The booklet notes and audio excerpts are now available at the Hyperion web site (http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dc.asp?dc=D_CDA67817&vw=dc).
thankyou,
nothing about the next issues of this series?
bye, Andrea
Another exciting release in this series. Many thanks to Hyperion. Again and again.
Mores the pity that we can't convince someone - somewhere - to do some American romantic concertos. For examples:
George Boyle (1886-1948) - Piano Concerto
Howard Brockway (1870-1951) -Piano Concerto
George Chadwick (1854-1931) - Concerto for two pianos
Victor Herbert (1859-1924) - Concertino for piano and orchestra
Edward B Hill (1875-19??) - Concertstucke for piano and orchestra; also Piano Concerto
Helen Hopekirk (1856-1945) - Piano Concerto; also Rhapsody for piano and orchestra
Henry H Huss (1862-1953) - Piano Concerto
Arthur Whiting (1861-1936) - Piano Concerto; also Fantasy in Bb
To name the ones I know were written. Not to even mention violin concertos, symphonys, chamber works, etc. etc.
Come to think of it, there is no "American Music" folder in this forum either. Which I think gives you clue about how excited American orchestra's and their maestros are about promoting anything but American contemporary music. Perhaps we should chip in and purchase some old Grove's for some of them......
Jerry
The Huss PC is Vol. 16 in Hyperion's RPC series, coupled with the Suite Fantastique by Ernest Schelling. I'd love to hear some of the works you mention - and one you don't: the PC by Otis Boise, of which I have the full score.
If we're talking American romantic concertos I would love to hear the 2 by Abram Chasins. I believe there are two by Beryl Rubinstein as well.
Well ,the scores and parts of both Chasins' PCs are in Fleisher, as are the PC of George Boyle (+ a piano concertino and a Cello Concerto), and a piano concertino by Edward Burlinghame Hill. The score of Whiting's Fantasy appears to be in the Library of Congress. That's all I've found so far - any leads from anyone else?
Just found out that the pianist Dana Muller published a critical edition of Hopekirk's Concertstucke in 1995. Is that the same as the Rhapsody, I wonder?
Apologies, I had forgotten about the Huss being in the Hyperion series. I shouldn't have, it was one of my favorites. The Schelling, that is.
Lots of potential and even some scores so the darned things aren't lost......
Jerry
Jerfilm--you've provided the opening I've been waitng for. When are we ever going to get a new rcording of A Pagan Poem (piano and orch., if not quite a concerto) by Charles Martin Loeffler as well as his symphony Hora Mystica, and other major works such as Evocation and The Devil's Villanelle? The French side of American late romanticism (glad you listed Edward Burlingame Hill, the major exponent after CML) has been unfairly scanted in favor of the German model.
I agree with X Trapnel that the unaccountable neglect of Loeffler is due in part to the culture wars of the late 19th century. His neglect reminds me of Bridge's neglect before the 1980s. Loeffler was a master craftsman with something serious to say and the ambition to keep growing musically throughout his career,
That said, I wouldn't want to generalize too much about the French side of the old culture divide. We shouldn't forget Chadwick's openness to French influences (particularly Debussy) during the first decade of the 20th century, or the success of the eminently French-tinged Griffes and Carpenter in the late teens and '20s -- not to mention Bloch and the early pupils of Boulanger. In poetry and literature at that time, French influences were also paramount (Sara Teasdale, Gertrude Stein, the imagists, etc). Converse, Shepherd (Loeffler's pupil IIRC), and Josten were also wide open to a range of French musical styles. I recall seeing a Chadwick score from the 1920s that includes a saxophone -- clearly a French influence if not indeed a Loeffler influence.
To bring this post on track, I will mention that one of my first entrees to a (relatively) unsung composer occurred when I became closely involved in a Widor edition. That gentleman was capable of masterpieces in many mediums.
Jerry, I agree entirely with your comments about the neglect of American music. I mentioned several examples in the unsung 20thC symphonists thread, but it is across the board, and certainly here in Aus., where the European mainstream dominates - with the exception of Copland and Bernstein. Our annual international chamber music festival here in Townsville attracts some big names from overseas, and that sometimes brings a chance to hear less familiar works by American composers, and in recent years they have been broadcast nationally by the ABC. Overall, the choice of recordings of any but the mainstream is poor or non-existent. How about we start an American Music thread?
Chill319--No denigration of Chadwick et Cie intended, but the French influence is external to their aesthetic, exotic trimmings here and there (and I like your very apt comparison of Loeffler with Bridge). As for the students of Boulanger and despite her on again off again allegience to Faure (I seem to recall there was a falling out) I feel they were mainly steered toward a Stravinskian neo-classicism which dovetailed nicely with our native musical puritanism, itself very far from the symbolist/impressionist aesthetic. One American composer though who thoroughly assimilated Debussy without losing his American voice was Paul Creston.
As an American, I have to tell you that it is simply embarrassing that American orchestra don't play American music, and record even less. Oh, they play some token things like Grand Canyon Suite, Hanson's 2nd, and a few pops things by Morton Gould, Copland and all. But it really is sinful that most of the recordings of American music come from Europe. There's a sense of duty or pride in Europe towards their heritage and composers that we completely lack over here. There have been feeble attempts to correct the situation, but when the best recording of Chadwick's Symphonic Sketches comes from Prague, there's something wrong. And hardly anyone records anymore; I guess it's too expensive with the union rules and all. But it is annoying nonetheless. Even the Naxos Leroy Anderson set was done in England! Is there no shame?
Going through more and more of the "American Memory" pages at the LoC (yes, offtopic for Widor- sorry- though the BNF is doing something very similar, I do think) - the scanning of music published in the early-to-middle-late 19th century by American publishers (not all by American composers)- gives an interesting idea of what the music scene was like here in that time, and while turning up few new masterpieces (there are only a few large works scanned by them, some vocal scores to operas and masses for instance, and most of it is, representatively, brief dance pieces and songs; little chance of finding a piano concerto there, though there are some solo/duo piano, organ, violin and cello sonatas and other works )-- erm, trying as usual with difficulty to get to my point, all the trolling (?) I do through their site, I end up with a more informed view (...maybe) of the development of American music and (not "by comparison" or etc.- just in simple fact) a good high opinion of it (and I'd already had one anyway); there're some really good pieces there, both the brief dance pieces, the bigger works (just for example I like the look of a ballade in G minor by an American Reinecke pupil named Oscar Weil, indeed I think Reinecke was its dedicatee, reasonably enough; Reinecke dedicated a work to his former pupil as well)... I also wonder if I should see if any of these whose names I am encountering ... well, e.g. - yes. What did happen to the piano concerto de-Wikipedia claims Charles Wels (a Moravian immigrant to the US) wrote? Wonder where it went to (he composed apparently some 138-odd works many of which survive even if some may only survive in the Library of Congress (and British Library, which along with some other libraries has some of his late woO motets and other works) and its scans now- though IMSLP tries to help out there... - but the concerto is not among them, if it existed. Well, things do disappear. I like what survived by him, both the more frivolous things and the one of his 5 masses that I've seen too, though from an aesthetic perspective :) ) Boyle's concerto which was mentioned I noticed was uploaded (in reduction or score? have to check...) to IMSLP just recently, inspiring curiosity...
Apologies for babble.
Ob topic, I have heard Widor's 2nd concerto on tape (not recently and may have lost the tape besides, maybe at the same time I accidentally destroyed several others I had with some soda... erm, I didn't say that and you didn't hear it :( ) - anycase, I recall liking it, and am glad to see the 2 concertos recorded commercially. All cheer to Hyperion from me!
I'd like to second my fellow American mbhaub on the disgraceful noncultivation of our musical heritage. I can only marvel over the fact that the Symphonic Sketches is not a beloved, regularly heard work in this country. Part of the problem may stem from the modernist polemics of the early twentieth century and dubious questions of American "authenticity." In his influential writings Copland tended to denigrate his immediate and not so immediate predecessors as academic and derivative and his point of view was amplified by Wilfred Mellers who overdid the maverick/pioneer bit. Add to this the declining interest in "classical" music since the 1960s and all that's left is (1) a lazy, incurious audience content to hear Billy the Kid and the Candide Overture unto infinity and (2) a smaller semi-intelligentsia for whom music is merely an accessory to various forms of "transgressive" posturing.
In confirmation of the forgoing I note that Werner Josten's Endymion (Naxos Archive) can't be downloaded in the U.S. Very annoying.
I recently came across reference to a cpo release of two Widor Symphonies for organ and orchestra. The first is an orchestrated amalgamation of movements from the 6th and 2nd solo works (designated as Op.42), the second is the later Sinfonia Sacra, Op.81 -
(http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61ke1I9KDpL._SL500_AA300_.jpg)
CPO 777 443-2 (SACD)
Although I'm not a fan of solo organ music I love the instrument in combination with an orchestra, so this may be one that I decide to explore. Hurwitz gave this release a 10/10 rating: is this a reasonable assessment?
???
I gave a look to the 2 piano score of Boyle Piano concerto i d minor, very interesting.
The piano writing, tempo and the 6/4 bars, recall strongly Brahms PC1.
This remember me an idea for a new topic about unsung piano concertos. I think there are some threads, trains of thoughts that relate works by different composers and different times. For example, beethovenPC4, Brull PC1 and Reinecke PC 3, as said in an other topic. It would be nice to find and discuss these relationships, sometimes I found that unsung came before sung.
Sorry for going out of topic, bye. Andrea
From perhaps a rather different perspective the two reviews on Amazon both rate it 4 out of 5, as does the review at hbdirect.com; the review at aud.aud.com seems to be liekwise positive but not enthusiastic "quite enjoyable". It gets two positive reviews and a third absolutely slating it at:
http://www.sa-cd.net/showreviews/6155
I have the Guild recording of the Op.42 arrangement. The organ is spectacular but doesn't overwhelm the orchestra, and I think this is as good as it can be. The dynamics are always a problem, I much prefer the organ alone, and I suspect Widor was perhaps persuaded to make the arrangement against his better judgement.(?)
Quote from: reineckeforever on Saturday 03 September 2011, 10:00...I think there are some threads, trains of thoughts that relate works by different composers and different times. For example, beethovenPC4, Brull PC1 and Reinecke PC 3, as said in an other topic...
I think you meant Brüll PC 2, Andrea. Brüll PC 1 starts out with the orchestra.
yes JimL...of course.
:-[ sorry
Quote from: reineckeforever on Friday 02 September 2011, 17:18
thankyou,
nothing about the next issues of this series?
bye, Andrea
Hi,
I am not sure but perhaps Hyperion is going to record in further future pf cto by the Polish Jozef Wladyslaw Krogulski (1815-1842).
During this year edition of the International Music Festival "Chopin and his Europe" Howard Shelley played that composition - very nice and tuneful in early romantic style. Up to that moment there exists only one recording of it done in 60s for the Polish Radio archives by Regina Smendzianka. She recorded then also Krogulski's Variations in form of Krakoviak - for pf and orch. Krogulski composed also second pf cto - never however recorded.
and one more possible addition to the Hyperion series. Last year after the concert of Jonathan Plowrigh here in Warsaw I asked him about his future input to the series. He replied that he did or was about to record concertos and Ballada by Ludomir Rozycki.
Marek
thank you Marek,
i'm going to learn more about these composers..
Bye, Andrea
I don't know the Krogulski works but if Howard Shelley has become interested in them there is a very good chance Hyperion may consider them for recording, especially as he wrote enough concertante music to devote a full CD to him. The Rozycki does not surprise me either - it's an obvious choice for the series (again, like Krogulski, 3 concertante works for piano & orchestra which would nicely fit a CD).
Marek--Thank you for the very welcome news about the Rozycki concertos. now if someone would only do the symphonic poems, Anhelli in particular. I think of Rozycki as making up in part the Karlowicz we never had.
Based on the recording I think I've heard over BBC, Anheli sounds very good... (it's been recorded before though, on an LP on Muza and then (the same performance, I think) as a CD on Olympia back in '88; hopefully one of the labels that's been mining Olympia's selections will reissue it in turn...)
Anhelli is my favorite work by Rozycki, but I've always found the sound on the cd harsh and grating. It really deserves a new recording.
To synthesize two threads of this discussion...
What do you gentlemen (and, I hope, lurking ladies) think was the role, if any, of French influences on early 20th-centrury American music that were *not* from Debussy/Ravel? Did Widor have an influence on organ music (or other music) composed in the States? Farwell demonstrably drew inspiration from Franck. And what of d'Indy and the Schola Cantorum? Are Beach's String Quartet and late Piano Trio legitimate descendents? Did Severac or Satie leave traces?
Beach's quartet in particular is an odd one, I think (a very posthumously published odd one, too, I think, despite the moderate opus number)- but then so are works by many of those composers, including their string quartet works (to my mind among their finest, d'Indy's sometimes maligned first two included without hesitation- etc.) I wonder which of these works which composers demonstrably knew- probably a reasonable number if (and I think this is pretty definitely so for many of these composers) they had access to chamber and orchestral concerts in medium-to-larger cities at the time (where groups which played both foreign and US repertoire were often heard, I think, judging from what I can obtain of concert programs- e.g. the Musical Yearbook of the United States and the Boston Symphony's program guides at Google Books (http://books.google.com), etc. ...)
Getting back to Widor - I see that he wrote a significant amount of orchestral music which doesn't feature the organ, including 2 symphonies, a Spanish overture, at least half a dozen works for chorus & orchestra, several ballets and associated suites, various bits of incidental music, a Fantaisie for piano & orchestra, a cello concerto and a violin concerto, and ISMPL lists the two piano quintets as concertos. None of this music appears in current CD catalogues, as far as I can tell, and I must confess I've never heard anything but his organ works. His chamber works and songs have been quite widely recorded. Does anyone know what the orchestral music is like?
Another American composer who might have been French influenced was Ralph Lyford (1882-1927) who had some association with Debussy. There is a piano concerto...
Quote from: X. Trapnel on Saturday 03 September 2011, 22:44
Marek--Thank you for the very welcome news about the Rozycki concertos. now if someone would only do the symphonic poems, Anhelli in particular. I think of Rozycki as making up in part the Karlowicz we never had.
as to the ctos by Rozycki - see my yesterday note in the download discussion
Marek
I've heard the first (F minor) symphony by Widor, yes. Early work, published (written? not sure) around the same time as the first three organ symphonies etc., and didn't leave as much of an impression as some other works of his (but then, relistening might change my mind...
I like the later chamber works for instance, and the 2nd symphony in A looks interesting in score. Would like to hear the cello concerto, too...)
The Krogulski Piano Concerto in E has been recorded on CD. And his Variations for piano and orchestra are on a cassette tape which I assume came from a broadcast some time ago.
Jerry
Oh, that is really interesting! do you know the labels of them? and performers? in Poland - as far as I know - they were never commercially released.
I have got both pieces recorded off radio.
best,
Marek
QuoteI have got both pieces recorded off radio.
I should explain. My database was designed for primary two purposes - to show what works I have and where to find them. I don't keep a record there of artists and soloists, nor separate movements nor record/CD/tape labels or numbers.
And I'm not at home to look at the original materials. The database shows I have the Piano Concerto on a CD. Which unfortunately doesn't necessarily mean it was a commercial CD. I've traded music with several friends over the last 50 years and one in particular switched to CDs a couple of years ago. My suspicion is that both of these performances came from radio and are probably the same ones you have. Sorry if I got you excited about that..... 8)
Nice pieces, incidentally. Jerry
Hello Jerry,
so now everything seems to be clear. I was simply excited that the pieces were issued in recordings other than mine. For dozens of years I try to collect pf ctos and especially those written by our composers. Many of them were not commercially recorded and exist only in private off radio registrations. I do also exchange recordings with some friends for years so for sure my chain of friends somwhere meets with your friends' chain :-).
best,
Marek
I think we might be in for a double release of the Widor PCs this month, as Dutton look set to release a CD of them as well (CDXL7276 on their website, although you have to search for it, and no artist details yet, as the link is to details for another forthcoming CD of music by Converse).
as to American Piano Concertos (re earlier post in this thread) there is one (in B minor) in manuscript (held at Vassar) by Frédéric Louis Ritter (French-American, 1834-91) .
Well, the Hyperion CD of the two Widor PCs and Fantaisie in A flat arrived this morning. And, judging by a first listen, the identical Dutton offering is going to have to be very good to beat this. PC1 is a simply marvellous piece: a turbulent first movement is followed by a hushed Andante religioso and a finale with a Saint-Saens-like galumphing main theme. Absolutely memorable stuff: how can this possibly have got forgotten? Hyperion's production values are as excellent as usual and Markus Becker is a brilliant pianist, as he showed in his performances of Jadassohn and Draeseke in an earlier RPC release.
This is definitely one to rush out - or dash to the computer - and buy!
Quote from: Alan Howe on Monday 31 October 2011, 15:01
Well, the Hyperion CD of the two Widor PCs and Fantaisie in A flat arrived this morning. And, judging by a first listen, the identical Dutton offering is going to have to be very good to beat this. PC1 is a simply marvellous piece: a turbulent first movement is followed by a hushed Andante religioso and a finale with a Saint-Saens-like galumphing main theme. Absolutely memorable stuff: how can this possibly have got forgotten? Hyperion's production values are as excellent as usual and Markus Becker is a brilliant pianist, as he showed in his performances of Jadassohn and Draeseke in an earlier RPC release.
This is definitely one to rush out - or dash to the computer - and buy!
....ah, but IS it THE one to rush out to buy? ;D Martin Jones is also a very good pianist :)
Martin Jones certainly is a good pianist - but Martin Roscoe is the soloist on the Dutton/Widor disk.
Aaaagh!!
Sorry ::)
Well...he is pretty good too, is he not? :)
they've been in direct competition before (Szymanowski complete piano music on Nimbus and Naxos...) - maybe it's the Martin brief-last-name syndrome. Very common, I hear. (Odd that Nimbus had Jones and Naxos had Roscoe- must be a Conservation Principle at work. Nature's full to brimming with them.)
Obviously, I've not heard the Dutton CD. However, I have been disappointed in the past when they've used the BBC Concert Orchestra (finding them lacking in the heft needed for this sort of late-Romantic repertoire), so felt I had to make a judgment somehow as I wanted to hear the music.
That's a fair point :)
...of course, if the Dutton CD turns out to garner better reviews, I may have to buy that too. Yes, the music's that good...
The Fantaisie is a smashing piece too, with some passages of an almost Elgarian amplitude (it's from 1889). To my mind this is one of the best releases in the entire RPC series.
Quote from: Alan Howe on Monday 31 October 2011, 22:22this is one of the best releases in the entire RPC series.
Thanks, Alan. This enthusiasm might just make me stray across the channel again! Pray, permit an impromptu rendition of
(http://www.google.co.uk/url?source=imglanding&ct=img&q=http://images.insound.com/303/INS46684.jpg&sa=X&ei=YievTpKTE4nwsgbsptBc&ved=0CAsQ8wc44AE&usg=AFQjCNF-x4fdAaSQ11qd3tiyZoCor6JpQA)
:'(
Is there a historical joke there or is that your name :) (I think me I should look up that title -before- asking th'question)
Eric Schissel
Ah.
(i) One (http://www.worldcat.org/title/empty-pocket-blues-the-life-and-music-of-clive-palmer/oclc/488403919)
(ii) Possibly, of various, sundry and divers' Clive Palmers, This'n (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clive_Palmer).
(iii) W/this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Incredible_String_Band_(album) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Incredible_String_Band_(album)) squaring the ... I mean, closing the circle...
Well, I downloaded the Dutton recordings of the Widor PC compilation, pretty much because I felt like supporting the underdog.
As Alan has written about the Hyperion release, the music is an utter delight. The First Concerto breathes very much the same air as Saint-Saëns' five concertos - the same mixture of delicacy (there is a swooning slow movement), vigour (the first movement and most of the finale) and tongue in cheek (try the opening of the finale). The one movement Fantasie, at almost 23 minutes, is actually a more substantial piece than the Second Concerto and is another winning work even if, like the Second Concerto, it somehow lacks the last ounce of charm which the First has in abundance. That said, it's a rewarding work which never outstays its welcome. The Piano Concerto No.2 is another winner, although it is clearly an older man's composition, having been written 29 years after its predecessor. It has an altogether more autumnal character, the orchestration doesn't have quite the transparency of the Concerto No.1 and it's more tightly argued - you can hear Franck hovering in the background. There's plenty of passion in the opening movement and a reflective slow movement, all capped by a glittering finale.
Whilst I may at some stage get the Hyperion release as well, I must say that I'm very happy with Duttton's offering. The soloist, Martin Roscoe, does a fabulous job and Martin Yates' BBC Concert Orchestra for once don't seem under-powered, with full-blooded contributions in the tutti.
What it is to have a choice!
Obviously I haven't had the time to compare performances, but a brief audition of the Dutton performance of PC1 certainly bears out my prediction with regard to orchestral sound: to my ears at least, there is less heft and cutting edge to the BBCCO's playing, whereas the BBCNOW (on Hyperion) sounds fuller and clearer. Looking at the two orchestra's websites tells us that the BBCCO is much lighter overall in the string department; I have wondered before about the wisdom of using them in late-Romantic music (and I know the arguments about authenticity, although there is no conscious attempt to be so here), and I believe this comparison shows the better judgment of Hyperion in using full-scale regional orchestras such as the BBCSSO and the BBCNOW in this repertoire.
Of course, I may be completely wrong and others' ears may hear things entirely differently...
Oh good...some disagreement between Alan and Mark regarding the quality of the orchestral contribution to the Dutton version of the Widor ;D
It is-of course-a matter of subjective perspective, I know :)
I decided to wait until next month before ordering whichever version I finally go for(no..it won't be both ;D). In the meantime I have ordered the McEwen Viola Concerto, the Richard Wetz Christmas Oratorio, the Rontgen Piano Concertos Nos. 2 and 4 and the Gaubert Violin Concerto......to sustain my "romantic credentials" ;D ;D
No disagreement yet, Colin, as I haven't heard the Hyperion recording but I've now downloaded their recording of the First Piano Concerto and will give it a listen tomorrow. I certainly have no complaints about Dutton's orchestra but, if Alan is right and Hyperion's is even better, then I'll be even more pleased!
Of course I'm right. Mark'll come round.... ;)
Today my copy of the Hyperion Vol 55 arrived and I've listened twice to the disc. Sorry to admit, but I need to listen to the Widor's a few more times before I might get a bit enthusiastic. Surely there are beautiful, almost fragile moments in both PC's and the Fantaisie, but there is also quite some chaos, at least to my ears.
My former post is definitely one of my most strange comments ever. Today I've listened to Widor again and I cannot believe what I've written a day before, it's beside the mark. I have to be very careful what I write after a first listen. It could also have something to do with my healthcare situation (I 'm undergoing a chemo therapy after a colon tumor has been removed).
Well, my opinion has changed completely after one day. Themes are delightful and memorable, especially in the lovely PC1 with its utterly delicate slow movement and the Fantaisie.
Oh don't worry, Peter. I did the same thing after listening to a CD of Röntgen Piano Concertos a few months ago and you could see jaws dropping across UC! I was welcomed back into the fold after I saw the light ;)
I'm sure that we all wish you a speedy and successful recovery too ;D
Dear Peter,
May I second Mark's good wishes for a speedy and complete recovery?
Regards,
Alan
Thank you very much for your good wishes, Mark and Alan. The chemo therapy takes at least half a year, and during that period I will not be able to work as much as I used to do. On the other hand, the situation gives me the opportunity to listen more (and better!) to music.
It's interesting to read Robert Mathew-Walker's reveiw of the competing Dutton and Hyperion recordings in the latest IRR. Basically, after living with both recordings for several weeks he can't recommend one over the other and thinks both excellent.
Yes, Mark, I too read the review in IRR and decided, on the basis of the review, to go for the Dutton as the (slightly) cheaper option ;D
I've managed to hear them both and reviewed them on Amazon.co.uk If I had to choose I'd go for the Dutton because of Roscoe and Yates' slightly greater level of emotional commitment but there's very little to choose between them. My reviews are here. I'd be interested to hear your comments:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Charles-Marie-Widor-Concertos-Fantaisie-orchestre/dp/B005SD4TJM/ref=cm_cr-mr-title
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Widor-Romantic-Concerto-Hyperion-CDA67817/dp/B005OCESHU/ref=cm_cr-mr-title
Interesting. I still have doubts about the BBCCO in this repertoire...
Quote from: Revilod on Monday 05 December 2011, 10:02
I've managed to hear them both and reviewed them on Amazon.co.uk If I had to choose I'd go for the Dutton because of Roscoe and Yates' slightly greater level of emotional commitment but there's very little to choose between them. My reviews are here. I'd be interested to hear your comments:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Charles-Marie-Widor-Concertos-Fantaisie-orchestre/dp/B005SD4TJM/ref=cm_cr-mr-title
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Widor-Romantic-Concerto-Hyperion-CDA67817/dp/B005OCESHU/ref=cm_cr-mr-title
Glad to hear that ;D That's the one I ordered ;D
The Gramophone review by Jeremy Nicholas also says that it's honours even between the two recordings.
Very belatedly re the Krogulski piano concerto, I don't think it was a commercial recording, I think it was probably a recording of a festival (August 29 2011, Festival Chopin and His Europe, or an earlier one- probably earlier, since the posts are from 2011?) in which Howard Shelley played the piano part - this performance was rebroadcast earlier this month (February 5) on Swedish Radio P2 Formiddag, identified as being from Polish Radio. (hrm... I should check to see if we still have it; I'll have to try to download it, and/or catch it before March 5th or so on Swedish P2... sounds like it might be good.)
Oh, yes the Krogulski was quite nice and very accomplished for a 15 year old.
Is the Widor Violin Concerto a passing mention with no manuscript, or does anyone know anything about the piece, I cant seem to find any info reg. this concerto. If it does exist it might be the only concerto left to record! :)
Oh, I'm still holding out for Friedrich Gernsheim's 2 concertos, and some others too...
Widor wrote at least one violin/orchestra work (Romance in E minor, Op.46) - interestingly enough, the key of the "might-be" concerto of 1877, as mentioned in Bachmann's Encyclopedia, is also E minor, so hrm.
(hrm. actually, that's a violin/piano work whose orchestration is in manuscript at the BNF, and I don't know if that orchestration's certainly by Widor...)
(However, the violin concerto is here (http://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb43337426h/PUBLIC)... and violin solo part here. (http://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb43337427v/PUBLIC) & reduction! (http://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb433374286/PUBLIC)
QuoteOh good...some disagreement between Alan and Mark regarding the quality of the orchestral contribution to the Dutton version of the Widor
That is tongue-in-cheek, of course. Nevertheless, it's worth pointing out that Alan and Mark probably weren't listening to the music on the same stereo system and speakers/headphones. This can make a remarkable difference in how a performance sounds. Performances that have sounded to me underpowered and Milquetoast-ish (apologies for the Americanism) on headphones sometimes have taken on an entirely different and quite aggressive character on an SACD system. Contrariwise, balances that have sounded "reasonable" on headphones sometimes have come out poorly when heard through good speakers.
I still don't rate the BBCCO...
QuoteThis can make a remarkable difference in how a performance sounds.
Indeed it can. That said, I do have both recordings and, whilst I entirely accept that the BBC Concert Orchestra has the smaller body of strings (and that can't be disguised), after repeated listenings to both I still marginally prefer the more visceral and immediate interpretations on Dutton. If I didn't have the Dutton, I'd be more than happy with the Hyperion, though. There's that little between them.
Fair enough!
To Rob H: I have a recording of the Chasins PC2 if you're still interested.
I don't know concerning Rob H, but on my side I would be really interested by Abram Chasins' "Piano Concerto No. 2 in F sharp minor" :)
Me too, please.
Me three, too, please......
Ditto that, thanks.
I have a recording of Chasins second piano concerto if anyone would like a copy. Also Beryl Rubinstein as far as I know only wrote one piano concerto which was just performed for the first time since 1936 in California. A recording of that concert will be available in a few weeks.
And with that, back to the thread topic, please.
I would be interested by the recording of Chasins' "Piano Concerto No. 2".
I suggest that members now correspond with each other about Chasins' PC through this website's private message facility.