Tomas Breton (1850-1923)

[jerfilm]

Surfing around the web this morning, I came across what appears to be a fairly obscure recording of Spanish Romantic Violin Concertos by Tomas Breton and Jesus Monasterio (1836-1903).  Quite lovely pieces.  Which of course got me to delving further and finding that there is a recording, probably out of print, of Breton's Symphony #2 in Eb on the Newport Label.  Prices for this seem to run in the $100 range.  Does anyone know where one could obtain this for a reasonable price?

Jerry

[jimmosk]

I'm afraid I don't, though once in a blue moon I've found one in a used-CD store.  Breton's Second is quite entertaining -- it's very clearly a Beethoven symphony (around the complexity of the Third), composed 75 years later!

But at least I can link you to this performance of Breton's String Quartet on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLfA6F494MA

-J

--
Jim Moskowitz
The Unknown Composers Page: http://kith.org/jimmosk/TOC.html
My latest list of unusual classical CDs for auction: http://tinyurl.com/jimsCDs

[Gareth Vaughan]

The CD of the Breton and Monasterio VCs can be purchased here: http://www.trito.es/audios,en/TD00071/Spanish-romantic-violin-concertos-Breton-Monasterio.html#medias

[jerfilm]

One further question - since I bought the download, there are no liner notes or booklet to refer to.  The tracks do not identify which concerto is by which composer and a search of the net for Breton's violin concerto doesn't seem to yield a key signature.  one is in "Si amor" and the other in "La menor"  -which is which?

Tobias??

Jerry

[JimL]

Si menor is, I believe B minor.  La menor is A minor.

[jerfilm]

Thanks Jim.  But I can translate the Spanish.  But which concerto belongs to which composer?

[eschiss1]

Breton's string quartet has been recorded on Marco Polo (not sure if it's still available- probably not since Naxos has released the coupling, the piano trio, along with other trio music by Breton.) Also available in performance material at IMSLP.

[Amphissa]

Breton is the A minor. It is the first 3 tracks on the CD. Monasterio is in B mjnor and is the last 3 tracks.

[eschiss1]

hrm, didn't know that Breton's was dedicated to the memory of Sarasate. A violin/piano score published from manuscript by Santiago de Compostela : Música en Compostela in 1995, (with notes by Antonio de Iglesias) is at the University of Buffalo (New York, USA) and at the Lincoln Center Public Library (NYC, New York) (permanentish link).  Alas no information here on key, though... (NYPL also has a full score, 236 p., of the 2nd symphony, in a 1992 edition by Ramón Sobrino.)

As to Breton's first symphony (according to the library record, 'the score says in A but actually in E minor'), Biblioteca Nacional de España has a manuscript copy dating from about 1868.

Eric

[jerfilm]

Thanks, Amphissa.

[terry martyn]

Grateful for the tip on where to purchase the Breton CD, and pleased to report that trito.es has already delivered it

[Collrec]

Does anyone know where I can purchase the 2 CD set on the Verso label (VRS 2117) of the 3 symphonies of Tomás Bretón? Presto has a "MP3 version only" listed on their website. Several other dealer websites say that the CD version has been discontinued and is no longer available. I checked with EBay and they say the same thing. The CD was released in December 2012. Any help I can get would be sincerely appreciated.

[Alan Howe]

I'm afraid I think it's long gone. Your only option is a download, it appears.

[Ilja]

There is also Max Bragado-Darman's recording of the Second Symphony, coupled with the late and rather fine symphonic Poem Salamanca. A bit rougher than Temes, but not bad at all.

[terry martyn]

Copies turn up from time to time on amazon. I bought my copy of the Breton Symphonies there last year.  I crosscheck  amazon.com,amazon.co.uk,and amazon.de, and works sometimes appear out of the blue on one of these three but not on the others. I found my copy of the Abert Columbus Symphony on amazon.de a few weeks ago.