Ludwig van Beethoven - String Quartet No. 16, Op. 135 olla-vogala 2024-10-22 | Ludwig van Beethoven - String Quartet No. 16, Op. 135
Darius Milhaud - Chamber Symphony No. 1 olla-vogala 2016-07-27 | - Composer: Darius Milhaud (4 September 1892 -- 22 June 1974)- Orchestra: Orchestre de Radio Luxembourg- Conductor: Darius Milhaud- Year of recording: between 1968-1972 'Little Symphony' for chamber orchestra No. 1, "Le Printemps" {The Spring}, Op. 43, written in 1917.00:00 - I. Allant01:39 - II. Chantant03:05 - III. Et Vif!The first of Milhaud's forays into the symphony scored for small ensembles, this work, along with its five companions, is only a symphony in name. In fact, this work lasts little more than three minutes. Composed in Rio de Janiero, this music, using the polytonal elements characteristic of much of the composer's work during this time and after, maintains a pastoral, folkish feeling throughout. Milhaud's early melodies are simple, almost naïve to the point of comedy, perhaps this is why many of his early works are ignored. Sample the plaintive oboe melody of this work's second movement, or the persistent theme of the finale, to experience the composer's penchant for simple and direct musical utterances, sometimes a bit banal but frequently refreshing.The 1st Chamber symphony is dedicated: "à Roger de Fontenay".
IMPORTANT CHANNEL INFORMATION olla-vogala 2016-03-09 | Link to the new olla-vogala2 channel: youtube.com/channel/UCSjzA0fP7S2Kmz4gfvJignQ
Lili Boulanger - Psalm 24 La terre appartient à lÉternel olla-vogala 2016-02-28 | - Composer: Marie-Juliette Olga Lili Boulanger (21 August 1893 -- 15 March 1918)- Orchestra: BBC Symphony Orchestra- Choir: BBC Symphony Chorus- Accompaniment: Simon Preston (organ)- Conductor: Nadia Boulanger- Year of recording: 1968Psalm 24 for chorus, orchestra & organ, written in 1916.Referring to Lili Boulanger's Psalm 24, Psalm 129 (1916), and Psalm 130 ("Du fond de l'abîme"; 1914-17), Christopher Palmer noted, "The composer's best work is to be found in the three psalm-settings; together they form a triptych of epic proportions." With those works, Vieille Prière Bouddhique (1917), and Pie Jesu [uploaded on this channel], dictated on her deathbed to her sister Nadia Boulanger, in 1918, deserve to be included. While their power and originality are startling -- especially emanating from a frail and chronically ill young woman who died at 24 -- and there is no denying Boulanger's precocious genius, those final masterpieces emerged from a background of unpublished choral Psalm settings made between 1907 and 1909, that is, beginning in her 14th year, if not earlier. Using the Psalmist as the mouthpiece for a startling truculence was not new -- Florent Schmitt's gargantuan Psaume 47, dating from 1904, is the fountainhead of the genre, while the figure of Salomé, whether in Strauss' opera (1905) or Schmitt's incidental music-cum-symphonic poem (1907-1910), led the way to the gamy expressive possibilities of hoary Biblical lore seen through contemporary eyes and garlanded with quasi-oriental glees. Boulanger was au courant and certainly knew those works, but a certain fastidiousness, a taste for Debussy-esque atmospherics, and -- above all -- a mystical vein emerging in glowing contrast to often strident trenchancy lift her music beyond the realm of hot musical properties and blockbuster crudities to a demesne of the incisively exquisite. Psalm 24, for instance, justifies its brevity by the potent succinctness of its ideas. Drums setting off clamorous fanfares highlight declamatory choral assertions of godly authority ("The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein...") before yielding to a brief but ecstatic tenor solo ("He will receive blessing from the Lord, and vindication from the God of his salvation") whose serene promise of benediction conveys a sense of imminent expectation. The note of martial triumphalism returns for one of the grandest passages of the Psalms -- "Lift up your heads, O gates! and be lifted up, O ancient doors! that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts...." This is worked to a brief -- again, succinct -- conclusion rounded with a conventional cadence. The obverse faces of the divine, majesty and beneficence, are suggested by the sparest of forces, those instruments usually accompanying French worship: drums, brass, harps, and organ.
Vincent dIndy - String Quartet No. 3 in D flat Major olla-vogala 2016-02-13 | - Composer: Paul Marie Théodore Vincent d'Indy (27 March 1851 -- 2 December 1931)- Performers: Quatuor Joachim- Year of recording: 2001String Quartet No. 3 in D flat major, Op. 96, written in 1928-1929.00:00 - I. Entrée en Sonate (Lentement)09:59 - II. Intermède (Assez joyeux)14:34 - III. Thême varié (Assez lent)24:32 - IV. Finale en rondeau (Lentement)More than 30 years separate d'Indy's 2nd String Quartet from 1897 [uploaded on this channel] from his 3rd, composed over 1928-1929 as he passed his 78th birthday. Between the Violin Sonata (1903-1904) and the Piano Quintet (1924), apart from a few small pieces and arrangements, d'Indy composed no chamber music, being preoccupied with administrative duties at his music school, the Schola Cantorum -- funded with his fortune and for which he wrote the course -- and composition of his musical testament, La Légende de Saint Christophe (1908-1915), into which he crammed his medievalism, his Catholicism, his enormous erudition, his bigotry and anti-Semitism, and his loathing for the rising tide of Modernism. The preceding quartets, challenged by the prestige the form commanded owing to Beethoven's spate of masterpieces, evinced a preoccupation with form, compensating for a habitual absence of melodic afflatus (especially the 2nd), constricting the unusual lyricism of the First and generating a curious aridity in the monothematic Second. With the death of his wife in 1905, d'Indy's already highly organized approach to composition took on a systematic rigidity and chef d'école self-consciousness as his general outlook soured. The attendant heaviness began to dissipate only toward the end of the Great War when a chance encounter with a sympathetic young woman, Caroline Janson, took a romantic turn leading to marriage in 1920 and that amazing series of late masterpieces attesting a puissant rejuvenation -- the scintillant Poème des ravages, its companion Diptyque méditerranéen for orchestra, and a half-dozen chamber works rife with joy, the Third Quartet among them. It is not that d'Indy has become a fetching melodist in his old age -- his themes are serviceable rather than memorable -- but supreme technique is animated by potent feeling, the return of his considerable charm, and a generally relaxed geniality. It was no longer necessary for every new work to be an audacious coup de maître, though the Third Quartet qualifies. From the opening bars there is lift, cordiality -- ecstasy, even -- managed by a master hand. The welcoming mien is confirmed by a two-page notice explicative prefacing the score [included at the beginning of the video] in which the work's formal design is spelled out -- after a brief introduction a compact sonata first movement, passionate yet smiling; a candid Intermède set off by a trio of ravishing tendresse; a slender theme becoming ever more persuasive through seven brief but elaborate variations; and a rondo finale with five refrains leading through nostalgia-laced joy to a triumphant peroration.The Quatuor Calvet gave the premiere at a Société Nationale concert on 12 April 1930; the quartet is also dedicated to them: "au Quatuor CALVET: Joseph Calvet, Daniel Guilevitch, Léon Pascal et Paul Mas."
Leo Ornstein - Cello Sonata No. 2 olla-vogala 2016-02-11 | - Composer: Leo Ornstein [born Lev Ornshteyn] (2 December 1893 -- 24 February 2002) - Performers: Joshua Gordon (cello), Randall Hodgkinson (piano)- Year of recording: 2005Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 2, written in ~1920.Cello sonata in one movement.Ornstein’s second Cello Sonata was written around 1920, and the first movement was given a private performance with Hans Kindler, just like Ornstein's 1st cello sonata. In the 1970s Pauline, Ornstein’s wife, described the sonata as “one long glorious melody line.” One critic referred to its Hebraic or Eastern European manner, a sentiment suggested by Pauline also. Pauline also indicated that at least parts of two other movements existed, but that the piece was put aside in the fall when Ornstein had to resume the concert circuit, and it was never finished. At some point the first movement was referred to as a Rhapsody, which describes it accurately, but Pauline’s 1976 letter suggests Ornstein preferred sonata, as she emended “Rhapsody” in favor of “2nd sonata.”
Maurice Ravel - Piano Concerto for the Left Hand olla-vogala 2016-02-04 | - Composer: Joseph-Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 -- 28 December 1937)- Orchestra: Orchestre de la Société des Concerts du Conservatoire- Conductor: André Cluytens- Soloist: Samson François- Year of recording: 1959Piano Concerto in D major (for the left hand), written in 1929-1931.Between 1929 and 1931, Ravel, despite his failing health, worked feverishly, his imagination as powerful as ever. Among the works completed during this period are the two piano concertos: this extraordinary work and the scintillating Piano Concerto in G major [uploaded on this channel]. This concerto was commissioned by the prominent Austrian pianist Paul Wittgenstein, brother of the celebrated philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein, who had lost his right arm due to a wound sustained in World War I. It is indeed a tragic irony that Ravel, who also served his country in World War I, and Wittgenstein were enemies in this terrible conflict. Nevertheless, Ravel, fascinated by the technical challenge of composing a concerto for the left hand, approached the project with immense interest and enthusiasm. In addition, Ravel admired Wittgenstein's determination to continue his career as a concert pianist. Piano works for the left hand were certainly not a novelty, as compositions by Scriabin, Alkan, Godowsky and Lyapunov attest, but Ravel wanted to create a unique work which would not merely demonstrate how a pianist can compensate for a physical handicap. He wished to compose a work which would stand out as a unique piano concerto. The outcome of Ravel's efforts is one of the great piano concertos of the twentieth century. However, the Concerto, completed in October or November of 1931, failed to please Wittgenstein, who only gradually developed an appreciation for Ravel's work. Furthermore, when the Austrian pianist premiered the work in Vienna, in 1932, he took certain liberties with the score, to the composer's extreme consternation. Despite Ravel's frustration, he conducted the orchestra in Wittgenstein's Paris premiere of the Concerto in 1933. Because Wittgenstein had sole rights on the work for six years, Ravel had to wait until 1937 to hear a performance (by Jacques Février), which satisfied him. The work, which is really in one movement, begins deep in the bass register, with the contrabassoon, along with the basses, presenting a subdued theme, which elicits a mournful response from the horns. The initial mournful mood is gradually, almost imperceptibly, transformed into an insistent, somewhat manic, musical idea. The piano enters with a simple statement, creating pentatonic resonances, which disappear, but remain in the background. As the initial somber atmosphere lifts, the piano gradually establishes a mood of exquisite lyricism, which pervades the middle section. Ravel's writing is so subtle and technically ingenious that the listener hears a gentle melody with a hypnotically diaphanous, but seemingly elaborate, accompaniment; it is easy to forget that one hand does all the playing. The energy behind the third section, in which the piano engages the orchestra, often mimicking particular instrumental sonorities, profoundly differs from the wave-like, fluid, ascending motion of the Concerto in G major; here, the energy is discontinuous, manifesting itself in obstinate, repetitive figurations and phrases which, if only for brief moments, conjure up the spirit of his Boléro. At the same time, Ravel devotes truly marvelous pages to the piano, particularly in the cadenza-like part of the final section, in which the left hand leads an engaging and richly developed melody into a glowing orchestral finale.The piano concerto is dedicated: "à Paul Wittgenstein".
Juliusz Zarębski - Piano Quintet in G minor, Op. 34 olla-vogala 2016-01-28 | - Composer: Juliusz Zarębski (3 March 1854 -- 15 September 1885) - Performers: Waldemar Malicki (piano), Amar Corde String Quartet - Year of recording: 1997 Quintet for Piano & Strings in G minor, Op. 34, written in 1885. 00:00 - I. Allegro10:03 - II. Adagio20:51 - III. Scherzo26:41 - IV. FinaleIn 1935, at the peak of the neoclassical period, the Piano Quintet in G minor Op. 34 by Polish composer-pianist Juliusz Zarębski was published. The Quintet was written at the beginning of 1885, during the period of convalescence of the composer (who suffered from tuberculosis) in his home town of Żytomierz. The Quintet was the last and the most outstanding masterpiece written by Zarębski, who died in September of this same year at the age of 31. Zarębski was a member of the 19th century guild of composers and virtuosos. Extremely talented, he studied piano and composition in Vienna and St. Petersburg. He composed mainly salon and virtuoso music for the needs of his numerous tournées; the most famous collection is called "Roses and thorns" (Róże i ciernie). The great talent of Zarębski is reflected in the opinions of Franz Liszt, who had seen in him not only the great virtuoso (sharing the interest in a two-keyboard piano with the maestro from Weimar), but also a deeply sensitive composer. Liszt insisted that Zarębski should seriously devote himself to composing. It is therefore hardly surprising that the Quintet was dedicated to Liszt ["À mon cher maître Fr. Liszt"]. There are however clear musical reasons for this dedication. The Quintet emerges from the tradition of the New German School, whose outstanding figures were Liszt and Wagner. The origins of the work manifest itself in the richness of colour and harmony and also in treating the themes as if they were characters in a novel. That is why, instead of a "classical" motif work, we hear the metamorphosis of the characters, themes return in the subsequent parts, and the finale is the culmination in the synthetic style. It is not the form that captures our attention but the twists and turns of the narration. However, it must be added that the "novel" plays out in a highly abstract register. Therefore, it appears inappropriate to search for a concrete programme. After all, Liszt and Wagner did not write chamber music for a reason. The originality of this Polish chamber music masterpiece lies in the "amicably incompatible" combination of classical and Late Romantic traditions. But the beauty of the Quintet lies mostly in the music. - Allegro: Against the backdrop of murmuring waves of the piano, the strings sail in a broad unison, the theme in turn rolling but serious, and diatonic and "broken" in a chromatic prism. The second theme in E flat major balances this initial appassionato with a nocturne section: quite light, fanciful and twinkling. The march rhythms play an important role in this part. They are only a "seasoning", they never crystallize into an independent theme. However, they give the piece intransigent, maybe even (especially with the connection with falling chromatic bass) fatal character. The particular feature is a "gypsy" C sharp. It appears in the theme; it causes an amazing journey into C-sharp minor in the second section of the development (ended with a solo, longing cello recitative); it is on show in the daring coda. - The second movement Adagio, begins and ends with bizarre music which suggests some kind of picture or landscape: maybe a starlight shimmering on dark waters? The foundation of Adagio is the lied (art song). The outermost parts have a hymnic character in B flat major; the middle section in G major can be described as idyllic, in accordance with the symbolic tradition of this key and the connotations of a 12/8 meter. However, Zarębski introduces a shadow, especially in the form of chromatics, which in turn gives an edge of surrealism to this idyll. - Truly "diabolic" is the Scherzo. Presto: full of frictions, dissonance, sudden changes, contrary accents and "unnatural" scales (a comeback of the "gypsy" Allegro note). Even the diatonic fragments, as a result of "freezing" the harmonic centre, create an impression of wildness. Quasi-folk melodies appear too (and they seem to be Russian: a 'kamarinskaya' dance). - The Finale. Presto begins with an epigraph taken from the previous movement, after which a cleansing calmness prevails. Further on, the music flows colourfully and capriciously, expressed in a rhapsodic sonata form. The first theme again resounds with a bawdy dance note, with a highly stylized (and therefore difficult to identify) character. The themes from the first and second movement return. The piece is crowned by a glorification of the Quintet first part's main theme. Fortunately, this piano quintet is now slowly starting to be played at concerts and rightfully so, because this masterpiece deserves a place among the biggest Romantic Piano Quintets.
Eugène Ysaÿe - Poème Élégiaque, Op. 12 olla-vogala 2016-01-25 | - Composer: Eugène Ysaÿe (16 July 1858 -- 12 May 1931)- Performers: Catherine Manoukian (violin), Akira Eguchi (piano)- Year of recording: 1998"Poème Élégiaque" for Violin and Orchestra (or Piano) in D minor, Op. 12, written in 1892-1893.With the Poème Élégiaque, Op. 12, Ysaÿe moved away from the pieces he wrote merely for virtuosic purposes in his youth. The only legacy from the virtuoso practice of the past is the scordatura: the G string is here tuned to an F, giving a dark colour, the violin sounding sometimes like a viola. First written for violin and piano, Ysaÿe later orchestrated the piece. The work is dedicated to Gabriel Fauré, from whom he had already commissioned a piano quintet (Op. 89, which the composer was to take a further ten years to finish). However, it was upon Ernest Chausson that the Poème Élégiaque was to have a great influence, serving as the example for the famous Poème which he would write three years later [uploaded on this channel]. Ysaÿe the interpreter participated here fully in the creative process. The similarities between the two works are striking: the general atmosphere, the Wagnerism, the shape, the sublime trills at the end … Ysaÿe helped in writing the violin part, in particular the cadenza of the work which Chausson eventually called ‘mon– ton poème’ (‘my–your poème’).
Hendrik Witte - Piano Quartet in A major, Op. 5 olla-vogala 2016-01-22 | - Composer: Georg Hendrik Witte (16 November 1843 -- 3 February 1929)- Performers: Frans van Ruth (piano), Ruña 't Hart (violin), Isa Juárez (viola), Sam Shepherd (cello)- Year of recording: 2013 (live)Quartet in A Major for Piano, Violin, Viola and Cello, Op. 5, written in 1867.00:00 - I. Moderato assai12:55 - II. Sostenuto25:03 - III. Vivace32:46 - IV. Allegro giojosoHendrik Witte was a Dutch professor, composer, Royal and municipal director of music, and conductor of the 'Musikverein' in Essen. He significantly shaped the musical life of the city of Essen.The printed compositional work of Witte includes compositions with and without opus numbers. The early works were written during the stay in Leipzig. The best-known compositions from this period are the Waltzes for piano (four hands) from 1868 dedicated to Brahms, the award-winning Piano Quartet in A major, Op. 5 (1867), and the Quintet for Horn and Strings (1871). Wittes compositions are written in the style of the "Leipzig School". They contain, in the words of Gaston Dejmek: "a balance of delicate formality, a liquid harmoniously bound phrasing, the sensitive expression of the vocalisation".In this piano quartet, the sweeping piano arpeggio at the beginning reminds one of Schubert's "Trout" quintet, and the last movement has a small fugato section with a rousing coda section.The piano quartet is dedicated: "Carl Reinecke zugeeignet".
Frederick Delius - Song of Summer olla-vogala 2016-01-21 | - Composer: Frederick Theodore Albert Delius (29 January 1862 -- 10 June 1934)- Orchestra: London Symphony Orchestra- Conductor: John Barbirolli- Year of recording: 1967Painting: Delius in his Garden at Grez-sur-Loing. Oil on canvas by Jelka Rosen {his wife}, early 1900s."A Song of Summer", tone poem for orchestra, written in 1930-1931.After Delius was blinded and crippled by tertiary syphilis in the early '20s, his composing career seemed effectively to have ended. But the arrival of Eric Fenby, a young English man who had fallen in love with Delius' music, re-vitalized Delius, and, with Fenby's help and cooperation as an amanuensis, Delius returned to composition. Arguably the best work of Delius' final creative period was A Song of Summer. Based on A Poem of Life and Love that Delius had written in 1918 but never performed or published, the vast and spacious opening of A Song of Summer was dictated by Delius to Fenby, who then interwove themes from the earlier work into the fabric of Delius' invention. The result is Delius purified and refined with themes of heart-quickening beauty and harmonies of opulent voluptuousness scored with supreme sensuousness. Of course, being composed by Delius, A Song of Summer has no rhythm and very little form: the harmonies move at their own ecstatically indolent speed and the form is essentially erotic, featuring a pair of orgasmic climaxes preceded by rising passion and followed by languor. Delius explained the context of the tone poem to Fenby:"I want you to imagine we are sitting on the cliffs of heather and looking out over the sea. The sustained chords in the high strings suggest the clear sky and stillness and calm of the scene...You must remember that figure that comes in the violins when the music becomes more animated. I'm introducing it there to suggest the gentle rise and fall of the waves. The flutes suggest a seagull gliding by."Sir Henry J. Wood conducted the premiere in London on 17 September 1931. Fenby himself also recorded the work, with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in a recording released in 1981.The tone poem lent its title to the 1968 Ken Russell film 'Song of Summer', which depicted Eric Fenby's life as Delius's amanuensis. The music appears in the film, along with other Delius works.
Charles-Marie Widor - Toccata (from Symphony for Organ No. 5) olla-vogala 2016-01-21 | - Composer: Charles-Marie Jean Albert Widor (21 February 1844 -- 12 March 1937) - Performer: Frederick Hohman - Year of recording: 2008 (Live on the Schantz pipe organ at the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark, New Jersey, USA) Toccata from Symphony for Organ No. 5 in F minor, Op. 42, No. 1, written in 1879.The fifth movement of Widor's Symphony for Organ No. 5 is often referred to as just "Widor's Toccata" because it is his most famous piece, it only lasts around six minutes. Its fame in part comes from its use as recessional music at wedding ceremonies. The melody of the composition is based upon an arrangement of arpeggios which form phrases, initially in F, moving in fifths through to C major, G major, etc. Each bar consists of one phrase. The melody is complemented by syncopated chords, forming an accented rhythm. The phrases are contextualised by a descending bassline beginning with the 7th tone of each phrase key. For example, where the phrase consists of an arpeggio in C major, the bassline begins with a B flat.
Rosy Wertheim - Violin Sonata in A flat major olla-vogala 2016-01-20 | - Composer: Rosalie Marie Wertheim (19 February 1888 -- 27 May 1949) - Performers: Ursula Schoch (violin), Marcel Worms (piano) - Year of recording: 2009-2010 Sonata for Violin & Piano in A flat major, written in 1931. 00:00 - I. Allegro con brio 05:02 - II. Andante non troppo lento 09:23 - III. Allegro con moto Rosy Wertheim was a Jewish Dutch pianist, music educator and composer. She was born in Amsterdam to parents John and Adriana Rosa Gustaaf Wertheim Enthoven. Her father was a banker and Rosalie attended a French boarding school in Neuilly where she took piano lessons. She studied piano with Ulfert Schults and harmony and counterpoint with Bernard Zweers and Sem Dresden. In 1921 she took the state exam in piano and graduated from the Nederlandse Toonkunstenaars Vereniging. From 1921 to 1929, she taught at the Amsterdam Music Lyceum, composed songs and choral works and conducted children's and women's choirs. In 1929 Wertheim moved to Paris where she lived for six years, composing music [and probably this Violin Sonata], and writing for the Amsterdam newspaper Het Volk [The People] on the Parisian music scene, while studying composition and instrumentation from the composer Louis Aubert. In 1935 she moved to Vienna where she studied counterpoint with Karl Weigl. In 1936 she traveled to New York to give lectures and arrange performance of her works. In 1937, just prior to the start of World War II, she returned to Amsterdam. During the German Occupation, Wertheim gave secret concerts in a cellar where she played music by banned Jewish composers. After September 1942, she went into hiding to escape the Jewish deportations. After the war, Rosy Wertheim taught at the Music School in Laren, but contracted a serious illness and died 27 May 1949 in Laren, the Netherlands. Dutch flutist Eleonore Pameijer writes about her music: "Rosy Wertheim wrote very lyrical music. She was gifted with a rich and varied sense of harmony. Initially focused on late-romanticism, she flirts with octatonicism for some time, which was quite popular during the 1920's in The Netherlands (which also can be heard in the compositions of Sem Dresden and Leo Smit). In her later works it is clear that the period in France had a big impact on her composing." Wertheim's compositions show influences of Franck, Debussy, Ravel, Pijper and Stravinsky, and in this particular violin sonata the French influences are very noticeable.
Rosy Wertheim - 6 Morceaux de Piano olla-vogala 2016-01-20 | - Composer: Rosy Wertheim (19 February 1888 -- 27 May 1949)- Performer: Marcel Worms (piano)- Year of recording: 2008-20106 Morceaux de Piano {6 Pieces for Piano}, undated.00:00 - 1. Marche (à Paul Amadeus Pisk)02:32 - 2. Etude (à Marion Ruynen)04:26 - 3. Jeu d'Enfants (à Maia Freed)05:24 - 4. Berceuse Slave (à Ivan Wischnigradzky)07:30 - 5. Danse champêtre (à Daniël Ruyneman)08:57 - 6. Petite Valse (à Rose-Marie Gompertz)These 6 Morceaux de Piano by Dutch composer Rosy Wertheim were probably written between 1929-1936. Until the 1920s she concentrated on writing songs and choral works in a romantic idiom. From 1921 to 1929 she taught at the Amsterdam Music Lyceum and directed several female and children’s choirs, including the choir called "Eilandkinderen" (Island Children) for children from the poor Jewish district in Amsterdam.In 1929 she went to Paris for six months and eventually stayed there for six years. She studied composition and instrumentation under Louis Aubert. Her appartment was a meeting place for artists, including the composers Honneger, Ibert, Milhaud and Messiaen. She formed a very close friendship with the composer Elsa Barraine. She wrote articles for the daily paper Het Volk [The People] on musical life in Paris. Her works from this period are light and playful, in the neoclassal style. Harmonically they approach the French impressionist idiom. These 6 piano pieces are written in that style, so they were probably written in her Paris years.In 1935 Rosy Wertheim went to Vienna for a year and studied counterpoint under Professor Karl Weigl. In 1936 she travelled to the United States, where she gave a number of lectures. Her String Quartet, the Divertimento for chamber orchestra and a number of her piano works were played in a concert by the Composers Forum Laboratory.
Louis Vierne - Piano Quintet, Op. 42 olla-vogala 2016-01-20 | - Composer: Louis Victor Jules Vierne (8 October 1870 -- 2 June 1937)- Performers: Anne Robert (violin), Marcelle Mallette (violin), Neal Gripp (viola), Elizabeth Dolin (cello), Jamie Parker (piano)- Year of recording: 1994Quintet for 2 violins, viola, cello & piano in C minor, Op. 42, written in 1917-1918.00:00 - I. Poco lento - Moderato10:16 - II. Larghetto sostenuto21:24 - III. Maestoso - Allegro risolutoVierne's Piano Quintet is inspired by one of the many sorrowful trials that he was subjected to throughout his life; the death of one of his sons (the only surviving) killed in action in November 1917. Written in early 1918 in a fit of feverish activity, the composer pours out all his despair, anguish and bitterness, and yet the work also has a streak of tenderness that lays bare all the superb fatherly qualities of this extraordinary artist. Vierne confided to a friend that he was "…building a votive offering, a Quintet of vast proportions, to convey the inspiration born of my tenderness and my child’s tragic death."Of special interest is the first theme, which consists of 9 different notes, until the F# (which was played before).The Piano Quintet is dedicated: "En Ex-voto: à la mémoire de mon cher fils Jacques, Mort pour la France à 17 ans." [In votive: to the memory of my dear son Jacques, Died for France at age 17].
Egon Wellesz - String Quartet No. 4 olla-vogala 2016-01-17 | - Composer: Egon Joseph Wellesz (21 October 1885 -- 9 November 1974)- Performers: Artis Quartett Wien- Year of recording: 2008String Quartet No. 4 (Streichquartett No. 4) Op. 28, written in 1920.00:00 - I. Sehr gehalten03:33 - II. Mäßig bewegt05:41 - III. Sehr langsam08:46 - IV. Allmählich in ein rasches Zeitmaß übergehen13:06 - V. GetragenWellesz' concise, moody Quartet No. 4 (1920) was first performed by the Kolisch Quartet in 1922, and proved an immediate hit. Superficially, it's rather like some of the slower parts of Berg's Lyric Suite meets the black and white music of Bernard Herrmann's soundtrack music for Psycho, except that neither of these works had been written yet. In retrospect, Wellesz's Quartet No. 4 isn't as effective as the Berg, however it stands as compelling in its own right; there is a serious, but calm and authoritative sense of resolve that keeps it on track and stylistically distinct.The work is dedicated: "Herrn DUDOK van HEEL freundschaftlich zugeeignet."
Egon Wellesz - Eklogen, Op. 11 olla-vogala 2016-01-17 | - Composer: Egon Joseph Wellesz (21 October 1885 -- 9 November 1974)- Performer: Margarete Babinsky (piano)- Year of recording: 2006"Eklogen" für Klavier op.11, written in 1911-1912.00:00 - I. Nänie (Lento) 03:21 - II. Intermezzo (Andante)05:31 - III. Burlesque (Allegretto rubato)07:34 - IV. Epilog (Andante)Egon Wellesz was an Austrian composer mainly occupied with Byzantine music (studies), but he also composed music in the vein of early German expressionism. His early four "Eklogen" [eclogues / bucolic poems] of 1919-1912 sound remarkably like Ravel. The title and music refer back to Wellesz occupation with studies of Byzantine (music) and the classical antiquity.
Anton Webern - Langsamer Satz {Slow Movement} olla-vogala 2016-01-17 | - Composer: Anton Webern (3 December 1883 -- 15 September 1945)- Performers: Emerson String Quartet- Year of recording: 1992Langsamer Satz {Slow Movement} for string quartet, written in 1905.One movement: Langsam, mit bewegtem AusdruckWebern composed this work for string quartet in June 1905, but it wasn't publicly performed until 27 May 1962, in Seattle (Washington, USA) by the University of Washington String Quartet. The Langsamer Satz (literally "Slow Movement") originated during a hiking trip in Lower Austria that Webern took with his cousin, Wilhelmine Mörtl, who later became his wife. It is love music, as Webern diarized ecstatically -- an outpouring by the 21-year-old composer, whose studies with Arnold Schoenberg had begun the previous autumn."To walk forever like this among the flowers, with my dearest one beside me, to feel oneself so entirely at one with the Universe, without care, free as the lark in the sky above -- Oh what splendor...when night fell (after the rain) the sky shed bitter tears but I wandered with her along a road," wrote Webern in language reminiscent of the poet Richard Dehmel, who had inspired Schoenberg's Verklärte Nacht -- a work not without influence on the present composition. "A coat protected the two of us. Our love rose to infinite heights and filled the Universe. Two souls were enraptured." The Langsamer Satz is tonal music, albeit chromatic, firmly ensconsed in a tradition stretching from Liszt through Wagner to Hugo Wolf, Richard Strauss, and Mahler. The last named had not as yet entranced Webern, but during the 1930s he led Vienna's Workingmen Symphony Orchestra in readings of Mahler's music allegedly as insightful as Bruno Walter's, and certainly more comprehensive.Webern wrote tonal music for several more years after 1905 -- until, as Schoenberg's most intuitive pupil, he became "more Catholic than the Pope," to borrow an apposite aphorism (it nettled the Master when Webern anticipated his serial dicta, especially as regards rhythm). The Langsamer Satz is one of the longest of all Webern works (though this version by the Emerson String Quartet is rather fast), longer even than In Sommerwind that preceded it, or the Passacaglia, Op. 1, both orchestral, that followed. (With Webern's radical renunciation of tonality came a new minimalism.) It has a root key, C minor, and a traditional sonata-form structure.After the leading Webern scholar, Hans Moldenhauer, settled in Spokane in 1939, Washington state became the world center for Webern's music. Seattle hosted the first of six International festivals, held between 1962 and 1978.
Richard Wagner - Siegfried Idyll olla-vogala 2016-01-15 | - Composer: Wilhelm Richard Wagner (22 May 1813 -- 13 February 1883)- Orchestra: Münchner Philharmoniker- Conductor: Sergiu Celibidache- Year of recording: 1993 (Live in Philharmonie am Gasteig, München)Siegfried Idyll, symphonic poem for small orchestra in E major, WWV 103, written in 1870.Apart from the operas, Wagner composed a small number of pieces; this stems from his reluctance to conceive music which didn't belong to the sacredness of the drama, fundamental expression of his thought.The full title on the original manuscript of Wagner's Siegfried Idyll reads, "Tribschen-Idyll, with Fidi-Birdsong and Orange Sunrise, presented as a symphonic birthday greeting to his Cosima by her Richard, 1870." The "Siegfried" in the title does not refer to the composer's opera of the same name, as is often supposed, but to his infant son, whose pet name was "Fidi." The "orange sunrise" refers to the colour of Cosima's bedroom wallpaper, which brightly reflected the morning light. Though the work is sometimes heard in an arrangement for full orchestra, Wagner originally wrote it for an ensemble of 15 players. Having prepared and rehearsed the work in secret, Wagner gathered his small orchestra on the stairway on Christmas morning, 1870, and awakened Cosima with its first performance (Cosima's birthday was 24 December; the Wagner family celebrated that day and the Christmas holiday together). Afterward, Wagner and Cosima's five children presented her with the score.As is reflected in the uncharacteristically (for Wagner) modest scoring, the Siegfried Idyll is a particularly intimate work, meant to acknowledge and celebrate the year that Wagner and Cosima could finally legitimize their union. Several stressful years had passed since Cosima had left her first husband, the conductor Hans von Bülow, in 1866. The divorce was finalized at last in 1870, and in August of that year Cosima and Wagner wed.Wagner wrote Siegfried Idyll while he was occupied with the completing and intial staging of Der Ring des Nibelungen. The music for Siegfried (1856-71), the third part of the cycle, had caused the composer great difficulty; he had set it aside in frustration in 1857, returning to it only in 1869. Wagner borrowed Siegfried Idyll's principal themes from Siegfried and Die Walküre (1854-56), where they have specific meanings within the cycle's system of leitmotives. Within the context in Siegfried Idyll, however, these themes are take on a more general nature as expressions of triumphant love and affection. Wagner had never intended to publish this work, but financial problems forced him to make it public in 1877.
Richard Wagner - Love Duet from Tristan & Isolde (Act II) O sink hernieder, Nacht der Liebe olla-vogala 2016-01-13 | - Composer: Wilhelm Richard Wagner (22 May 1813 -- 13 February 1883)- Orchestra: Philharmonia Orchestra- Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler- Soloists: Ludwig Suthaus (tenor), Kirsten Flagstad (soprano)- Year of recording: 1952 (studio)Love duet from opera 'Tristan & Isolde' (Act II), "O sink hernieder, Nacht der Liebe", written in 1857-1859.Tristan und Isolde (Tristan and Isolde, or Tristan and Isolda, or Tristran and Ysolt) is an opera, or music drama, in three acts by Richard Wagner to a German libretto by the composer, based largely on the romance by Gottfried von Straßburg. It was composed between 1857 and 1859 and premiered in Munich on 10 June 1865 with Hans von Bülow conducting. Wagner referred to the work not as an opera, but called it "eine Handlung" (literally a drama. a plot or an action), which was the equivalent of the term used by the Spanish playwright Calderón for his dramas.The Love Duet from Act II:The lovers, at last alone and freed from the constraints of courtly life, declare their passion for each other. Tristan decries the realm of daylight which is false, unreal, and keeps them apart. It is only in night, he claims, that they can truly be together and only in the long night of death can they be eternally united ("O sink' hernieder, Nacht der Liebe"). During their long tryst, Brangäne calls a warning several times that the night is ending ("Einsam wachend in der Nacht"), but her cries fall upon deaf ears. The day breaks in on the lovers as Melot leads King Marke and his men to find Tristan and Isolde in each other's arms. Marke is heart-broken, not only because of his nephew's betrayal but also because Melot chose to betray his friend Tristan to Marke and because of Isolde's betrayal as well ("Mir - dies? Dies, Tristan - mir?").When questioned, Tristan says he cannot answer to the King the reason of his betrayal since he would not understand, he turns to Isolde, who agrees to follow him again into the realm of night. Tristan denounces that Melot has fallen in love with Isolde too. Melot and Tristan fight, but, at the crucial moment, Tristan throws his sword aside and allows Melot to severely wound him.On this recording:- Furtwängler himself was very pleased with it, which wasn't normally the case with studio recordings. Schwarzkopf and Legge said that Flagstad couldn't reach the high notes anymore so that she (Schwarzkopf) 'lent' her the notes. That means Schwarzkopf sang them for Flagstad in this recording, at least that's what Schwarzkopf wrote down in her memoirs. We can doubt her claim however, because it's not clear if they could record it so well in those days that one could hardly hear the difference. It was quite embarrassing anyway for Flagstad when she heard about (or read in the newspapers) these rumours.
Jan Václav Voříšek - Piano Sonata in B flat minor, Op. 20 olla-vogala 2016-01-13 | - Composer: Jan Václav Hugo Voříšek (11 May 1791 -- 19 November 1825)- Performer: Radoslav Kvapil- Year of recording: 1974-1975Sonata for piano in B flat minor, Op. 20, written in 1820.00:00 - I. Allegro con brio05:38 - II. Scherzo (Allegro) - Trio11:30 - III. Finale (Allegro con brio)Voříšek's Sonata in B flat minor was written during the same period as Voříšek's Symphony in D Major and Mass in B flat Major, a time when his output had evolved to large-scale formats. The final movement of the B flat minor Sonata was published in Starck's "Klavierschule 1821", as a separate Rondo, to which Voříšek subsequently added the remaining parts. It was to be named 'Sonata quasi una fantasia', and was to begin on a slow introduction strongly resembling Beethoven's work of the same name - which was also probably why Voříšek eventually deleted it.The first movement brings an interesting image of a musical "double": namely, two rhythmically identical yet contrasting themes. The work's harmonic layout is indeed bold for its time, the robust character of Scherzo in C sharp major (!) bearing strong connotations with orchestral sound. The final movement was originally destined for re-writing, as evidenced by its heavily crossed-out autograph score. In the end, however, it remained as it was - probably for the better, to be sure - a Scarlattian fast-flying dream, its bizarre leaps assigning it a spectral hue. The composition was dedicated to Josefine Wawruch, an outstanding pianist and the wife of Voříšek's - and, incidentally, Beethoven's - physician. It was published shortly after the composer's death.
Edmund von Borck - Introduction and Capriccio, Op. 11 olla-vogala 2016-01-13 | - Composer: Edmund Konstantin Wilhelm von Borck (22 February 1906 -- 16 February 1944)- Performers: Frank Lunte (alto saxophone), Tatjana Blome (piano)- Year of recording: 2002Introduction and Capriccio in A major, for Saxophone & Piano, Op. 11, written 1934.In Berlin of the 1930s an attempt was undertaken to come to terms with the saxophone as a classical instrument. Broken off because of repression and war, it found a continuation only in the 1980s. Edmund von Borck wrote in 1932, "Only now does the saxophone begin its real triumphant advance, in fact also in modern, serious opera and concert music. One only slowly dares to go near this strange instrument with its highly individual timbre...it is not difficult to recognize the importance that the use of one or more saxophones can attain in the future in serious art music."Borck was called for military service in 1940, and he fell during the Allied invasion during the Battle of Anzio in Nettuno, Italy. He never really got to see the rise in popularity of the saxophone, but in jazz music instead of classical music as he predicted...
Hendrik Andriessen - Miroir de Peine olla-vogala 2016-01-11 | - Composer: Hendrik Franciscus Andriessen (17 September 1892 -- 12 April 1981)- Orchestra: Netherlands Radio Chamber Orchestra- Conductor: David Porcelijn- Soloist: Roberta Alexander (soprano)- Year of recording: 1991Miroir de Peine, version for voice & orchestra, written in 1923/1933.00:00 - I. Agonie au jardin03:17 - II. Flagellation05:21 - III. Couronnement d'épines07:48 - IV. Portement de Croix11:03 - V. CruxifixionDutch composer Hendrik Andriessen was the father of Louis Andriessen, his music has much in common with the French/Belgian composers like Fauré, Franck. His lieder cycle "Miroir de Peine" (1923, orchestrated in 1933) is based on poems by Henri Ghéon, pen name of Henri Vangeon (1875-1944). The musical drama in this cycle is much more subtle than that of the previously discussed lieder. Repeated notes determine a text declamation that bears resemblance to Gregorian chant. The cycle is noteworthy for its unity in terms of text and musical content: The five sonnets describe the sufferings of Christ from Mary's emotional standpoint, and five notes used in different ways throughout the lieder form the unifying musical element in the cycle. As it stands, this cycle is probably one of the best chamber works in Hendrik Andriessen's output.
Carl Vine - Piano Sonata No. 1 olla-vogala 2016-01-11 | - Composer: Carl Vine, AO (8 October 1954 -- present) - Performer: Michael Kieran Harvey - Year of recording: 1991 Piano Sonata No. 1, written in 1990. 00:00 - I. [no dynamic tempo marking] 08:23 - II. Leggiero e legato Australian composer Carl Vine uses a lot of open fourths and fifths in this piano sonata, and chords/arpeggios are often based on stacked fourths or fifths. The sonata is reminiscent in its form of Elliot Carter's piano sonata, and in its intensity of Samuel Barber's piano sonata. Notes by the dedicatee, Michael Harvey:"Drawing on the lithe beauty and contrapuntal elegance of the earlier Piano Sonata (1946) by Elliot Carter, the [1st] Piano Sonata by Carl Vine is a work characterised by intense rhythmic drive and the building up of layers of resonance. These layers are sometimes delicate and modal, archieving a 'pointed' polyphony by the use of complex cross-rhythm, at other times they are granite-like in density, creating waves of sound which propel the music irresistibly towards its climax.The scheme is similar to the Carter Sonata - Two movements, with the slow section built into and defining the faster portions of the first movement. The second movement is based on a 'moto perpetuo' which soon gives way to a chorale section, based on parallel fifths.In discussing the work, Vine is reticent about offering explanations for the compositional processes involved, feeling that these are self-evident, and indeed the work is definitely aurally 'accessible' on first hearing. However one of the main concerns in this sonata is the inter-relationship between disparate tempi, which is the undercurrent of the work and its principle binding element.The work is dedicated to me and was commissioned by the Sydney Dance Company to be choreographed by Graeme Murphy. The first concert performance of this work was on 23 June 1991 in Melbourne. The first dance performance of Piano Sonata was in the Drama Theatre of the Sydney Opera House in May, 1992."
Theodoor Verhey - Flute Concerto No. 1, in D minor olla-vogala 2016-01-09 | - Composer: Theodorus Hendricus Hubertus Verhey (10 June 1848 -- 28 January 1929)- Performers: Sébastian Jacot (flute), Nicolas Leroy (piano)- Year of recording: 2010 (live, Conservatoire de Genève, Switzerland)Flute Concerto No. 1 in D minor, Op. 43, written in 1898.00:00 - I. Allegro non troppo04:34 - II. Andantino07:38 - III. Allegro alla zingareseIn this recording the version for Flute & Piano is played, instead of the version for Flute & Orchestra.This flute concerto by Dutch composer Verhey is a pretty show-piece for the flute, with many virtuosic passages (fast chromatic passages, leaps, etc.) especially in the last movement. The piece itself can admired for a strong melodic content, with many very memorable themes.The Flute Concerto is dedicated: "Herrn Ary van Leeuwen freundschaftlichst gewidmet".
Ralph Vaughan Williams - The Turtle Dove olla-vogala 2016-01-09 | - Composer: Ralph Vaughan Williams (12 October 1872 -- 26 August 1958) - Ensemble: The Cambridge Singers - Conductor: John Rutter - Year of recording: 1984 "The Turtle Dove" (English Traditional, collected and arranged by Ralph Vaughan Williams). Perhaps it was in response to Hubert Parry's advice to "write choral music as befits an Englishman and a democrat," that Vaughan Williams developed his lifelong interest in the folk music of his native England. Nowhere can this interest be seen more clearly than in his choral arrangements of folk songs: music of the people for the people. In accordance with the belief that each singer, or in this case each composer, must bring something of himself or herself to the performance of each melody, many of Vaughan Williams's arrangements border on being recompositions. Ironically, the more "composed" the setting, the more the final product seems an organic product of the melody. "The Turtle Dove" is one such setting.Vaughan Williams came across the melody of "The Turtle Dove" in November of 1904, while on a folksong collecting expedition in Sussex. In 1919 he published it in an arrangement for male chorus, but it is more commonly heard in a setting for mixed chorus, published in 1924. The melody is first introduced by the solo baritone, who takes on the role of the traveler, destined to roam the earth while the love of his heart is to remain behind. As the intensity of the lyric grows, so does the activity of the choir. This continues until the third verse, where the choir's florid lines take on the character of the seas that the traveler must traverse. The work ends quietly, as it began, with the solo baritone bemoaning the loss of his love.
Ralph Vaughan Williams - Te Deum in G olla-vogala 2016-01-09 | - Composer: Ralph Vaughan Williams (12 October 1872 -- 26 August 1958)- Orchestra: English String Orchestra- Choir: Christ Church Cathedral Choir- Conductor: Stephen Darlington- Year of recording: 1989Te Deum for chorus & organ (or orchestra) in G, written in 1928.The "Te Deum" was commissioned for the enthronement of Cosmo Gordon Lang as Archbishop of Canterbury on 4 December 1928, this latter piece rolls with confidence from the outset, a strong declamatory unison leading to an antiphonal representation of the angelic chorus before the opening material is transformed into a prayerful, supplicatory ending.
Ralph Vaughan Williams - Serenade to Music olla-vogala 2016-01-09 | - Composer: Ralph Vaughan Williams (12 October 1872 -- 26 August 1958)- Orchestra: London Philharmonic- Performers: Norma Burrowes, Sheila Armstrong, Sheila Armstrong, Marie Hayward, Gloria Jennings, Shirley Minty, Meriel Dickinson, Alfreda Hodgson, Bernard Dickerson, Wynford Evans, Kenneth Bowen, Ian Partridge, Christopher Keyte, John Noble, John Carol Case, Richard Angas- Conductor: Sir Adrian Boult- Year of recording: 1969 (remaster - 1987)Serenade to Music ("How sweet the moonlight sleeps upon this bank!") for 16 soloists (or soloists & chorus) & orchestra, written in 1938.One of the finest of all musical settings of Shakespeare, the Serenade to Music was written for and dedicated to Henry Wood on the occasion of his golden jubilee as a conductor, "in grateful recognition of his services to music." Wood, who for decades had been associated with the enormously popular Promenade Concerts in London, had participated in many premieres of Vaughan Williams' compositions and was much admired by the composer. For his tribute, Vaughan Williams had the splendid idea of creating a work that would incorporate the talents of 16 well-known British singers who had had long associations with Wood, for each of whom Vaughan Williams would create a characteristic phrase to sing. These 16 singers took part in the premiere of the Serenade at Wood's Golden Jubilee concert at the Royal Albert Hall, London, on 5 October 1938, with Wood himself conducting a large orchestra of musicians drawn from the London Symphony, London Philharmonic, BBC Symphony, and Queen's Hall orchestras. It was an emotional performance that, it is said, reduced Sergei Rachmaninov (who was in attendance) to tears. Thankfully these same performers recorded the work a few days later, so listeners today can still share in the moving quality of the event.Vaughan Williams chose for his text Lorenzo's speech on music in Portia's garden from Act Five, Scene One of The Merchant of Venice. The opening gesture of the Serenade is unusually beautiful, and a solo violin helps establish the languorous mood of a Mediterranean garden. The voices enter, and one of the sopranos sings a rapturous ascending phrase at the first mention of "sweet harmony." Men's voices take over to describe the "floor of heaven...thick inlaid with patines of bright gold," and a brief note of anxiety enters. Fanfares then sound the wakening of Diana, followed by a more melancholy passage contemplating "the man that hath no music in himself." Diana's fanfares briefly return and lead back to the peaceful opening melody, which also concludes the work in hushed fashion. The singers collectively intone the final words, "sweet harmony," and the piece ends in utter tranquility.
Paul Hindemith - String Quartet No. 2, Op. 10 olla-vogala 2016-01-08 | - Composer: Paul Hindemith (16 November 1895 -- 28 December 1963)- Performers: Kocian Quartet:Pavel Hůla (violin), Jan Odstrčil (violin), Zbyněk Paďourek (viola), Václav Bernášek (cello)- Year of recording: 1995String Quartet No. 2 in F minor, Op. 10, written in 1918.00:00 - I. Sehr lebhaft, straff im Rhythmus05:46 - II. Thema mit Variationen. Gemächlich15:43 - III. Finale. Sehr lebhaftPaul Hindemith wrote his three-movement String Quartet No. 2, Op. 10, between January and April 1918 while he was a soldier in the field, yet it is free of those horrors of war which Hindemith experienced and also described in a war diary; by his own testimony he survived a grenade attack only "by a miracle". With the composition of this work Hindemith seems to have released himself physically and to have escaped into another world which gave him the power to withstand the terrible experiences of the war. The work is a first synthesis of his early compositions. It seems to be as much influenced by Brahms or Reger, as by the colouristic stimulus and impetus of Slavic music.- Hindemith constructs the first movement as a concise sonata movement with thematic material which is pithy and which never gets out of control or is too insistent. In the development section he includes, unusually enough, a fugato, which is to be performed "completely listlessly, numb" and which maintains the identity of the fugal subject which is derived from the main theme, not just breaking it up or fragmenting it. - The six variations of the middle movement, on an original theme, which returns unaltered at the end, stand out not only through the superior intervention of the art of thematic transformation, but also perhaps suggest the fourth variation, which has the character of a slow march and which should be played "like music from afar", and in the third variation which has parodies of expressive "romantic" playing with rubato. - The Finale, on the other hand, is a technically challenging, extremely demanding, concertante virtuoso movement for all four instruments, with an elegantly catchy subsidiary theme, that skilful chamber music opens up with supporting elements, completes and extends. It ends with a rousing coda.As the distinguished music critic Alfred Einstein observed in the 1920s, this music operates with "an absolutely overpowering joy in playing and hearing music." It stands as another good example that Hindemith's string quartets cycle should be just as famous as Bartók's and Shostakovich's.
Ralph Vaughan Williams - Sancta Civitas olla-vogala 2016-01-07 | - Composer: Ralph Vaughan Williams (12 October 1872 -- 26 August 1958)- Orchestra: Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra- Choirs: Winchester Cathedral Choristers, Winchester College Quiristers, The Bach Choir- Conductor: David Hill- Soloists: Andrew Staples (tenor), Matthew Brook (baritone)- Year of recording: 2009Sancta Civitas [The Holy City], oratorio, written between 1923-1925.00:00 - I. I was in the spirit (Lento)05:28 - II. And I saw Heaven opened (Allegro)07:46 - III. And I saw an angel standing in the sun (Meno Mosso)08:53 - IV. Babylon the great is fallen (Lento)13:34 - V. Rejoice over her O Heavens (Allegro Moderato)16:37 - VI. And I saw a new heaven (Adagio)21:11 - VII. Therefore are they before the throne of God (Poco Meno Largo)22:13 - VIII. And I saw a pure river24:28 - IX. Holy, Holy, Holy (Andante Sostenuto)25:21 - X. Heaven and earth are full of Thy glory (Poco Animato)Vaughan Williams completed this work during a very productive year, a year that also yielded the Three Songs from Shakespeare, Two Poems by Seumus O'Sullivan, the Concerto academico (Concerto for Violin and String Orchestra), and his collaborative work on the hymn book, Songs of Praise, with the Rev. Percy Dearmer and Martin Shaw. An atheist in his early years but later mellowing to agnosticism, Vaughan Williams wrote or arranged more sacred and church service music than any other major composer of the twentieth century. Thus, Sancta Civitas (The Holy City) was just one of many fine works in the genre.Using texts from the Bible, Taverner's (1539) Bible (a revised version of the early [pre-King James] English Bible), and other sacred sources Vaughan Williams fashioned this oratorio for tenor and baritone soloists, chorus, semi-chorus, off-stage chorus, and orchestra. The work is divided into ten continuous sections. - The first, "I Was in the Spirit," is marked Lento and is mostly somber and gloomy in character. - In contrast the second, "And I Saw Heaven Opened" (Allegro) is bright and lively, the choral writing quite ecstatic and the whole grandiose and colourful.- The ensuing "And I Saw an Angel Standing in the Sun" (Meno Mosso) is grim and powerful, with rumbling drums and darkly atmospheric writing for the baritone soloist. The music here is intense, sounding ominous and often nearly crushing in its choral and orchestral sonorities. - "Babylon the Great is Fallen" (Lento) is lovely in its rich post-Romantic character, recalling the style of such choral works as Toward the Unknown Region (1905 - 1906), the composer's first major success.- The next section, "Rejoice Over Her O Heavens" (Allegro Moderato) has a muscular manner and mixes the celebratory with the somber,- while the ensuing "And I Saw a New Heaven" (Adagio) is celestial and gentle, featuring a lovely theme on violin. Here the mood recalls the composer's popular Romance for violin and orchestra, The Lark Ascending. - The music builds up and leads to the epiphanic moment that punctuates the opening of the next section, "Therefore Are They Before the Throne of God" (Poco Meno Largo).- The ensuing "And I Saw a Pure River" is ethereal and lovely, featuring the attractive violin writing that appeared in "And I Saw a New Heaven." - In the last two sections "Holy, Holy, Holy" (Andante Sostenuto) and "Heaven and Earth Are Full of Thy Glory" (Poco Animato), Vaughan Williams builds from ethereal and gossamer music to a grand triumph and sense of spiritual relief. Many consider this to be the composer's greatest oratorio, but it must also be ranked among his very best choral works. Sancta Civitas lasts about a half hour in performance and has received several recordings over the years, but, unfortunately, is still not as widely-known as many lesser works in its genre.
Ralph Vaughan Williams - Flos Campi olla-vogala 2016-01-07 | - Composer: Ralph Vaughan Williams (12 October 1872 -- 26 August 1958) - Orchestra: Bournemouth Sinfonietta - Choir: Bournemouth Sinfonietta Choir - Conductor: Norman del Mar - Soloist: Frederick Riddle (viola)- Year of recording: 1977Flos Campi, suite for viola, small chorus & small orchestra, written in 1925.00:00 - 1. Sicut Lilium in spinas (Lento)02:43 - 2. Jam enim hiems transiit (Andante con moto)06:00 - 3. Quaesivi quem diligit anima mea (Lento - Allegro moderato)09:19 - 4. Et lectulum Salomonis (Moderato alla marcia)11:24 - 5. Revertere, revertere Sulamitis! (Andante quasi lento)14:43 - 6. Pone me ut signaculum (Moderato tranquillo)Vaughan Williams played the viola, and frequently professed it was his favorite instrument. Along with the Suite for viola and orchestra of 1934, his most significant work for the instrument is the unusual Flos Campi [Flower of the Field], which combines the viola with a spare orchestral backing of strings, winds, tabor, and celesta, along with a mixed choir that sings wordlessly. It was first performed on 10 October 1925, in London, with violist Lionel Tertis, voices from the Royal College of Music, and the Queen's Hall Orchestra conducted by Sir Henry Wood. The reaction was mixed, and even such close friends of the composer as Gustav Holst admitted themselves puzzled by this subtle and voluptuous work.In a program note for a 1927 performance, Vaughan Williams admitted "The title Flos Campi was taken by some to connote an atmosphere of 'buttercups and daisies....'" This is, in fact, far from the atmosphere of this work. Each of its six movements is headed by a quotation from the Old Testament's Song of Solomon, and it is the passionate quality of that text which informs Flos Campi. - The work opens with the juxtaposition of viola and oboe, both playing melodically but in different keys, creating palpable tension. This opening movement is languorous and mysterious, its associated text speaking of the sickness of love, of how it is a "lily among thorns." - Nature springs to life in the second movement, with the "singing of birds" and the "voice of the turtle." - But the beloved is not present, and the third movement is passionate and agitated, with the viola accompanied mostly by the women of the choir. - Men "expert in war" are at Solomon's bed in the vigorous fourth-movement march, in which the violist has an opportunity for some virtuoso display. The music builds to a rather tense climax, at which point we hear the murmuring of voices, over which the viola soars longingly. - The orchestra takes up this music in a more peaceful strain, and the choir sings in sweet polyphony. - The opening viola-oboe duet returns, but its ambivalence is resolved as the melodic material of the fifth movement is taken up again in a quiet and magical coda.Flos Campi is dedicated: "To Lionel Tertis".
Ralph Vaughan Williams - Dona Nobis Pacem olla-vogala 2016-01-07 | - Composer: Ralph Vaughan Williams (12 October 1872 -- 26 August 1958)- Orchestra: London Symphony Orchestra & Chorus- Conductor: Richard Hickox- Soloists: Bryn Terfel (baritone), Yvonne Kenny (soprano), Philip Langridge (tenor)- Year of recording: 1993Dona Nobis Pacem (English: Grant us peace), a cantata written in 1936.00:00 - I. 'Agnus Dei' (Lento)03:59 - II. 'Beat! beat! drums!' (Allegro moderato)07:55 - III. Reconciliation (Allegro moderato)15:05 - IV. Dirge for Two Veterans (Moderato alla marcia)26:42 - V. 'The Angel of Death has been abroad' (L'istesso tempo)30:10 - VI. 'O man greatly beloved'Dona Nobis Pacem fills a very large canvas, its theme is anguished and impassioned on a cosmic scale. It is, if you like, 'propaganda', an 'occasional' piece—if pleas for peace and tolerance and understanding can ever suitably be described as 'occasional'. No question here but that the motivation was war, or the deepening sense of trouble which by the mid-1930s seemed set to explode into war. Vaughan Williams compiled a text chiefly from the Bible and Whitman (though the work's motto, and the words of its first movement, belong to the Mass) and Dona Nobis Pacem was first performed in Huddersfield on 2 October 1936, with the Huddersfield Choral Society and the Hallé Orchestra conducted by Albert Coates.In the event, Vaughan Williams's warnings and entreaties went unheeded. But the humanitarian warmth and splendour of his vision remains; and, after all, if the day ever dawns when composers fail to speak out through the medium of their art against mankind's seemingly illimitable folly and wickedness, we shall be in a poor way, to put it mildly.(I) The soprano solo leads the forces of apprehensive humanity (the chorus) in their quest for peace. At the end the drums of war are heard in the far distance.(II) War erupts: nothing and nobody is inviolate. The Whitman setting is dominated by beating drums and blowing bugles, inbuilt in the music even when the text isn't directly referring to them. In an inspired transition (Vaughan Williams no less than Britten was a master of the seamless scene-change) the drums of war turn into the lapping, laving rhythms of ...(III) Reconciliation. The 'enemy' is dead—'a man as divine as myself', as in Wilfred Owen's 'Strange Meeting'—and music of transcendent beauty and simplicity warms and cleanses the world.(IV) Dirge for Two Veterans. A second drum-study. This time the drums are not of war but of its aftermath—death, and burial. Vaughan Williams based this movement on an earlier setting of the same words made before his mature style had crystallized. This works to his advantage since the music has a kind of rude solidity and strength which a more sophisticated musical language might have mellowed. It would be easy to sentimentalize Whitman here, and this Vaughan Williams resolutely avoids.(V) The ostinato bass which plays out the 'veterans' now plays in the Angel of Death. The snorting of Dan's horses momentarily recalls the apocalyptic equine visions of Sancta Civitas[uploaded on this channel], but these are soon dispelled by one of the work's most magical moments, the solo baritone's reassuring:(VI) 'O man, greatly beloved, fear not, peace be unto thee'. Chorus basses intone the great text from Micah, almost every word a poem: 'Nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.' The word spreads among all instruments and tongues in prospect of a New Jerusalem: bells ring out in a riotous succession of keys and peals, and what better than C major for the Christmas climax:'On earth peace, goodwill toward men'? As the sounds of the heavenly host move out of earshot the soprano solo rises from them with a final reiteration of her entreaty: hers alone is the voice that lingers at the end like a solitary ray of hope, a light in the night.
Ralph Vaughan Williams - Benedicite olla-vogala 2016-01-07 | - Composer: Ralph Vaughan Williams (12 October 1872 -- 26 August 1958)- Orchestra: Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra- Choirs: Waynflete Singers, Choir Of Winchester Cathedral- Conductor: David Hill- Soloist: Lynda Russell (soprano)- Year of recording: 1992(?)Benedicite for soprano, chorus & orchestra, written in 1929.Vaughan Williams often tended to focus on the composition of works in a specific genre at certain periods in his career. In 1913, for example, he wrote incidental scores to no less than seven plays (five by Shakespeare), and in 1920 he wrote a spate of hymns, hymn arrangements, songs, and song arrangements (including one of Stephen Foster's Old Folks at Home!). This Benedicite initiated a series of works in the sacred and hymn genres, which included the Hundredth Psalm, Three Choral Hymns, and Songs of Praise for Boys and Girls. Among these compositions, the Benedicite is probably the most important and masterful effort. Scored for soprano, chorus, and orchestra, this work has largely been neglected over the years despite its high artistic quality.For his texts Vaughan Williams used "The Song of the Three Holy Children" (from Apocrypha) and John Austin's "Hark, my soul, how everything." The first source accounts for over half the work's text, and begins with the words, "O all ye works of the Lord, bless ye the Lord: praise him, and magnify him for ever", repeated many times by the singers. The opening, featuring a brief orchestral introduction followed by a spirited entrance by the chorus, is vigorous and colourful, sounding more regal and festive than glorious and religious. The beautiful middle section is subdued and reflective, and the latter part returns to the mood of the opening.Not surprisingly, Vaughan Williams' writing for the soprano soloist is lovely, often haunting, while the choral and orchestral scoring are more vigorous and colourful. Overall, this work must be judged among the composer's finer choral compositions.Benedicite is "dedicated to L.H.M.C. Towns Division".
Ralph Vaughan Williams - A Sea Symphony olla-vogala 2016-01-05 | - Composer: Ralph Vaughan Williams (12 October 1872 -- 26 August 1958)- Orchestra: London Philharmonic Orchestra- Choirs: London Philharmonic Choir, Cantilena- Conductor: Bernard Haitink- Soloists: Felicity Lott (soprano), Jonathan Summers (baritone)- Year of recording: 1989Symphony No. 1 for soprano, baritone, chorus & orchestra ("A Sea Symphony"), written in 1903-1909.00:00 - 1: A Song for All Seas, All Ships (baritone, soprano, and chorus)20:58 - 2: on the Beach at Night, Alone (baritone and chorus)33:02 - 3: Scherzo: The Waves (chorus)40:00 - 4: The Explorers (baritone, soprano, semi-chorus, and chorus)The poetry of Walt Whitman was a rallying point for Vaughan Williams and his fellow students at Cambridge in the 1890's; for the composer, Whitman remained a lifelong source of inspiration. His largest Whitman setting is A Sea Symphony, which Vaughan Williams began writing in 1903, when he was 31 years old, and which he completed, only after much revision in 1909. Whitman's decidedly non-ecclesiastical vision of the soul's journey through life as a sea voyage into uncharted regions certainly appealed to Vaughan Williams, a declared agnostic who once exclaimed "Who believes in God nowadays, I should like to know?" according to fellow Trinity scholar Betrand Russell.Drawing inspiration from the cantatas of Parry and the operettas of Sullivan, as well as the English folk songs he had recently begun to collect, Vaughan Williams fashioned a huge score that contains some of the finest choral writing of its era.- In the first movement, "A Song for All Seas, All Ships," a stern brass flourish is answered by full chorus, "Behold the sea itself." Thematic motives that will inform the rest of the work are immediately sounded: the words "and on its limitless, heaving breast, the ships" are set to a noble, arching theme that appeared more than once in Vaughan Williams' music, from the early unpublished tone-poem "The Solent" to the Symphony No. 9 of 1958. A quicker, shanty-like section ensues, making use of the folk song "Tarry Trowsers," in which the baritone soloist sings "a rude, brief recitative of ships sailing the seas." The dramatic entry of the soprano is heralded by the opening brass flourish; her cavatina extends the imagery into the spiritual: "...for the soul of man one flag above all the rest...emblem of man elate above death [.]"- The second movement is a nocturne, "On the Beach at Night, Alone," for baritone and chorus, in which to a dark rocking accompaniment the soloist muses on "the clef of the universes" and, over a soft march-like tread in the bass (the legacy of Parry), envisions how "A vast similitude interlocks all." The chorus unleashes a forthright and powerful declamation after which the initial mystery of the opening returns, this time with orchestra alone.- A sprightly version of the opening fanfare, with pizzicato strings, launches the scherzo "The Waves" for chorus alone. The quick and lightly scored counterpoint in the orchestral accompaniment underscores the interplay of "whistling winds...undulating waves...that whirling current" through which a ship plies its way. The trio is a broad, Parryesque melody to the words "Where the great vessel sailing and tacking displaced the surface." The movement concludes with alternating fanfares for both brass and chorus.- "The Explorers" is fully half an hour in length, a finale containing some of Vaughan Williams' most noble music. Here the metaphor of the soul as a ship voyaging through the seas of life is most forthrightly expressed. A quiet introduction for hushed chorus ("O vast Rondure, swimming in space") is followed by a slow march describing the "restless" soul of man from its origins in Adam and Eve, climaxing in a vision of the poet, "the true son of God" who will guide mankind through his songs. The soprano and baritone soloists sing of the Soul "taking ship" to "launch out on trackless seas" in a duet of operatic, almost Wagnerian, fervor. A faster section ("Away O Soul!") launches the Soul's journey, with a final note of benediction ("O daring joy, but safe! are they not all the seas of God?") before the symphony sinks from sight in the lowest strings.
Ralph Vaughan Williams - Five Variants of Dives and Lazarus olla-vogala 2016-01-05 | - Composer: Ralph Vaughan Williams (12 October 1872 -- 26 August 1958)- Orchestra: Jacques Orchestra- Conductor: Sir David Willcocks- Year of recording: 1970"Five Variants of Dives and Lazarus" for harp(s) and string orchestra, written in 1939.00:00 - Introduction and Theme: Adagio, B modal minor03:40 - Variant I: B modal minor04:52 - Variant II: Allegro moderato, B modal minor06:38 - Variant III: D modal minor08:05 - Variant IV: L'istesso tempo09:08 - Variant V: Adagio, B modal minorVaughan Williams composed the work on commission from the British Council to be played at the 1939 World's Fair in New York City. The first performance was by the New York Philharmonic at Carnegie Hall on 10 June 1939, conducted by Sir Adrian Boult. Boult remembered that on this first performance New York was hit by a heat wave, while there was no air conditioning in the Carnegie Hall. The temperature in the room was 89 degrees Fahrenheit (which is about 32 degrees Celsius), so the public used the program booklets to fan themselves.About the music Vaughan Williams remarked: "These variants are not exact replicas of traditional tunes, but rather reminiscences of various versions in my own collection and those of others." However, the piece is made up of five variants on the famous 16th century folk melody "Dives and Lazarus", which was one of Vaughan Williams' favourite melodies, and is featured in his "English Folk Song Suite". Music critic Michael Kennedy added to this: "It seemed as if the fury of the F minor [4th symphony], the rumbustiouness of the Tudor Portraits and the vigour of Dona Nobis Pacem had left him [Vaughan Williams] temporarily content to recall an earlier and simpler style, matured by years of experience."Five Variants of Dives and Lazarus was also played during the interment of the ashes of Ralph Vaughan Williams in Westminster Abbey on 19 September 1958.
Maurice Ravel - 3 Poèmes de Stéphane Mallarmé olla-vogala 2016-01-05 | - Composer: Joseph-Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 -- 28 December 1937) - Performers: Matti Hirvikangas (viola), Ulf Forsberg (violin), Nils-Erik Sparf (violin), Per Billman (bass clarinet), Per Billman (clarinet), Lars Paulsson (clarinet), Peter Rydström (piccolo), Peter Rydström (flute), Andreas Alin (flute), Bengt Forsberg (piano), Mats Lindström (cello)- Soloist: Anne Sofie von Otter (mezzo soprano)- Year of recording: 1994Trois poèmes de Stéphane Mallarmé, song cycle for voice & ensemble (or piano), written in 1913.00:00 - I. Soupir [à Igor Stravinsky]04:22 - II. Placet futile [à Florent Schmitt]08:55 - III. Surgi de la croupe et du bond [à Erik Satie]In a 1927 interview, Maurice Ravel said of the symbolist poet Stéphane Mallarmé that he "exorcised our language, like the magician that he was. He has released the winged thoughts, the unconscious daydreams from their prison." Mallarmé had been an immense influence on a variety of artists, including Ravel, who had set his first Mallarmé poem, Sainte, in 1896 and returned to the poet's work in 1913 with the Trois poèmes. Around that time Ravel had heard Igor Stravinsky's Trois poésies de la lyrique japonaise (1912-1913), and was particularly impressed by Stravinsky's arrangement, in which the singer was backed by an ensemble of piano, string quartet, two flutes, and two clarinets. Stravinsky, in turn, had been much influenced by Arnold Schoenberg's notorious Pierrot lunaire (1912), with its similar instrumentation. On completing his songs, which employed the same instrumental layout as Stravinsky's, Ravel envisioned what he called a "scandalous concert," featuring his songs along with Stravinsky's and Schoenberg's. That concert did take place, although with songs by Maurice Delage replacing the Schoenberg, under the auspices of the Société Musicale Indépendante on 14 January 1914. Soprano Jane Bathori, one of the best known French singers of her day, was featured, along with an ensemble conducted by Désiré-Emile Inghelbrecht.The increasing angularity and dissonance of Ravel's Trois poèmes reflects the increasingly dissociative imagery of the three Mallarmé poems. The first song, "Soupir" (Sigh), is in two parts, the first slow and delicate (evoking the poet's "white fountains"), the second more spacious and evanescent. The vocal line becomes more a bit more jagged in "Placet futile" (Futile Petition), a gently melancholy love song. And with the third and final song, "Surgi de la croupe et du bond" (Risen from the Crupper and Leap), Ravel comes as close to the atonality of Arnold Schoenberg as he ever would. This setting of what Ravel once called "the strangest, if not the most hermetic" of Mallarmé's sonnets is still and mysterious, with a very spare accompaniment.Coincidentally, at the very time that Ravel was composing his Trois poèmes, Claude Debussy was also setting three of Mallarmé's poems (both were perhaps inspired by a new complete edition of Mallarmé's poetry which had just been published). Not only that, but they had both chosen to set two of the same poems; Debussy called this a "phenomenon of autosuggestion worthy of communication to the Academy of Medicine."
Jan van Gilse - Trio for Flute, Violin and Viola olla-vogala 2016-01-04 | - Composer: Jan Pieter Hendrik van Gilse (11 May 1881 -- 8 September 1944) - Performers: Viotta Ensemble - Year of recording: 1996 Trio for Flute, Violin and Viola {Flöte, Violine und Bratsche}, written ca. 1927. 00:00 - I. Ruhig, frei - Allegro, molto moderato 05:12 - II. Alla marcia leggiero 09:44 - III. Molto vivace The Trio for Flute, Violin and Viola from Dutch composer Jan van Gilse was probably completed in the spring of 1927. It is one of his most accomplished chamber works, with a prominent role for the flute, which has a graceful character due to the absence of a bass instrument. The piece was originally suggested by an amateur flautist who was also a friend of Van Gilse, but the composer eventually dedicated it to his old friend Hermann Draber, with whom he had studied in Cologne, Germany. - The flute begins, free as a lark. The violin and viola then join in, making their claim to the listener's attention in this animated game. - A tranquil conclusion leads straight into the second movement: a vigorous and spirited march with a contrasting central section. - In the fugue-like finale with its tarantella character Van Gilse demonstrates the seldom seen happier side of his nature.The piece bears the dedication "An Hermann W. Draber in alter Freundschaft".
Robert Schumann - Violin Concerto in D minor, WoO 23 olla-vogala 2016-01-04 | - Composer: Robert Schumann (8 June 1810 -- 29 July 1856)- Orchestra: Chamber Orchestra of Europe- Conductor: Nikolaus Harnoncourt- Soloist: Gidon Kremer- Year of recording: 1994Violin Concerto in D minor, WoO 23, written in 1853.00:00 - I. In kräftigem, nicht zu schnellem Tempo15:23 - II. Langsam20:43 - III. Lebhaft, doch nicht schnellOn 21 September 1853, Schumann entered into his daily record: "Have begun a piece for violin." On 1 October, he noted that the "Concerto for Violin is finished," and by the third of the same month the piece was completely orchestrated. This record represents the last truly productive and happy time for the composer. He wished to have the Violin Concerto performed in Düsseldorf, but gave up his conducting post there, making such a concert nearly impossible. A concert tour and his production of music criticism made the planning of a performance a matter of secondary importance. Finally, the onset of his mental illness eliminated all hope of his programming the concerto, the saga of which continued long after the composer's death.Shortly after completing the Violin Concerto, Schumann sent the piece to Joseph Joachim (1831-1907), asking if there were any passages that were "unplayable." Joachim, the concerto's intended recipient, was initially supportive of Schumann's efforts, but shortly after Schumann's death in 1856 expressed his displeasure with "dreadful passages for the violin" to Clara Schumann. To this, Clara reacted by asking Joachim to re-write the last movement, which he never did. When Joachim finally did give a private performance of the concerto, in 1858 in Leipzig, Brahms found it so unsatisfactory that he elected not to include it in the Complete Edition of Schumann's Works, which he was then editing; which proves that Brahms musical judgement was not without fault. Clara, Brahms, and Joachim decided the work should never be published.Many years later, Joachim's son sold the manuscript of the concerto to the Prussian State Library, stipulating that the piece not be performed before the one-hundredth anniversary of Schumann's death. In 1937, Georg Schünemann found the manuscript, edited and published it despite the protests of Schumann's daughter, Eugenie. The concerto was first performed in Berlin by Georg Kulenkampff on 26 November 1937, and again on 16 February 1938, in London by Jelly D'Aranyi, Joachim's great-niece. Since its publication, critics' evaluations of the concerto have varied.- In contrast to Schumann's other concertos, that for violin features a first movement built on the double exposition principal we find in Viennese Classical-era concertos. However, Schumann does not use the ritornello material as did his predecessors; he presents the secondary theme in a new key -- the relative major (F major) -- instead of reserving the modulation for the solo exposition as in most of the Viennese models. Thus, from the very beginning of the work we hear Schumann's "relaxed" approach to sonata form, in which tonal conflict is no longer of primary concern. When the solo part finally appears, it is with the first theme, without introductory flourishes and on the dominant. The developmental central section is not a "working out" (in a Beethovenian sense) but a transformation of thematic material, the repetitiveness of which Joachim found disturbing. The high point of the recapitulation is the return of the secondary subject in the solo part, which includes its own accompaniment of running sixteenth notes.- The brief second movement, in B flat major, features one of Schumann's most beautiful themes, one that is similar to one Schumann (over a year later) thought was dictated to him in the asylum; Brahms would later write a set of variations on this theme. In the concerto, when Schumann recapitulates this theme, it is a third lower and in the minor mode, lending it greater poignancy. - The Finale is a polonaise with a vivacious opening that drives to a bright close on D major. As a unifying device, Schumann accompanies the second subject with a variation of the opening measures of the second movement.
Maurice Duruflé - Requiem, Op. 9 olla-vogala 2016-01-03 | - Composer: Maurice Duruflé (11 January 1902 -- 16 June 1986)- Orchestra: Orchestre de la Cité- Choir: Michel Piquemal Vocal Ensemble- Conductor: Michel Piquemal- Soloists: Didier Henry (tenor), Béatrice Uria-Monzon (mezzo soprano), Eric Lebrun (organ), François Poly (cello), Marc Vieillefon (violin)- Year of recording: 1994Requiem, for orchestra, organ & chorus / for organ & chorus / for small ensemble, organ & chorus, Op. 9 (3 versions), written in 1947.00:00 - I. Introit03:25 - II. Kyrie06:47 - III. Domine Jesu Christe14:58 - IV. Sanctus18:08 - V. Pie Jesu22:03 - VI. Agnus Dei26:02 - VII. Lux Aeterna29:38 - VIII. Libera Me35:23 - IX. In ParadisumIn 1947, Maurice Duruflé was already working on a suite of pieces for organ based on the Gregorian chants for the requiem mass (the service for the dead), when he was commissioned by his publisher Durand to write a large-scale work based on those texts. The resulting Requiem, originally for orchestra and chorus, is the culmination of Duruflé's style, mixing chant, quasi-Renaissance counterpoint, and sumptuous harmony derived from Fauré, Debussy, and Ravel.Duruflé made three versions of this work; the final one, completed in 1961, is for choir, string orchestra, trumpets, and organ; it is the most practical and the most commonly used (also in this recording). He used the same text as Fauré had done in his Requiem of 1889, omitting the Dies Irae [Day of Wrath] section which, although it provided some of the most spectacular music in the Mozart, Berlioz, and Verdi settings, was not compatible with the gentler, more reassuring tone of the work. This peaceful quality is in many ways simply a reflection of the Requiem's indebtedness to Gregorian chant, the flowing, easy quality of which serves as a musical template for many of the movements (chant formed a large part of Duruflé's musical upbringing: from 1912 to 1918 he was a boy chorister at the cathedral in Rouen, where the services were almost entirely chanted, and his professional education was at the Paris Conservatoire, where harmonizing chant melodies was a large part of the training for organists). Duruflé presents the chants quite clearly, much as in his Four Motets on Gregorian themes. The serene mood is enhanced by pervasive imitative counterpoint in a quasi-Renaissance melodic style. There is often a similarity of sound between Duruflé's music and that of Vaughan Williams, who briefly studied in France and also used modal melodies and counterpoint, though for him these archaic-sounding techniques were inspired by English folk music and the composers of the Tudor era. With Duruflé, the modal counterpoint is supported by rich, and very French, added-note harmonies.Duruflé's grounding in the past is evident throughout the Requiem. The opening movement, one of the most beautiful in twentieth century music, sets a mood for the rest of the piece: running sixteenths (a favorite device of Duruflé's) create a wash of sound, preparing the entrance of the tenors and basses intoning the requiem chant, soon accompanied by a wordless vocalise from the women's voices. The original chant melodies are present in many of the movements; a striking instance is the Kyrie, where the trumpets sound the chant melody in long notes over a busy contrapuntal texture in the choir (which in turn is based on a rhythmicized version of the chant). The effect is similar to that of Bach's famous cantus firmus cantata opening movements -- Wachet Auf and Ein' feste Burg are good examples. Another striking section is the Pie Jesu, which Duruflé sets in a style very similar to Fauré, with a mezzo-soprano solo accompanied only by organ and cello; unfortunately the soloist in this recording sounds a bit bloated. In the final movement, In Paradisum, the sopranos, supported by full chords in the strings, sing the incantatory chant promising the deceased a peaceful welcome into heaven. At the words "chorus angelorum te suscipiat" [May the choir of angels receive you], the other singers enter with a beautiful, slowly descending passage to end the work. Duruflé's wife has said that while composing his Requiem, which is dedicated to the memory of his father, Duruflé "cried several times"; it is indeed one of the most moving religious works of the twentieth century.
Kees van Baaren - Piano Sonatina olla-vogala 2015-12-31 | - Composer: Cornelis Leendert [Kees] van Baaren (22 Oktober 1906 -- 2 September 1970)- Performer: Ronald Brautigam- Year of recording: 1996Sonatina for piano, written in 1948.00:00 - I. Allegretto01:09 - II. Lento non troppo04:01 - III. Vivo e leggieroVan Baaren was a renowned music teacher in The Netherlands, among his students were many names who would dominate the Dutch avant garde scene in the sixties and seventies, like Louis Andriessen, Reinbert de Leeuw, Misha Mengelberg, Peter Schat, and Jan van Vlijmen.On the death of Willem Pijper (his teacher) in 1947, he wrote this Piano Sonatina in his memory. He used his motto, "I must not have a note too many" in this work. It is a fine, well-punctuated piece and the composer continued to compose in his dodecaphonic style, a style dismissed and, indeed, savaged by many at the time. This is however one of the best piano sonatinas that the Netherlands has brought forth (a style popular with Dutch composers at the time), and should really be played more often these days.The Piano Sonatina is dedicated "In memoriam WILLEM PIJPER".
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck - 6 Variations on Mein junges Leben hat ein End olla-vogala 2015-12-31 | - Composer: Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck (April/May 1562 -- 16 October 1621)- Performer: James David Christie- Year of recording: 19936 Variations on 'Mein junges Leben hat ein End', SwWV 324.Citizens of the Dutch city and guests alike might flock to the Oude Kerk in the heart of town: the "Orpheus of Amsterdam," Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, was giving his daily public concert on the church organ. Since Amsterdam's adoption of the Reformed faith in 1578, the organ could not be tolerated playing during a worship service, but the church organist could ply his formidable talents just before or after a service. Students came from across Europe as well, to learn of Sweelinck the principals of keyboard playing, which at the time meant how to improvise fantasia-like preludes or how to improvise upon a given melody. Though the students came presumably to learn improvisation on sacred tunes, the public became accustomed to hearing the master ornament, as well their favorite secular melodies. Sweelinck's set of keyboard variations on the lied "Mein junges Leben hat ein End" is preserved for posterity in a single manuscript copy and may represent the kind of public improvisation that made him famous.The German song upon which he wrote this set of six variations is a stylized lament in minor mode, and Sweelinck milks it for all its harmonic riches from the outset. His setting of the first variation, in a fairly straightforward four-voiced style, bristles with harmonic cross-relations, small syncopations, and descending musical lines. The second follows a similar harmonic pattern, but adds richer, more complex countermelodies. The third and fourth are more "instrumental" in character, the first a toccata-like version encrusted with running passages in several rhythms and the other an exploration of even more diverse rhythmic elaborations and figurations. The fifth continues Sweelinck's romp through the gamut of keyboard figurations, alternating passages of parallel notes and arpeggiations. Finally, the sixth variation distills a few of the previous techniques and places them in inner voices such that new contrapuntal relationships between the soprano melody and the bass -- a bass line first strongly rising through the entire octave, then giving inverted imitations of a second theme, and the superimpositions of different melodies -- may be more evident.
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck - Hexachord Fantasia olla-vogala 2015-12-31 | - Composer: Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck (April/May 1562 -- 16 October 1621) - Performer: Jonathan Dimmock - Year of recording: 2008"Hexachord Fantasia" (Fantasia Ut re mi fa sol la à 4) SwWV 263, written in 1612.Played on the mean tone organ of the Reformed Church of Oosthuizen, The Netherlands.Built on a very simple theme, little more than an ascending and descending chromatic scale, this is an exercise in ornamentation and development. Sweelinck explores the full range of the instrument (the organ) from pedals to the top of the keyboard. He brings much variety to the presentation, and some repetition. This piece doesn't modulate - change key - and isn't strictly fugal, but the use of various stops (voices) add interest. The rhythm is steady, the tempo doesn't change at all. But the piece ends with fast runs of notes, by subdivision of the beat.
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck - Fantasia contraria in G Dorian olla-vogala 2015-12-31 | - Composer: Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck (April/May 1562 -- 16 October 1621)- Performer: Glenn Gould- Year of recording: 1964Fantasia Contraria {in G dorian}, for keyboard, SwWV 270A piece written in Sweelinck's favourite fantasia form, with his characteristic rhythmic augmentation of the material, which leads the fantasia to an energetic ending. One can only imagine Sweelinck improvising on the organ, writing these notes down, and this is what we can still listen to today!This is music of the rarest kind, crystallized culmination on the keyboard of the centuries old art of polyphony, making the subsequent Baroque and Classical eras appear like perhaps a little light music in comparison.
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck - Fantasia Cromatica olla-vogala 2015-12-31 | - Composer: Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck (April/May 1562 -- 16 October 1621)- Performer: Helmut Walcha- Year of recording: 1977 (On the Schnitger organ at Cappel, Germany)Fantasia Cromatica in D minor/dorian, SwWV 258.The Fantasia Cromatica is Sweelinck's most famous work—probably because of the spectacular nature of the theme (a chromatic descending fourth) and the extreme turbulence at the end when the theme appears double-diminished.Sweelinck was called the "Orpheus of Amsterdam", he spent almost all of his long and productive musical life, a 44-year career, playing the organ and harpsichord for Amsterdam's Oude Kerk. In Reformed Amsterdam the organs were the property of the town, so he was a civic employee, with duties to play twice every day, an hour's concert in the morning (before church if there was a service) and an hour in the evening. Sweelinck attracted a large number of talented young musicians to travel to Amsterdam that they might study with him or hear his music, including Peter Phillips, John Bull, Samuel Scheidt, and Heinrich Scheidemann. Sweelinck was particularly known for his improvisatory skill. This lifelong practice served him best in the free-form keyboard works, such as the Fantasia Chromatica, the aptly named "chromatic" fantasy.As in all his fantasias, Sweelinck constructs a large-scale form on one single snippet of melody. Uniquely here, however, he takes a gratingly chromatic descent through a melodic fourth as his foundation. On an instrument tuned to the system of Sweelinck's time, this chromatic line would sound even more jarring, as the various half-steps were not all equidistant. In fact, the pitches E flat and D sharp were not the same under this tuning system; D sharp was a distinct and higher pitch. Sweelinck's Fantasia Chromatica is probably only the second keyboard work in history to use both pitches in the same piece (William Byrd had done so once already).The overall form of the Fantasia Chromatica unfolds in three parts, following the composer's different techniques with his chromatic melody. For most of the first half, iterations of the chromatic line sound almost constantly in one voice or another. The relentless chromaticism is made even more piquant by the frequent overlaps of entries, such that two voices will superimpose their colorful notes upon each other. After a brief respite of refreshingly non-chromatic writing, Sweelinck leaps into the second section, in which each chromatic voice sounds in augmentation to longer note values; this leads quickly to flashes of brilliant passagework in the other hand. Finally, he diminishes the note values, speeding up the pace of chromatic frenzy first to half-values, and then to a fourth. A final virtuosic flourish completes this most interesting piece.
Arthur Sullivan - The Lost Chord olla-vogala 2015-12-31 | - Composer: Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan MVO (13 May 1842 -- 22 November 1900)- Performers: Webster Booth (tenor), Herbert Dawson (organ)- Year of recording: 1939The Lost Chord, song for voice & piano, written in 1877.Arthur Sullivan's setting of The Lost Chord, by Adelaide Procter, is one of the very few non-theatrical works by the composer that one might hear today. Two versions of the ballad's origins exist, both stemming from Sullivan. The first of these claims The Lost Chord was composed, "in sorrow at my brother's death"; the other reports that Sullivan wrote the ballad while at the bedside of his dying brother, Frederic. Whatever the case may have been, the intensity and solemnity of the piece are undeniable.When Sullivan set Procter's poem to music, her works were very popular both in England and abroad; they were published in the United States and also translated into German. In 1877, her poems were in greater demand in England than those of any living writer except Tennyson. The theme of The Lost Chord is ancient, something precious and magical that may only be discovered by chance. A person seated at the organ fumbling over the keys accidentally plays a chord that feels "Like the sound of a great Amen." The poem goes on to describe the effect of this chord, which "flooded the crimson twilight," "quieted pain and sorrow," and "linked all perplexed meanings." The high point of the poem, and of Sullivan's setting, is the penultimate verse, from which the poem derives its name: "I have sought, but I seek it vainly / That one lost chord divine, / Which came from the soul of the organ / And entered into mine." In the final verse, the organist muses that he will hear this "lost chord" again "only in heaven." Sullivan's setting of The Lost Chord is appropriately sober. Repeated notes at the opening are similar to solemn passages in Patience, The Prodigal Son, and In Memoriam. Musically, The Lost Chord follows an AA1BA2 pattern, with the first stanza's melody (A) given a new accompaniment for its repeat (A1), which is then contrasted with new material (B). Yet another altered version of the stanza closes the ballad. Sullivan spices the piece with an unexpected harmonic change near the end of the first stanza.The ballad became associated with Mrs. Mary Frances ("Fanny") Ronalds. Rumor has it the Prince of Wales once stated he would travel the length of Great Britain to hear Ronalds sing The Lost Chord. Fanny Ronalds and Arthur Sullivan carried on a clandestine relationship for over 20 years. Overexposure to The Lost Chord provoked parodies and earnest mockery from the public and critics alike. In 1960, a commentator wrote: "It is to be hoped that Adelaide Procter's elusive Chord has how been lost forever." Posterity has tended to look upon The Lost Chord and other songs such as Sad Memories, Looking Back and Once Again, as examples of "the depths to which Sullivan could fall" when he tried to make money. In the late 1970s, however, Nicholas Temperley was brave enough to describe the work as "Sullivan's maligned masterpiece."
Abel Decaux - Clairs de Lune olla-vogala 2015-12-30 | - Composer: Abel Decaux (11 February 1869 -- 19 March 1943)- Performer: Frederic Chiu (piano)- Year of recording: 1994Clairs de Lune, for piano, written between 1900-1907.00:00 - No. 1 Lent (à Ferdinand Motte Lacroix) (1900)05:08 - No. 2 Lent "La Ruelle" (1902)09:52 - No. 3 Très lent "Le Cimetière" (1907)16:16 - No. 4 Très large "La Mer" (1903)Decaux’s biography is soon told, but is none the less surprising for that. Born in Auffay in 1869, the same year as Roussel and seven years after Debussy, he studied the organ with Widor and Guilmant and composition with Massenet at the Paris Conservatoire. For twenty-five years from around the turn of the century he was organist at Sacré-Cœur, then in 1923 he went to America and taught the organ at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester. Out of this routine life came these four extraordinary pieces 'Clairs de Lune', plus a sketch for a fifth piece of the set, ‘La Forêt’. Only a handful of other works are known by him.An epigraph from the writer Louis de Lutèce sets the scene, with its white moon gliding silently in space, its motionless ghosts, pale luminescences, mysterious shadows, the carcass of a yowling cat …. This is the world of Edgar Allan Poe, whose writings, translated by Baudelaire and Mallarmé, were the (masochistic) bedside reading of many a French artist of the fin-de-siècle, including Gide, Debussy and Ravel: Aloysius Bertrand’s Gaspard de la nuit belongs to the same company. Even Debussy ultimately found the task of setting The Fall of the House of Usher beyond him, but Decaux’s more limited ambition succeeded most remarkably in bringing to life this world beyond what we call reality.He wrote the pieces between 1900 and 1907, but they were not published until 1913. Whatever the reason for the delay (perhaps no other publisher would take them seriously?), Decaux’s teacher Massenet died in 1912 and so was spared what would surely have been a rude shock, not so much at the technique—as Richard Taruskin has pointed out, everything stems from the two falling bell motives at the outset (major second, major third; minor second, minor third)—as at the extraordinary harmonies and the no less extraordinary syntax. Whole tone aggregations (as at the beginning of ‘La Ruelle’) and consecutive fifths were nothing so out-of-the-way around 1900, but some of Decaux’s chords seem to have been taken from a source such as the songs in Schoenberg’s Das Buch der hängenden Gärten; the only problem being that these weren’t written until 1909. Throughout, major and minor triads are scrupulously avoided or else, as in ‘La mer’, coloured persistently with a sharpened fourth. Again, this piece was written in December 1903, nearly two years before the premiere of Debussy’s La mer and six years before his similarly wild Prélude ‘Ce qu’a vu le vent d’ouest’.Comments by Frederic Chiu himself:- "Thank you for posting this and spreading the word about Decaux. If you like listening to this, please get the iTunes or MP3. You'll hear even more detail that is not here in this compressed version. Decaux was a visionary who wrote these atonal impressionist pieces before Debussy and Schoenberg had figured out Impressionist or Atonalism. There are number games and other symbolism as well. Then he married a socialite, demanding wife who sucked the inspiration out of him. (direct story from Decaux's grandson) Please share, and please purchase!"- "Of all of my recordings, this is the program that I'm most proud of. Decaux as a bridge between Ravel and Schoenberg - he demonstrates that impressionism and expressionism were not mutually exclusive art trends, uniting the French and the Germanic."
Igor Stravinsky - The Firebird olla-vogala 2015-12-30 | - Composer: Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (17 June 1882 -- 6 April 1971)- Orchestra: Chicago Symphony Orchestra- Conductor: Pierre Boulez- Year of recording: 1993L'oiseau de Feu [The Firebird / Жар-птица], ballet in 2 scenes for orchestra, written in 1910.00:00 - Introduction02:37 - Kashchei's magic garden04:23 - Appearance of the Firebird, pursued by Ivan-Tsarevich06:48 - Dance of the Firebird08:11 - Ivan-Tsarevich captures the Firebird09:03 - The Firebird entreats - Appearance of the thirteen enchanted princesses17:17 - the Princesses' game with the golden apples19:39 - Sudden appearance of Ivan-Tsarevich21:20 - The princesses' Khorovod (Round Dance)25:02 - Daybreak - Ivan-Tsarevich enters Kashchei's palace26:28 - Magic carillion, Appearance of Kashchei's guardian monsters and the capture of Ivan-Tsarevich - Intercession of the princesses - Appearance of the Firebird32:15 - dance of Kashchei's retinue, under the Firebird's spell33:00 - Infernal dance of all Kashchei's subjects37:42 - Lullaby (The Firebird) - Kashchei wakes up - Death of Kashchei - Deep Shadows42:59 - Dissapearance of the palace and dissolution of Kashchei's enchantments; animation of the petrified knights; general rejoicingStravinsky was a young, virtually unknown composer when Diaghilev recruited him to create a work for the Ballets Russes. The Firebird was Stravinsky's first major success. Its Russian fantasy-like story tells of Prince Ivan, who befriends the Firebird and later summons the magical creature to aid him in defeating the evil magician Kastchei and his fiendish monsters, the firebird is both a blessing and a curse to its captor. Contrary to the premiere of 'Le Sacre...' three years later in 1913, when The Firebird was first performed on 25 June 1910, the critics were enthusiastic.Cast in two scenes and having 22 dance numbers, the ballet opens with the "Introduction," which is dominated by an ominous, searching ostinato, initially heard in the bass strings. The mood remains dark and mysterious in the ensuing "Kastchei's Enchanted Garden," but things brighten in the glittering instrumentation that depicts the appearance of the Firebird and in the "Dance of the Firebird," where you can almost see the creature flit and flutter. This music corresponds to the second movement in the 1919 Suite No. 2, the most popular of the three the composer extracted from the ballet.After the Firebird's capture, the music turns dark and fills with yearning as the creature desperately pleads to Prince Ivan for its release, which he grants, thus gaining its favour. The music in the next four numbers deals with the enchanted princesses and is light and playful in the first two, reflective and sentimental in the latter pair."Daybreak" is vigorous and colourful, but conveys an ominous sense, a sense that continues when the Prince enters Kastchei's palace. The next several numbers deal with Kastchei and his retinue of monsters, and with the capture of the Prince. In these the music becomes threatening and dark, but without ever losing its fantasy-like character.The music depicting the Firebird's reappearance to save the Prince again features a colourful, busy character. The dance of Kastchei's court and the famous Infernal dance follow, the latter a grotesque, rhythmic piece that many listeners will recognise as comprising the seventh movement of the Suite No. 2."The Lullaby" follows, featuring an exotic, lonely theme on bassoon. This section serves as the source music for the eighth movement. The brief "Kastchei Awakens" precedes the most famous music in the ballet -- "Kastchei's Death" -- which also comprises the Suite No. 2's finale. It features a soaring, stately melody -- probably the most familiar theme in any Stravinsky work -- that grows grander and louder as it proceeds, crowning the ballet with an absolute sense of triumph.
Igor Stravinsky - Chant du Rossignol {Song of the Nightingale} olla-vogala 2015-12-26 | - Composer: Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (17 June 1882 -- 6 April 1971)- Orchestra: Seattle Symphony Orchestra- Conductor: Gerard Schwarz- Year of recording: 1986Le Chant du Rossignol {The Song of the Nightingale}, symphonic poem for orchestra, written in 1917.00:00 - I.a) La fête au palais de l'empereur de Chine02:32 - I.b) Marche Chinoise05:53 - II.a) Les Deus Rossignols09:42 - II.b) Jeu du Rossignol mécanique12:45 - III.a) Maladie et guérison de l'empereur de Chine18:40 - III.b) Marche funèbreLe chant du rossignol is the symphonic poem Stravinsky extracted from his opera based on a story by Hans Christian Andersen, Le rossignol (The Nightingale) (1914). Stravinsky began composing Le rossignol in early 1908 while he was still a composition pupil of Rimsky-Korsakov, and the first act of the opera was substantially completed by 1909. But the commission that led to the composition of L'Oiseau de feu (The Firebird) (1910), Petrushka (1911), and then Le Sacre du printemps (The Rite of Spring) (1913) delayed the composition of the second and third acts until 1914. By that time Stravinsky's style had changed nearly beyond recognition, and although Stravinsky tried to recover the thread of the composition, the music of the latter two acts of Le rossignol is different and far more harmonically advanced than the music from the first act.In 1919, Stravinsky reconsidered the opera and decided to transform the musically homogenous second and third acts into a three-part symphonic poem. In order to facilitate this structural transformation, he dropped some portions of the opera's score and repeated others to achieve a symphonically balanced form. Stravinsky divided the music of the two acts into three unequal parts: the shorter "The Feast in the Emperor of China's Palace" and "The Two Nightingales," and the much longer "Illness and Recovery of the Emperor of China," with its substantial epilogue in the form of a funeral march. And in order to adjust the work to an ensemble without voices, he transferred the lines of the live Nightingale and the mechanical Nightingale to the solo flute and the solo violin. The greater ranges of these instruments in turn allowed him to expand and extend the accompaniment's textures so that they become more open and spacious.The result is is neither a true symphonic poem -- it's still far too loosely constructed for that -- nor a suite from the opera -- it's far too exclusive for that. Le chant du rossignol is a gorgeously coloured, melodically extravagant, and harmonically adventurous work that sounds unlike anything else Stravinsky had ever written and anything else he was ever to compose.
Vincent dIndy - String Quartet No. 2 in E major olla-vogala 2015-12-24 | - Composer: Paul Marie Théodore Vincent d'Indy (27 March 1851 -- 2 December 1931)- Performers: Quatuor Joachim- Year of recording: 2001String Quartet No. 2 in E major, Op. 45, written in 1897.00:00 - I. Lentement - Animé12:24 - II. Très animé16:59 - III. Très lent27:40 - IV. Lentement - Très vifThe decade of the 1890s was, for d'Indy, largely occupied with the monumental Fervaal -- a project bequeathed by an earlier self. The subject matter, derived from Esaias Tegnér's "Axel," fascinated him fom the 1870s; composition occupied him from 1889 until 1893, while the orchestration was not completed until the summer of 1895. The premiere was achieved on 12 March 1897, at the Théâtre de la Monnaie in Brussels, requiring d'Indy's constant presence at rehearsals and unremitting influence with the Monnaie's management not to abandon it. Meanwhile, the Schola Cantorum, which had begun as a choral society for the revival of Renaissance religious music, was being transformed -- with d'Indy's bankrolling, administrative energy, and course materials (the famous Cours de composition musicale) -- into one of the finest music schools in the world. Given his dogmatically articulate conservatism, he emerged through these years as a partisan spokesman and chef d'école, in several senses -- a position carrying tremendous pressure for every opus to be un coup de maître. The years dominated by Fervaal produced, apart from several small occasional pieces, but three ambitious works -- all "masterpieces," in varying definitions -- the String Quartet No. 1 over 1890-1891; Istar, a magnificent set of symphonic variations, in 1896; and the Second Quartet in 1897. The First Quartet bears as an epigraph a kind of melodic sigh furnishing the primary material of the first and second movements and reappearing in the remaining movements, though the work admits non-related ancillary themes. With the Second Quartet, d'Indy is determined to derive the materia musica from a single four-note cell, adduced in enigmatic fashion at the head of the score. Nominally G sharp, A, C sharp, B -- an archetype found in Gregorian chant, Bach, the finale of Mozart's "Jupiter" Symphony -- the staff bears three clefs indicating less absolute pitches than a basic shape, an intervallic series. This, and the curious themes derived from it, seem to protest too much against their arbitrariness through four substantial movements as d'Indy's considerable charm wears thin and his bracing athleticism turns wearing. His cellular technique -- looking beyond Liszt and Bach to the Renaissance mass composers while anticipating developments in post-World War II dodecaphonic practice -- and its extrapolation in sonata form possess interest for those trained to hear it. d'Indy succeeds magisterially, though for the listener innocent of technical lore his victory may prove to have been Pyrrhic, and only the 2nd movement may prove to be of interest to them.The premiere was given by the Parent Quartet on 5 March 1898, at a concert of the Société Nationale de Musique.The String Quartet is dedicated: "À J. Guy Ropartz".
Andrey Stoyanov - Sonatina for Piano olla-vogala 2015-12-23 | - Composer: Andrey Stoyanov (23 March 1890 -- 29 September 1969)- Performer: Rujka Charakchieva- Year of recording: 2012 (?)Sonatina for Piano / Sonatina Concertante, written around 1955.00:00 - I. Allegretto04:16 - II. Andante sostenuto07:29 - III. Allegretto giocosoBulgarian composer Andrey Stoyanov was the brother to the perhaps more famous Vesselin Stoyanov. He was among the founding members of the Contemporary Music Society (which later became the Union of Bulgarian Composers in 1933). He graduated from the Robert College in Instanbul majoring in piano with Sikac. From 1910 to 1914 he studied piano with Prohazka and music theory with Gredner and Mandichevski at the Music Academy in Vienna. Upon his return to Bulgaria, he taught at the State Music School and from 1922 to 1958 he was Professor at the State Academy of Music in Sofia. In 1950 Stoyanov was elected Chairman of the Piano Department - he is considered one of the founders of the Bulgarian piano school. In 1953 he became Head of the Music Pedagogy Department of the Institute of Music at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. He composed piano music; a few chamber works; solo and choral songs.This piano sonatina is among the relatively more often played pieces by Stoyanov, there is clearly inspiration from the rich Bulgarian folk music present and it is certainly playable by an amateur pianist.- The first movement features a bittersweet melody in the theme,- the second movement sounds like a slow lament, and almost sounds like something that could have been written by Rachmaninov.- The uplifting third movement is really Bulgarian sounding, especially because of the 7/16 meter which is as common in Bulgarian music as for example the 3/4 meter is in Western music.Nowadays there is a "Andrei Stoyanov Community and Music Center" and a "Andrei Stoyanov - International Piano competition" in Sofia, Bulgaria, so at least in his homeland he is not forgotten.
Richard Strauss - Tod und Verklärung {Death and Transfiguration} olla-vogala 2015-12-23 | - Composer: Richard Georg Strauss (11 June 1864 -- 8 September 1949)- Orchestra: Tonhalle Orchestra Zürich- Conductor: David Zinman- Year of recording: 2001Tod und Verklärung {Death and Transfiguration}, tone poem for orchestra, Op. 24 (TrV 158), written in 1888-1889.There are four movements (with Ritter's poetic thoughts condensed):00:00 - I. Largo (The sick man, near death)05:19 - II. Allegro molto agitato (The battle between life and death offers no respite to the man)08:55 - III. Meno mosso (The dying man's life passes before him)16:53 - IV. Moderato (The sought-after transfiguration)Among Strauss' tone poems, Tod und Verklärung (Death and Transfiguration) stands out for its concise program of an unnamed artist's demise and the subsequent transformation of his spirit. Unlike Ein Heldenleben, which contained an autobiographical element, Tod und Verklärung is more universal in its expression of dying. Here Strauss does not present a triumphant narrative of individual accomplishment, but rather explores the fleeting images of past experience as they dissolve before a dying person's eyes: As the man lies dying, thoughts of his life pass through his head: his childhood innocence, the struggles of his manhood, the attainment of his worldly goals; and at the end, he receives the longed-for transfiguration "from the infinite reaches of heaven".Composed in 1888-1889, just after Don Juan, Tod und Verklärung departs from the kind of tone poem Strauss had written up to that time. Instead of using a literary source as the basis, he imagined his own scenario. In fact the verses by his friend Alexander Ritter appended to the score are an afterthought Strauss added after he had completed the work. He is reputed to have said, just before his own death, that dying was just as he had depicted it in Tod und Verklärung.Strauss cast the work in the form of an extended sonata form, with a structure freer than he had yet attempted in his tone poems. Several evocative motives occur at the outset, including one suggesting an irregular heartbeat that is critical to the denouement of the work. Strauss uses various other motives to depict the protagonist's respiration and suffering; he also presents, early on, a short contrasting idea, depicting an ideal state, that re-emerges the extraordinarily lovely portrayal of transfiguration later in the work. Given the relatively unspecific nature of the program, this tone poem has an open-ended quality that involves the listener in the work. The vast and varied orchestration is typical of the mature Strauss. The moment of transfiguration is brilliant: a C major chord builds from the basses up over a powerful tread that includes deep bells and gongs.The work is dedicated: "Meinem lieben Freunde Friedrich Rösch zugeeignet".
