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Here's an interesting find and quaintly surprising and remarkably rare discovery which constitutes somewhat of a musical curiosity from the stylistic standpoint. Legendarily renowned Czech virtuoso violinist Jan Kubelik (1880-1940) and father of eminent conductor Rafael Kubelik composed a singular symphony, apart from 6 violin concertos (of which his 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th are best known and have been recorded), alongside other violin recital pieces. It's somewhat intriguing that for a composer who performed and for the most part composed works in the standard to late-romantic repertory, this symphony which was written towards the end of his life is, in sharp contrast, couched in a densely chromatic semi-rhapsodic meandering style, albeit rather colourfully orchestrated, and intermittently infused with brief violin solo and woodwind passages of fleeting tender lyricism. Its compositional language is eclectically enmeshed with elements hailing from the transitioning end-phase of post-romanticism intermingled with early modernistic flavours of polytonality and some degree of expressionistic dissonance. Perhaps Kubelik was trying to keep up to some extent with the contemporaneous musical trends of the pre-WWII milieu. In this regard, perhaps this piece resides at the outer borderlands and edgy fringes of Unsung Composers' obscure repertoire domain. One wonders whether recording companies like Naxos, Supraphon, Arco Diva, Tocatta Classics, Chandos, Hanssler Classics, Capriccio, and CPO would find it worthwhile commercially championing this piece.  Perhaps it could be coupled alongside the equally obscure Symphony in E minor "Reminiscences" by fellow Slovak contemporary composer Mikulas Schneider-Trnavsky < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5-Et14ohsg > or Jaromir Weinberger's equally underrated "Lincoln" Symphony < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nSmKb4BiYPE >.   

Jan Kubelík (1880-1940): Symphony in A minor (1937)

Plzeňská filharmonie / Pilsen Philharmonic
řídí / conducted by Chuchei Iwasaki
23/9/2021 Plzeň, Měšťanská beseda

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4z_y3Y0DT0o         

Greetings everyone. This upcoming Naxos issue featuring the violin sonatas of Noskowski and Zelenski, due for release in early December, should interest lovers of Polish late romantic chamber music repertory and will surely make a nice accompanying disc to the Polish violin sonatas of Paderewski and Stojowski already released on the CPO label. Rather intriguing that this was announced on the Chandos website instead of Naxos upcoming release section as is usually the practice. 

https://www.chandos.net/products/catalogue/NX%204220

Best wishes to one and all, JP.

 

Greetings everyone. Here's Capriccio label's latest release. Boldly, albeit belatedly, treading where Sterling label used to traverse...

Z. NOSKOWSKI
SYMPHONY NO. 2 'ELEGIAC' (1875) · SYMPHONY NO. 1 (1874)
DEUTSCHE STAATSPHILHARMONIE RHEINLAND-PFALZ · ANTONI WIT
C5509 PC: 21 UPC: 845221055091

http://www.capriccio.at/zygmunt-noskowski

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3Q6l2JGCNc

New release from Capriccio label featuring the orchestral works of a mid-to-late romantic Austro-Germanic composer. The excerpted sound clip conveys the distinct impression that this repertoire hails from the era of the more conservative leaning Bruch-Reinecke-Gernsheim-Draeseke-Raff genre... 

http://www.capriccio.at/georg-goltermann

Greetings everyone. It may interest board members to note that MDG has re-released its 2009-2010 issues of JB Foerster symphonic recordings as a complete set now obtainable at JPC wholesalers. For those who have yet to purchase these recordings previously, this may serve as an opportunity to place your orders for this compendium.

Josef Bohuslav Foerster (1859-1951)
Symphonien Nr.1-5
+In den Bergen op. 7
Künstler: Osnabrücker Symphonieorchester, Hermann Bäumer
Label: MDG, DDD, 3 CDs
Bestellnummer: 11006252
Erscheinungstermin: 21.7.2022

https://www.jpc.de/jpcng/classic/detail/-/art/josef-bohuslav-foerster-symphonien-nr-1-5/hnum/11006252

So far no news updates at all from the Naxos or Arco Diva fronts regarding their much eagerly awaited and delayed JBF symphonic cycle collaboration to be coupled alongside JBF's other orchestral compositions.   

Regards and best wishes to one and all.   

Greetings everyone. Here's a newly announced issue on Capriccio showcasing these seldom recorded and woefully underrated works by Koechlin, particularly the scarcely performed celestially incandescent Vers la voûte étoilé which populate the outlying frontiers of post-romanticism and ride the twilight wave crest of impressionism on the verge of coalescing into the mainstream musical conventions hailing from the second quarter of 20th century melodic modernism.

http://www.capriccio.at/charles-koechlin

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uG1Ww6JwPBg  (7 Stars Symphony - old EMI recording)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FL14P35y8gk     (Vers la voûte étoilée - live concert performance)

Let's hope that Capriccio will subsequently record Koechlin's hitherto commercially unreleased 2 expansive symphonies in due course:   

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TgqjFx4Vlgc  (Sym 1)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQs8uvx3PAM  (Sym 2)

Best wishes to one and all.

[Maria Bach - Wolgaquintett (1927) für 2 Violinen, Viola, Violoncello und Klavier]

Greetings everyone. I'm pleased to inform you all that a CD recording containing a selection of chamber compositions by Maria Bach, a notable student of Joseph Marx, is due to be released very shortly on the CPO label later this month. 

https://www.jpc.de/jpcng/cpo/detail/-/art/maria-bach-streichquartett/hnum/9735523

The compositional style of the key works featured on this CD are noted for their late romantically tinged rhapsodic-impressionistic musical language which is strikingly akin to the free flowing lyrical mode of instrumental writing that exudes from the Phantasy titled works of British composers that was rather fashionably prevalent during the first quarter to first third of the 20th century.  You can hear the recorded concert performances of M. Bach's melodically abundant, remarkably sparkling and luxuriously chromatic piano and string quintets in their entirety here to acquaint yourselves with her apparent mastery of the chamber music medium: 

Maria Bach - Wolgaquintett (1927) für 2 Violinen, Viola, Violoncello und Klavier (2 separate performances)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cm9pLe3pLsc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ln3J2ybpq1A

Maria Bach - Streichquintett (1936) für 2 Violinen, Viola und 2 Violoncelli

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RJgSfs5gKLc

Do enjoy the music for what it's worth and may it provide you with the informed insights and perhaps an acquired sense of appreciation in deciding whether or not it's worthwhile exploring her works further and purchase this CD for starters.

Best wishes, JP.

A Happy Belated New Year to everyone. It pleases me to inform you all that Supraphon has released a weighty 15-disc compendium of this legendary Czech conductor's live recordings derived from the repository of the Czech Radio archival vaults.  This includes real rarities containing the radio broadcast performances of Suk's Asrael and Ripening, Foerster's Fourth Symphony with V. Novak's Pan and the never commercially released Autumn Symphony (which incidentally share the same distinctive 5-note thematic motif somewhat akin to John Williams' Close Encounters Theme) being the crown jewels stashed in discs 6, 7 & 8.  So, if you don't mind having these deeply inset coronet gemstones bunched alongside other mainstream classical fare as well as a hearty dose of Czech modern music repertoire, then this compilation set should be a clincher of sorts to start off 2022 with a resounding bang.

https://www.supraphon.com/album/670253-karel-ancerl-live-recordings

Hi everyone, as a swift follow up to the Asrael Symphony live concert rendition in Helsinki a few weeks ago, it may interest you all to note (if you're not otherwise already aware) that Maestro Jakub Hrůša conducted a performance of Josef Suk's A Summer Tale with the Czech Philharmonic a few days ago, which is presently available on the orchestra's YouTube channel. The piece begins at the 1:10:17 time stamp mark. Unfortunately the audio playback quality of this recording is rather poor and soft, so one is unable to savour the full acoustic dynamics and subtle instrumental/interpretive nuances of this live concert performance. 

violin: Josef Špaček
conductor: Jakub Hrůša
Czech Philharmonic

Bohuslav Martinů: Violin Concerto No. 1
Josef Suk: A Summer's Tale

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZojWPVFo94

Regards and best wishes in advance of the Christmas Yuletide Season, JP

Dear all, it may interest you to note that the Helsinki Philharmonic has provided a rarely glimpsed live concert performance video recording of Josef Suk's Asrael Symphony under the thoughtful direction of Leonard Slatkin. The concert was live streamed on the 11th of November and can be viewed for the time being at the orchestra's website and its official YouTube channel. Do catch this rather moving, well paced and expressive rendition before it's removed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hY9TlP2BpHI  (now defunct and set to private)

https://areena.yle.fi/1-50996065 (still up & running for the moment)

Regards, JP

Hello everyone. These are the first 2 recorded string quartets (of 4 in all) by postromantic-nationalist Lithuanian composer Jurgis Karnavičius (1884 – 1941), a close contemporary of his Finnish counterpart Leevi Madetoja, released on the Ondine label earlier this month. They're given a heartfelt performance by the Vilnius String Quartet.

Karnavičius' string quartets do strike me as being soulfully meditative compositional essays cast in a lyrically searching, deeply reflective and expressive mould, with moments of brooding introspection verging on pathos but delivered in a poetically restrained, nuanced and understated fashion by the Vilnius quartet.  The ensemble's consummate interpretation of the scores coupled with their sensitized playing allows them to navigate through the complex morass of themes & melodies with a degree of transparency and deft subtlety in terms of their executional prowess and sense of exposition that orientates both works purposefully along the intended pathways of their musical quest towards their concluding destinations. The musical waypoints of the Karnavičius' quartets are often enmeshed in a densely textured contrapuntal undergrowth of thematic cells & chromatic harmonies, oftentimes couched in a stylistically meandering fashion somewhat like the mature works of Sibelius and post-Asrael polytonal compositions of Josef Suk (not easy to hum or recall the key melodies & thematic motifs especially of the 2nd quartet).   My initial impression is that the quartets are, upon first hearing, somewhat akin to the late chamber works of Delius as well as those churned out by Frank Bridge hailing from the latter's early to middle compositional periods.     

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kZVAXHZW1secMaz8loATrE6N3BcwauY7U

https://www.ondine.net/?lid=en&cid=2.2&oid=6706

https://www.naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=ODE1351-2

In addition, here are two complete segments or movements (whole composition?) from his third quartet, played by the same ensemble with the same degree of acute sensitivity, that has yet to be commercially released on Ondine which hopefully will be paired with the fourth in due course:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_j-NYfRoPo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDfB5gtCKZY
 
In all, a worthy add-on to those eagerly exploring the late/postromantic Baltic music repertoire.

Best wishes to one and all in the lead up to Easter weekend, JP. 

Greetings one and all. My enquiries with the Arco Diva label has yielded some interesting advance heads-up news on their upcoming plans to record the full orchestral repertoire of JBF as well as V. Novak's major orchestral and symphonic works.  Quoting directly (in italics) from Mr Jiri Stilec's (the director of Arco Diva Prague) reply to my correspondences which read as follows:

"I will reply you step by step, we are on the way to Ostrava, where we will complete the first CD of the complete of Orchestral Works by J.B. Foerster. Our aim is to complete all his orchestral compositions - on first place Symphonies 1 - 5 and of course also other compositions, also these that are still in Czech Museum of Music. Next step after Symphony No 1 by J.B.F. which will be recorded next week in Ostrava will be Symphony No 2 / probably recorded in Olmütz."

Closing bars of the main thematic reprise and chorale from JBF Symphony No.1 < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ngsm1fQExsA >

"We will continue with Vitezslav Novak vol. 2 - we will record in Ostrava De profundis, Slovacko Suite and world premiere recording of Two Valachian Dances for Orchestra. We are ready to go on with other compositions, not these that were already recorded for Naxos, but there are still plenty of them, also Autumn and May Symphony."

Concluding apotheosis section of De Profundis orchestral piece < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7t6cGH1oXE >

Do note the impressive entry of the organ's resounding chords blending in unison with the full blared fortissimo playing of the orchestra.

Excerpted ending segment of the sprightly melodic Dymák movement in a premiere recording of the orchestrated rendition of the Valachian dances which was originally a piano composition. < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7X8l7ajZkIA >

Meantime, I'm awaiting more news and updates from Arco Diva on the ongoing progress status of their current spate of recording projects and eventual rollout of CD products to convey to you all over the next several weeks and months. 

Best wishes to everyone for the upcoming Easter Holidays, JP. 

Greetings once again everyone. You may wish to take note that Maestro Marek Stilec conducted a rapturous live premiere rendition of Vitezslav Novak's Slovak Songs (41:13 - 54:19) and an amazingly rare videotaped concert performance of his Slovak Suite (57:49 - 1:29:26) programmed alongside Dvorak's seldom heard selection of Gypsy Songs (11:06 - 27:00) and a staple non-rarity favourite, Mahler's 5th Sym Adagietto (29:48 - 38:58). 

This arose from the latest much scaled down annual musical event featuring a chamber-sized orchestral ensemble signifying a somewhat subdued 2020 Mahler Festival held in Prague on 30th November with the noticeable absence of a concert audience in attendance. This YouTube video footage might therefore pique the interest and curiosity of this board's Czech music lovers as well as the general viewership amid these lean, drab and arid concert schedule depleted Covid epochal times.

https://www.mahler2000.cz/cz/festival/2020/program/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oh77ZDCzC-I

Best wishes, JP

Greetings everyone.

Judging from this fleeting youtube preview of the "Viola" movement from the Shakespeare suite (sounds rather stylistically akin to Faure's Dolly suite) as featured in this Radio Ostrava hall performance by the Janáček Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Marek Štilec, it appears that Arco Diva has been contracted by Naxos to record this work as part of a future CD release in the latter's ongoing survey of lesser known late and postromantic Czech orchestral repertoire e.g. - Zdenek Fibich & Vitezslav Novak.   

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWy1CcAmIHw

Hmm, I wonder what other JBF orchestral repertoire (especially those previously unheard ones which were never commercially recorded/released) will be coupled with this suite and whether Naxos will venture to record the complete JBF symphonies just as the MDG label did a decade ago. It'll be great if anyone can shed further light on this. I can also check directly with Naxos to see what their plans are regarding their expanded discography of JBF orchestral works.  It should be noted that Naxos had already recorded JBF's Symphony No. 4  "Easter Eve" alongside the premiere recordings of My Youth and his Festive Overture a decade and a half ago. 

https://www.naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=8.557776

In any case, it's encouraging to see Naxos revisit the works of JBF once again.

Best wishes to one and all, JP.  

Thanks for that wondrous vintage recording performance from the Czech Radio broadcast archives featuring JB Foerster's melodious composition for strings and harp "Jaro" op. 84 also known as Lyrical Suite. It fondly brings to mind both Dvorak's and Suk's string serenades scored for a similar instrumental medium minus the harp of course.  It may interest listeners to note that there's a more recent rendition of this work on Utube played expressively by this Czech-based youth chamber ensemble dating from 2011. Can't wait to hear a new commercial recording of this rarely performed piece, perhaps coupled with other chamber music obscurities such as Foerster's Nonet and piano quintet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yf1U4Z8F3M0  (Pt 1)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTMEJJ9vq7w  (Pt 2)

Happy listening one and all. 

Greetings everyone, another rare Baltic post-romantic treat from Ondine.  You have the usual In the Forest / The Sea standard fare coupled with the rare orchestrated rendition of the Kestutis Overture. 

https://www.ondine.net/?lid=en&cid=2.2&oid=6487

https://www.naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=ODE1344-2

https://www.naxos.com/SharedFiles/pdf/rear/ODE1344-2r.pdf#

https://www.naxos.com/reviews/reviewslist.asp?catalogueid=ODE1344-2&languageid=EN

For those unable to obtain the latest Ondine label recordings from their CD stores or via online orders thru Presto or JPC due to the present Covid situation in your respective countries/regions unless you purchase the mp3 downloads directly from these sites,

< https://www.jpc.de/jpcng/classic/detail/-/art/the-sea-in-the-forest-kestutis-overt/hnum/9722312 >

< https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/8768022--iurlionis-the-sea-in-the-forest-kestutis >

you can otherwise listen to these tracks here from YouTube: 

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Ciurlionis+Lithuanian-National-Symphony-Orchestra+Modestas-Pitr%C4%97nas

Kęstutis <  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3MozU4nS3I  >

In the Forest < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-3c28gbx34 >

The Sea < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kGTf5yXW1g&t=146s >

Happy listening everyone, stay healthy & safe...

Greetings everyone.  This must be the premiere of the complete rendition of this infrequently heard composition by Dohnanyi on Capriccio label, due out in early February. It was previously performed and recorded in its abridged version on Chandos in the late '90s by Matthias Bamert while a lengthier half-hour version was commercially released on Hungaroton.

https://www.jpc.de/jpcng/classic/detail/-/art/der-schleier-der-pierrette/hnum/9578512

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ysVXjo9_FU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXt6ARD9of0

https://www.chandos.net/products/catalogue/CHAN%209733

Belated 2020 NY wishes to one and all and have a great year ahead, JP 

Greetings everyone, having heard the good tidings regarding the first commercially released recording of Foerster's Stabat Mater, I was wondering whether the works of another largely unserenaded Czech composer Otakar Zich will likewise be revived as well. 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otakar_Zich

Special attention should be drawn to his Chod Suite op.3a scored for Octet chamber ensemble with an alternative Nonet performing arrangement for strings and woodwind.  It's a stylistic blend of sorts between Dvorak's Wind serenade op. 44, Foerster's wind quintet op.95 and Fibich's piano quintet. It is therefore somewhat curious indeed that this work has not been resurrected with a new recording as all that remains is a dated Supraphon recording from the 1950s performed by the Czech Nonet which inexplicably has not been reissued after all these decades. 

http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/title/octet-sheet-music/19254957

http://www.worldcat.org/title/nonet-in-f-minor-nonett-f-moll/oclc/38910783

http://www.amazon.co.jp/Digital-Booklet-Arranged-Jaroslav-Version/dp/B011WL0O24

However, it appears that this recording is only selectively available   in certain countries and territories via ITunes download of which excerpted segments of the tracks from the work's 4 movements are listenable here:

http://rippletunes.com/album/Franti-ek-Hant-k-Czech-Nonet-Emil-Leichner-Old-ich-Pergl-Hynek-Ka-l-k-Otakar-Zich-Joseph-Hob-k-Anton-n-Hotov-Vil-m-Koste-ka-Jaroslav-Bla-eMirko-Novotn/Zich-Chod-Suite-Arranged-for-Nonet-by-Jaroslav-Zich-Mono-Version/1020687014/t0

It is therefore hoped that some kind soul will upload the entire recording onto the download section of the Unsung website. In any case, I'm triply sure it'll make an exceptionally suitable coupling with Foerster's Nonet & Joseph Miroslav Weber's Septet (see links below) should such a modern recording eventually materialise. 

http://rippletunes.com/album/Josef-Bohuslav-Foerster-Stuttgart-Nonet/Foerster-Nonet-Op-147/912830491/t0

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Zt5x91RoSxo

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=arnEEXFwqVg

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=gluGISF9OXw

Warmest Regards to One and All,
JP

Dear all, I 'm passing on a request from American pianist Ms Patricia Goodson who is undertaking a ginormous project to record the entire keyboard repertory of J.B. Foerster 's piano music on the Brilliant Classics label. While she has almost accomplished this objective, she requires some top-up funding to finish up with the final crucial phase of her recording sessions. 

In the forwarded message below, Ms Goodson was making reference to the rare Foerster pieces which she belatedly discovered and is including them alongside the more established compositions as part of a projected 4-CD set that will be released later this year.  You can hear some of the excerpts here in addition to the hyperlink to her kickstart webpage in her her email below.   

http://www.patriciagoodson.com/web/music_details.aspx?ItemId=988675

In view of this momentously unprecedented and groundbreaking initiative that she is undertaking to surface Foerster 's long glossed over piano compositions to the world of music lovers, please give her your generous support.

Best wishes to one and all,
JP

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Patricia Goodson <pg@patriciagoodson.com>
Date: Sun, Jan 20, 2013 at 12:22 AM
Subject: I am launching a Kickstarter Project! Please have a look - it`s only up for 20 days.

I would be most grateful if you would help spread the word.  Here is an invitation I have just sent out, which you may use if you like.

The music I found was mainly Jičínská Suita, which I had been told at the outset was an orchestral reduction.  I later learned that the original version was for piano (even if it is terribly awkward to play, it might as well be an orchestral reduction but Foerster created it himsel.) so I felt I needed to include it.  It is about 22 minutes long, so that's a lot of recording time.  The other pieces maybe are a little bit known, I don`t know.  One is Greetings to president Masaryk on his 80th birthday, which was published in a newspaper which I found on microfiche and copied out.  Others were Allegretto Capriccioso, Petites Esquisses, March for the Young National Front.  I think that`s about it.

Thank you again for spreading the word!

cheers,
Patricia
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Just Hatched: Foerster Kickstarter Project!

As many of you know, I have spent the past several years recording the complete piano works of Czech composer Josef Bohuslav Foerster.  The project is nearly ready, and today I am launching a Kickstarter project to raise money to finish it, and to raise awareness about the CD and Foerster`s beautiful piano music.

Please have a look at the project here:

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1230126388/dreams-memories-impressions-piano-works-of-jb-foer?ref=email

where you can learn a bit more about Foerster and hear how lovely this completely forgotten music is.  Feedback is welcome, though I am not sure I can change anything in it.

I would be very grateful if you could support the project by sending the Kickstarter link to your music-loving friends, and of course if you can find a way to join the project by making a small contribution.

Thank you very, very much!
xox,
Patricia