Schmidt clarinet quintet in A major (original version?) from cpo

[eschiss1]

To be released later this month is a rare recording of the original, left-hand piano, clarinet and string trio instrumentation of the 2nd clarinet quintet of Franz Schmidt (see JPC.) This differs from the slightly more often recorded Wührer arrangement (for piano 2-hands, clarinet and string trio) only in detail* (I think...!), and unless you love the piece to pieces (... I may, at that) and have the money to spare (will think about that part) having -both- versions in your collection may not be a priority, but if "this sort of thing" pleases (hour-long late Romantic chamber works) then this work will, I think, please. (I'm very much pleased by the recording I have.)

The new recording was made in 2013 by the Linos Ensemble. I am assuming it's of the original version, since that's the version described in the notes at the link, but I might be wrong...

A note on the quintet, a question, if you don't already know it: if you can catch a sound sample, say (or just peek into a YouTube, maybe) of just the opening half-minute or so, or maybe minute... what do you think? What word(s) if any comes to mind? (And if it bores, it bores, though that wouldn't be -my- answer. But then, I have heard it already, quite a few times...) *g*


*I listened to my Marco Polo recording of the Wührer arrangement with the recently-published first edition score of the original version in front of me last year and could not _find_ the differences... to the extent where I was amazed that Schmidt was asking a one-handed pianist to play some things in the 2nd movement at all, and really very much wondered if I had the right version!!...

(Edit: if this is a recording of the original version, it might indeed be the first; come to think of I know of only two other commercial recordings of the quintet- the Marco Polo/Naxos, and the LP which was reissued in 1988 or so on Preiser.  His other two quintets - in G for piano and strings, in B-flat for piano, clarinet and strings - were indeed recorded in their original form on Orfeo quite some time back.)

[minacciosa]

There's a terrific recording of the original left-hand version on the Centaur label.

[eschiss1]

Ah, thanks!

[chill319]

Thanks for pointing this work out -- I wasn't aware of it. I'm already fond of the 1926 quintet for piano lef-hand and strings and if the Fourth Symphony is any measure, Schmidt was working at a high level in the 1930s. Can't wait to hear it.

[eschiss1]

I have an older recording of Wuhrer's arrangement of the 2nd clarinet quintet on Marco Polo, and I play it often...

[eschiss1]

Not yet, but I think I've listened to it through a streaming service back when I had the score of the original version on loan awhile back (as published only in 2010, I believe.)

I recall being amazed that what I had -was- a work for left-hand piano and ensemble, since the 2nd movement (for left-hand piano alone without clarinet or strings) seemed to require stretches, chords, etc. that looked like they could only be performed using 2 hands. I felt almost as though I was looking at Wührer's arrangement despite everything the preface of the edition said etc. ... then again, I'm no pianist and couldn't really judge how playable it actually was...

[MartinH]

One of my absolute favorite chamber works from anybody. I've often thought that some enterprising pianist and record company should make a nice project of recording all of the Wittgenstein commissions. It'd also be interesting to hear all the entries in the competition for which Schmidt's 3rd symphony won first place in the Austrian division. We know the Atterberg 6th, but I'd sure like to hear the rest of the competition.

[eschiss1]

Brian 1 was also a finalist, I think, as were some other semi-known works. (Belated edit: by which I mean "The Gothic", not his semi-discarded "Fantastic Symphony".)