find while ignoring my more immediate studies. Curious I located some pirate recordings of live performances and at the time the only commercial recording of his music, the 10th and 21st Symphonies.

Devotees of the "Guinness Book of World Records" know Brian as the composer of the longest Symphony, his massive Symphony # 1 "Gothic" written in the 1920's. Instead of quietly retiring, Brian spent his 80s and 90's composing, 32 symphonies in all, 20 of them written after his 80th birthday.

The disc capturing my attention is part of a series of Brian works on Dutton Epoch with Martyn Brabbins and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. With a Proms concert of the Gothic under his belt, Brabbins is the latest Brian champion. A second disc with the Violin Concerto, Symphony # 13, Third English Suite and the "Tinker's Wedding" Overture is also available.

The 10th Symphony in one movement from 1954 has the frequent dotted rhythms (making the music a bit "Clunky" to some), large orchestra and percussion effects characteristic of many of his symphonies. The sound and performance are miles ahead of the 1972 recording which used a school orchestra, albeit a fine one. Brabbins' performance also seems a bit livelier and concentrated than the 1972 Leicestershire Schools Symphony Orchestra performance under James Loughran, likely due to the more accomplished orchestra.

Receiving its recorded premiere, the Symphony # 30 is a product of  Brian's incredible later years. In 1967, 91 year old Brian had written his 27th, 28th and 29th Symphonies and then completed the 30th. Although it is almost the same length as the 10th, the 30th seems more compact. Chromatic, a bit wild, dramatic and "fantastic", the 30th is a prime example of his late works.  The final coda is worth the price of the disc itself, if nothing else, Brian new how to end a symphony in spectacular and often unexpected fashion; a new recording of the Symphony # 21 would be most welcome as it contains his most interesting and surprising ending.

The 1964 Concerto for Orchestra is a compact 15 minute orchestral tour-de-force in the vein of Bartok and Hindemith's examples of the genre. All the Brian characteristics, the colorful percussion and brass especially, are there in this first recording of this almost unknown work.

The English Suite # 3 dates from 1921 yet is every bit a product of the composer. Colorful, more pastoral than the later symphonies and more Strauss and Wagner influenced than the later works, this is another welcome first recording.

Admittedly, Brian's music, like anchovies and scotch, is an acquired taste. What does it say about me that I like all three?

Havergal Brian
Symphony # 10 in c 1954
English Suite # 3 1919-1921
Concerto for Orchestra 1964
Symphony # 30 1967

Martyn Brabbins
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Dutton Epoch CDLX 7267

On the Horizon

With the Mahler 6^th, Rachmaninoff “The Bells”, Scriabin “Poeme of Ecstasy” and Carmina Burana in the history books, one might think it is all down hill now with the 2012-2013 Kansas City Symphony season. But still to come in May are these incredible, lesser known gems that a serious concert goer should not miss. Stick around in June for the finale, the massive Richard Strauss “Eine Alpensinfonie”,

Mahler "Blumine"  (1889)

May 17-19, 2013, Asher Fisch Conducting.

Mahler’s first symphonic essay took a circuitous route in both form and content before emerging as the familiar and popular Symphony # 1 in D major.“Blumine” was once a part of this symphony but was discarded by Mahler after a few performances. After its rediscovery in 1966, it has occasionally been performed as a part of the Symphony but more frequently as a separate piece, as in this case. A little history lesson is in order so as to understand how this movement disappeared for 70 years.

Mahler first conceived of this work as “A Symphonic Poem in Two Parts” when it was premiered in Budapest in 1889. “Blumine” (although not yet labeled as such) was the second movement of this early form which is recognizable as the First Symphony but with many differences in orchestration and form. This performance was not well received so Mahler made some extensive revisions for a second performance in Hamburg in 1893. Now entitled “Titan, a Tone Poem in Symphonic Form”, the movement gained the title “Blumine” (Flowers) and remained as the second movement.

Only a couple of performances were given of this version before a  fouth performance in Berlin in 1896 where Blumine was formally struck from the score. All traces of the program and the name “Titan” were removed. The work was published in its current form in 1899 titled Symphony # 1 in D Major.

Blumine remained unperformed and lost until it was discovered in a copy of an early manuscript donated to Yale University. Benjamin Britten performed it soon after and the enterprising New Haven Symphony under conductor Frank Brieff performed and recorded it, interpolated into the definitive score as the second movement. Since then, several performances have been given and recorded of the early Budapest and Hamburg versions.

So what of the music? Mahler biographer Henry-Louis de La Grange was not too kind:

“There can be no doubt as to the authorship of ‘Blumine,’ and yet few other arguments can be stated in its favor. It is the music of a late-nineteenth-century Mendelssohn, pretty, charming, lightweight, urbane, and repetitious, just what Mahler’s music never is.”

Frankly, I kind of like the early versions with Blumine If one enjoys the lovely Adagietto of the 5^th Symphony, the short interlude will also come as a quiet, simple respite among the otherwise emotionally charged atmosphere of the symphony. I do agree with de La Grange that it is a bit like Mendelssohn scored with a decidedly late 19^th century palate. However. it looks forward to Mahler’s grander creations such as the aforementioned 5^th  Adagietto and the 3rd’s posthorn serenade.

Several fine recordings of the Symphony with Blumine are available, most including Blumine as an appendix, notably Zinman/Zurich Tonhalle on RCA and Neeme Jarvi/Royal Scottish Orchestra on Chandos. Haydn House, an LP to CD reissue source, has the original Frank Brieff/New Haven recording, for the most curious.

Brahms/Schoenberg Piano Quartet (1861, orchestration by Arnold Schoenberg 1937)

May 17-19 Ascher Fisch conducting.

On the same concert as “Blumine”, Ascher Fisch has programmed another rare and unusual work, the 1937 orchestration of Brahms' Piano Quartet # 1 in g composed in 1861.

When asked why he orchestrated this piece Schoenberg replied:

“My reasons: I like the piece. It is seldom played. It is always very badly played, because, the better the pianist, the louder he plays and you hear nothing from the strings. I wanted once to hear everything, and this I achieved.

My intentions: To remain strictly in the style of Brahms and not to go farther than he himself would have gone if he lived today. To watch carefully all the laws to which Brahms obeyed and not to violate them, which are only known to musicians educated in his environment."

Schoenberg famously considered Brahms a more “progressive” composer than Wagner or Liszt and relished Brahms' ability to create a large scale work or movement with a limited amount of material. Although every note is Brahms', Schoenberg's orchestration is considerably more colorful with deft use of percussion and brass. Schoenberg uses this augmented orchestration to bring out harmonic relationships, motifs and inner voices that are hidden in the more monochromatic Piano Quartet version. Schoenberg was a master orchestrator and his jewel like arrangement really does allow the listener to “hear everything”. As in the scene where Dorothy wakes up in Oz, Schoenberg's color brings the work to life.

Robert Craft's classic recording with the Chicago Symphony is still around on Sony and Simon Rattle has made a specialty of the piece with both his Birmingham and Berlin orchestras.

Berg Violin Concerto “To the Memory of an Angel” (1935)

May 31-June 2 2013 Gil Shaham Violin, Michael Stern Conducting.

If any work can convince a skeptic that the twelve-tone school of composers did not always write “ugly music” it would be this exquisite concerto from 1935. A touching and glowing instrumental requiem for Manon Gropius, daughter of Architect Walter Gropius and Mahler's widow Alma, the Violin Concerto has emerged as Alban Berg's most popular work. It was also his last completed work.

In contrast to the craggy but colorful Schoenberg and the minimalist Webern, Berg carefully chose the notes of his tone row; teeters on the edge of tonality. He also incorporated fragments from an Austrian folk song and a Bach chorale that springs almost naturally from his chosen sequence of tone.

Berg conceived his Concerto in two movements, each then subdivided into two parts. The opening Andante presents the twelve-tone row on which the concerto is based, immediately establishing a tonal and contemplative mood. The more animated second half, marked Allegretto, serves as a scherzo with two trios and was described by the composer as a portrait of Manon Gropius. In this section, we hear music associated with the vivacious young actress including folk dances, waltzes, and even a section that is to be played “Wienerisch” or Viennese. With the entrance of the folk song, the movement quickly becomes bitter and colder; death is approaching.

From this nostalgic and wistful movement, we plunge into the more dramatic and funereal second. The allegro first section, which the composer designated “Catastrophe,” serves as the concerto's dramatic cadenza, building to the work’s climax. After the shattering climax, the work relaxes in a mood of resignation. Berg quotes a Bach chorale “Es ist genug,” (It is Enough) from his cantata O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort ( Eternity, you thundering word), a cantata of farewell and acceptance of death.

The conclusion, marked “Deliverance,” develops the chorale theme into a rhapsodic “Requiem for Manon”. Themes from earlier sections are quoted, reflecting times past.

There are many great recordings of this work to choose from, starting with the 1936 live broadcast with the original soloist Louis Krasner with Anton Webern conducting the BBC SO. Isaac Stern, Pinchas Zuckerman, Itzhak Perlman and Gidon Kremer have all had turns at the work, all recommended.

As a bonus, Maestro Stern has selected American composer Carl Ruggles’ brief yet haunting “Angels” for muted brass to open the evening. This strange, ephemeral work blends brilliantly with the mood and tone of the Berg. A fine piece of programming.

Darwin

A review of the world premiere of the new chamber opera "Darwin" by the newEar Contemporary Chamber Ensemble. At www.Icareifyoulisten.com


http://www.icareifyoulisten.com/2013/05/newear-evolves-darwin-chamber-opera-kansas-city/

Chihara Viola Music

My latest CD review for I Care If You Listen

Chihara Viola Music