J S Bach: Well-tempered Clavier Book II
Andras Schiff, piano
NAXOS 2.110654
This is the second half of the full recording from the 2018 Prom concerts and is as magnificent as the first. There is little to add at this point, but if you missed the live event, or the TV coverage, this is a must. No more to say!
Schumann: Symphonies 1 & 4 arranged for piano duet
Eckerle Piano Duo
NAXOS 8.572881
There seems to be a growing number of recordings of arrangements of large orchestral works and most of them, like this, are very pleasing. What we may miss from the warmth and range of the orchestral sound we gain in terms of clarity and intimacy, with frequent surprises of internal musical lines we had never noticed before but which are very obviously there in the original scores. Recalling that it was through piano arrangements in the nineteenth century that most music lovers first encountered larger orchestral works we are here experiencing what they did.
The Unknown Debussy
Nicolas Horvath, piano
GRAND PIANO GP822
There are some interesting pieces on this disc. I was especially drawn to the items from Le Martyre de San Sebastien and A Night in the House of Usher – the latter from his unfinished opera. There is also a complete reworking of No-ja-li and an early version of The Girl with the flaxen hair. All well worth hearing and here splendidly performed by Nicolas Horvath.
Giles Swayne: Stations of the Cross
Simon Nieminski, organ of St Mary’s Cathedral, Edinburgh
RESONUS RES10118
I was fortunate enough to be present at the inauguration of Matthew Copley’s new organ in St Mary’s Cathedral back in 2007 and it is very good to hear it here with such an important contemporary work recorded complete. Giles Swayne wrote his Stations of the Cross between 2004 and 2005. It is a demanding work, requiring keen concentration from both performer and listener but certainly repays the effort. The pain and reality of the events leading up to and during the crucifixion are conveyed in graphic detail, with only the thirteenth station when Jesus body is given to his mother showing any sign of acceptance. The final section is constructed as a full scale Prelude and Fugue, on a Bach like model but always clearly within the style and integrity of the earlier, freer movements. Matthew Copley’s organ responds admirably to the demands of the score which is played with great sensitivity by Simon Nieminski, until recently resident organist in the cathedral.
Treffpunkt Jazz
Dizzy Gillespie Quintet
JAZZHAUS JAH 411
These are live recordings made in Stuttgart and Frankfurt, in November 1961 and are as fresh and lively as if they were recorded yesterday. They range from a brash The Mooche to the gently reflective Willow weep for me with its lovely flute solo. The audiences are obviously relishing the occasions and this carries over with ease.
Josef Suk: Asrael Symphonie
Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Jakub Hrusa
BR KLASSIK 900188
It is surprising that Suk is still so little known in Britain. Those of us who admire his work and see its importance, standing as it does between Dvorak and Martinu, will surely welcome this fine new recording of one of his major works – The Asrael Symphony. The orchestration is masterly and the composer’s control of structure over more than an hour of development is equally pleasing. If you don’t know the work or a wider range of Suk’s compositions, this is a good place to start.
Schumann: Piano Trios Vol 1
Kingsbacka Piano Trio
BIS 2437
Vol 1 implies this will be the start of a new series and very welcome it is. The cd includes the first and second Piano Trios plus the Fantasiestucke Op88. The works have an intimacy which reflects the first years of married life for the Schumanns, and hark back to an earlier musical era – the notes suggest Haydn rather than Schubert. Warmly recommended.
Beethoven: Violin concerto & romances
Lena Neudauer, violin, Cappella Aqileia, Marcus Bosch
CPO 777 559-2
What I enjoyed about this was the lightness of touch and sense of intimacy. Using smaller forces there is an immediacy which seems to spill over from the romances into the concerto itself which is far less bombastic than is often the case.