{"id":5850,"date":"2020-02-13T09:56:27","date_gmt":"2020-02-13T09:56:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.larkreviews.co.uk\/?p=5850"},"modified":"2020-02-13T09:56:27","modified_gmt":"2020-02-13T09:56:27","slug":"cdsdvds-february-2020-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/?p=5850","title":{"rendered":"CDs\/DVDs February 2020 (1)"},"content":{"rendered":"
Handel: Almira<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n
Boston Early Music Festival<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n
CPO 555 205-2<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n

Lovely as this is I was surprised by just how long it is. This is presumably complete and runs to just over four hours. It is Handel\u2019s earliest opera, dating from 1703, and while it reflects the style of earlier composers in Halle there is plenty of evidence here of the masterpieces which were to follow. A useful, and musically very satisfying, addition to the many versions of Handel operas now available.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Early Horn<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
Ursula Paludan Monberg, horn; Arcangelo, Jonathan Cohen<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
HYPERION CDA 68289<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n

It is difficult at times to realise that the ability to play the natural horn is comparatively recent, compared with the normal valve instrument. I recall the first performance of the Basil Lamb edition of Messiah<\/em> at the BBC studios where the trumpeter using a natural trumpet had to take breaks between sections as he had never played the instrument before. Today, with so many original instrument ensembles, it is easy to forget how fortunate we are. This new recording focuses on eighteenth century works for horn moving through Mozart and Haydn to works by Graun, Telemann and two anonymous pieces. All highly entertaining and engaging.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Beethoven: complete works for Cello and Piano<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n
Robin Michael, cello; Daniel Tong, piano<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n
RESONUS RES 10254<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n

Alongside the five sonatas are the three sets of variations, two drawn from Die Zauberflote<\/em> and one from Judas Maccabeus.<\/em> I found these more engaging though the range of the sonatas takes us from his very early years to the time his hearing was all but gone. The recording here is with original instruments making was both a warmer cello sound and more incisive early piano.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

20th<\/sup> Century Foxtrots from Austria and Czechia<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
Gottlieb Wallisch, piano<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
GRAND PIANO GP 813<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n

This is a delight throughout and I particularly enjoyed Krauss-Elka\u2019s dance version of themes from Tannhauser<\/em> and the final excerpt from Schulhoff\u2019s Groteske.<\/em> That said the whole disc is thoroughly entertaining and uplifting.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Beethoven: Septet & Clarinet Trio<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
Berkeley Ensemble<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
RESONUS RES 10255<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n

The trio is the unusual piece here and the one which may attract particular attention. The unusual combination of clarinet, cello and piano dates from 1798 when the composer was well established in Vienna. The more familiar Septet is given a fine reading with great clarity throughout.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Bach: St Matthew Passion<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
Bach Collegium Japan, Masaaki Suzuki<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
BIS 2500<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n

There is a great deal to enjoy here and the quality of musicianship is not in doubt but I feel that the whole does not hang together as well as the individual parts. Solo singing is excellent but the approach often seems over-precious, particularly where tempi are concerned. I wish there was a greater sense of emotional involvement with the score, one which would engage the listener rather than pointing up the magnificence of the writing at the expense of the narrative.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Malipiero: Symphony No6; Ritrovari; Serenata mattutina; Cinq studi<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
Orchestra della Svizzera italiana, Damian Iorio<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
NAXOS 8.574173<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n

I have to admit that this is the first CD of Malipiero\u2019s works I have come across and it is certainly engaging. The sixth symphony dates from 1947 and is easy to access on a first hearing even if unconventional in style. The Ritrovari<\/em> are more complex as is the Seranata<\/em> but the studies and short and engaging. Worth investigating.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Leoncavallo: I Pagliacci<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Valerio Galli<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
DYNAMIC 37863<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n

Oh dear. I hope this production worked better in the theatre than it does on DVD. The set is very messy and it is difficult to get any sense of place or atmosphere as a result of regular lighting changes and odd pieces of scaffolding which move around of their own volition. Some of the singing is good, with Angelo Villari\u2019s Canio forceful and convincing, but the overlarge chorus, with an equally large number of children, often seem out of their depth and left to their own devices. As such there is no real sense of direction or purpose. A pity; it has the makings of a strong approach but needs somebody to knock it into shape.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Rossini: La Cenerentola<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
Teatro Opera of Rome, Alejo Perez<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
MAJOR 752408<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n

This is fun. Don\u2019t look too closely or ask why the chorus are all wind-up dolls, for the musical side is so strong and the characterisation so convincing that it carries you along with it. Alessandro Corbelli is superb as Don Magnifico and the young couple, Juan Francisco Gatell and Serena Malfi, make light weight of Rossini\u2019s florid musical lines. Alejo Perez keeps his orchestra on their toes with a sparkling account of the score. What\u2019s not to like?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Handel: Almira Boston Early Music Festival CPO 555 205-2 Lovely as this is I was surprised by just how long it is. This is presumably complete and runs to just over four hours. It is Handel\u2019s earliest opera, dating from … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5850"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5850"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5850\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5851,"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5850\/revisions\/5851"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5850"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5850"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5850"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}