Today I have listened after so many years to the Concerto for Piano, Violin and String Orchestra in F sharp minor, coupled on a LP (label Turnabout of course) with Moscheles' Grande Sonate Symphonique for four-hand piano arrangement. The Pixis' concerto is a real gem and the 2nd movement, an adagio sostenuto, features, as the violist Kees Kooper says, "one of the most beautiful melodies one can ever hope to hear". I fully agree. It is a very intense, heavenly theme. Has any member ever heard this marvellous concerto?
Music of Pixis on a CD seems to be very rare. The only piece I have is the "Fantasie dramatique pour le piano à quatre-mains sur des motifs des Hugenots" (from Meyerbeer) played by the Duo Alkan (Alberto Baldrighi and Anne Colette Ricciardi).
Have heard nothing of the music of Pixis and, from your commentary, am regretting it. As stated, there appears to be hardly anything recorded on CD. The Pixis Concerto must be found on disc - the search begins!!!
I believe that Hyperion may be going to bring out Pixis' PC, coupled with the later PC by Jacob Rosenhain.
Quote from: Peter1953 on Sunday 03 May 2009, 21:23
Today I have listened after so many years to the Concerto for Piano, Violin and String Orchestra in F sharp minor, coupled on a LP (label Turnabout of course) with Moscheles' Grande Sonate Symphonique for four-hand piano arrangement. The Pixis' concerto is a real gem and the 2nd movement, an adagio sostenuto, features, as the violist Kees Kooper says, "one of the most beautiful melodies one can ever hope to hear". I fully agree. It is a very intense, heavenly theme. Has any member ever heard this marvellous concerto?
Yes, I have heard it, but I discarded all my LPs a decade or so ago, during a house move.
Quote from: Peter1953 on Sunday 03 May 2009, 21:23Music of Pixis on a CD seems to be very rare.
The only Pixis that I have on CD is the collaborative
Hexaméron, by Liszt, Thalberg, Pixis, Herz, Czerny, and Chopin, which is a set of variations on a theme by Bellini. The piano version is on Liszt: The Complete Music for Solo Piano volume 10, CDA66433, and there is also a concertante arrangement, partly reconstructed by the pianist Leslie Howard, on Liszt: Music for Piano Orchestra volume 1, CDA67401/2.
After I directed Mike Spring to the Full Score of Pixis' PC, Op. 100 in the library of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Vienna, he became keen to record it and the original coupling was to have been with the Rosenhain. However, since he discovered the score of Pixis' Concertino for piano & orchestra in the Sibley Library in America, he is now thinking about an all Pixis disk which would have to include the splendid double concerto for violin and piano. The problem is that Kees Kooper has the score and parts and declines to reply to any emails about the work. I think he wants the Vox/Turnabout recording he made with his wife, Mary Louise Boehm, to be re-released before he'll condone another recording. All a bit frustrating.
The orchestra in the double concerto is just strings? Bummer! :(
Maybe, just maybe, it's fairer to criticise after you've heard the work?
The double concerto is a minor masterpiece. The first two movts. are superb - arresting, exciting, lyrical... everything one looks for in a concerto; the finale not quite in the same league perhaps, but the whole work a joy from beginning to end.
I do agree on all counts: first two movements are great stuff, the finale on a rather lower plane, but I'm pleased to have the work and play it often.
Wouldn't that be a music lovers dream coming true? A disk with Pixis' 3 concertos? Booklet notes written by Kees Kooper?
His notes on the LP sleeve are interesting enough. Pixis must have been a formidable pianist and composer. A nice anecdote is recorded by Kees Kooper: "Schumann expressed great admiration. So did Franz Liszt, in a rather unorthodox way. In 1837, in Paris, he presented in concert, two trios, by Beethoven and Pixis. Without announcement he played the trios in reverse order. The public hailed the Pixis, thought to be Beethoven, as a masterwork; the real Beethoven came in second best."
I downloaded this concerto for piano and violon in f
You are reason : this concerto est beautiful.
There is an opus number in the Pixis catalogue ?
I've really loved this piece since I heard it back in the 80s. A Pixis disc is long overdue.
Hrm. Is it in F minor, F major or D minor? If the latter (actually, if any of them, since I'm not certain of the quintet's key and mode) it could possibly be an arrangement for violin, piano and strings of a piano quintet with bass published by Haslinger around 1829, Pixis' opus 99. But I don't know- this is a random guess on my part... haven't seen opus 99 yet and need to hear the concerto (which I will soon.)
Eric, it's the concerto in F# minor in our downloads. I don't think it has an opus number, as the manuscript is in the possession of the family of one of the performers, who has passed on. I think all that is in this thread.
ah, thanks. though it could still be the manuscript of a published work, it's not one I've seen mentioned- I think. Maybe an early one if so...
(Pixis I know of primarily as the object - or rather subject - of a practical joke in which Liszt and Chopin played trios by Pixis and Beethoven, switching the names. The audience was the object, as they were much more impressed by the Pixis on the basis of name, I gather.)
I should note that JP Pixis' older (but apparently much less prolific) brother (by two years), Friedrich Wilhelm Pixis, did compose a violin concertino (very probably -not- this work, of course, which is most likely by JP Pixis as stated, but still... just thinking aloud), published by Haslinger as his opus 1 in 1829. (And should note too that I hope the manuscript in their possession says something more than just "Pixis" or something hard to read, for instance... as seems to be the case with any number of manuscripts.) (Vaguely reminded that a bassoon work in manuscript (most likely) by bassoonist Gotthelf Heinrich Kummer (signed as G.H. Kummer) was uploaded to IMSLP and misidentified as a work by Gaspar/Caspar Kummer (whose full name was Johann Caspar Kummer, or J.C. Kummer) but that at least was more easily fixed... )
Slight correction - FW Pixis' violin concerto (or at least one of them) in A minor (definitely a different piece then) dates from around 1817 (performed in a concert of both brothers' works), and he did compose a violin concertino around 1827 (performed then) - these dates from performance accounts in AMZ and the Harmonicon respectively. (Oh, the op.1 is the concertino of ca.1827.)
There's a number of works by JP Pixis for piano and violin that were published, I just wonder if the concerto relates to any of them (maybe if it might even be an orchestration and extension (into concerto format) by the composer of one of them- perfectly consistent with its being an unpublished manuscript, the orchestration that is.) Hrm. Well... *ponder ponder...*
(IMSLP does seem to have the solo and orchestral parts of JP Pixis' piano concertino opus 68, that said.)
Just to clarify re Pixis' Op99 - this is a Piano Quintet (dedicated to Thalberg) in D minor - I have just checked my copy!
Quote(IMSLP does seem to have the solo and orchestral parts of JP Pixis' piano concertino opus 68, that said.)
Yes, Mike Spring got the Sibley Music library to scan this work in preparation for its being recorded by Hyperion. Whether Mike arranged for it to be uploaded to IMSLP or not, I don't know.
If something's uploaded to Sibley and is in their publicly-available section, generally it's been IMSLP policy that after checking the relevant copyright policies (it may only be PD-US, since Sibley is on a US server - while IMSLP is on a Canadian server, though it has a US server) IMSLP editors can mirror it on the latter site (after attempting to provide some information Sibley doesn't always, however.)
Re the Vox Turnabout Pixis Double Concerto, i contacted musical Concepts(ex Vox), who have fab customer service,re re-issuing the Rachmaninov complete piano solo works by Ponti; ok it probably wasnt just because of me lol; but they re-issued it within a year or so; so, this is a possible route; Todd landor, Boss of Musical Concepts is very helpful(they have re-isssued-again!-LOTs of the Vox/turnabout/Candide catalogue, and now seem to be issuing more wholly new releases; or you could ask him to give the rights to Archiv Music who do individually made cd-rs of Vox recordings(licensed by Musical Concepts). Worth a try!Musical Concepts also run Alto records, so that is another possibility(budget too!)Steve Benson
I have written today.
Have just received the following response from Todd Landor:
This sounds like a good idea, it will certainly be made available as a download soon,
having read your email I will try to see if it can be issued on a CD as well.
Best regards,
Wow, Gareth; a result!Steve
Well, you did say Todd Landor was helpful - and it seems you were dead right.
Quote from: Martin Eastick on Saturday 30 June 2012, 12:24
Just to clarify re Pixis' Op99 - this is a Piano Quintet (dedicated to Thalberg) in D minor - I have just checked my copy!
A Pixis Piano Quintet sounds yummy! Any chance of a performance/recording?
I have mentioned that I have the score & parts to Mike Spring of Hyperion in the past, although there seem to be no concrete plans at present! If anyone else wishes to perform/record the work, I will be more than willing to make a copy available!
According to HMB, the Pixis Op.99 was published in or by 1829 by Farrenc, Paris and by 1830 by Häslinger (in which edition/printing it was reviewed briefly in the 11 December 1830 issue of the Berliner allgemeine musikalische Zeitung.)
Yes Todd Landor is sitting on treasure trove of some still un re-issued(on cd) stuff, eg Schumann the rare Intro and Allegro , op.134 for piano and orchestra; with its poignant slow second subject, written when Schumann's mental health was failing; Ponti is pianist. And Alto has some interesting stuff in its catalogue.I love VOX(now Musical Concepts/Alto); they started the whole thing off to a large extent; unsung pieces:)Steve
I have searched for this Concerto for the last ten years! To no avail, though, nobody seemed to know anything about it, including Pixis' German biographer. Maybe 7 or 8 years ago a friend in Mannheim (Pixis' home-town) scoured all likely civic and other possibilities there, but - nothing. I then tried to contact the pianist, only to discover that she had recently died, and a director at Vox [Todd Landor?] was unable to assist with information. The orchestra who recorded the piece no longer exists, having merged with another more than 20 years ago, and no record seems to be available for a minor recording session in the 70s... I tried the conductor, who did not respond to emails, and who might also be deceased by now. Could not get hold of the violinist, but - astonishingly - a member of his family did eventually respond to an email! To say that Mary Louise Boehm took care of all the business, and that after his wife died, Kees Kooper began suffering from loss of memory [Alzheimers?] and eventually had to be cared for; a house-move at about that time resulted in crates of music being stored in the garage of a neighbour (or family-member, I forget the specifics, now...) and that had subsequently been destroyed in a flood. There was no record of what was in the crates... Sounds familiar?
Along the way, I began to wonder if the Concert was, in fact, an original composition, which might account for the lack of Opus number; all this sort of information is scrupulously avoided in the LP sleeve note. That put me on a different track and I eventually discovered the original source in the British Library: it is Pixis' Grand Trio, Nº 6 [in f#-minor] for Piano, Violin and Violoncello, dedicated to Mademoiselle Clara Wieck. This is a 4-movement work, of which the second ('Capriccio') was jettisoned for the Concerto arrangement. I fear I created a disturbance in BL when I found it - I was boisterous for a moment or two!
I still do not know who made the Concerto arrangement - it might have been the composer, but it might as likely have been the recording soloists themselves (the recording company have no records) - or anyone else, who is content to remain anonymous. I have still not found the score / parts used in the recording (probably destroyed). So, I am working on my own reconstruction of it; it's too good a piece to simply disappear!
Robin, this is a splendid piece of musicological research - immensely valuable. I strongly suspect that the arrangement was made by Boehm and Kooper, which might explain Kooper's reticence whenever approached about the score - as I had occasion to do more than once. The piece works as a concerto (I thinkl!), though I have always felt the last movt. was weak compared to the preceding movts. I would now love to hear it in its original conception as the 6th Grand Piano Trio. In fact, I'd like to hear a lot of Pixis' trios.
A fabulous bit of musical detective work. Well done that man.
Thal
Re: Pixis' trios: me too (not that it matters worth beans but I wonder which Pixis trio Liszt tried to - did- use to play his joke anyway- the story always has it as though the difference between the work and the Beethoven should have been most obvious to the audience, but hindsight isn't quite the word I want for such a blinkered view of .. erm, right. Anyhow, again, yes, I agree...)
I have to admit that I've wondered myself if the piece was some sort of arrangement (not a Kees/MLB composition, I'm unaware that they did any composing other than a little piano waltz by MLB.) Kees has always acted a bit peculiar when the subject of the piece was brought up, as Gareth has mentioned. Maybe the couple's 'personal' connection with the piece explains why the slow movement was played at MLB's memorial service. At any rate, both players had very flexible, one might say typically 19th century, ideas about arrangements and would have had no qualms about this little deception. I'll ask Kees directly next time I see him.
Btw, Kees does not have Alzheimer's, but it seems a series of ministrokes in the last couple of years have played havoc with his memory and general health. He has not changed residences (I saw him last Sunday) but still lives in the same Riverside Drive apartment the couple have had since the Dawn of Time, though he did sell their house in Majorca after MLB's death 10 years ago.
Many thanks to Robin. Finding the original Trio was an excellent reward for such diligent sleuthing!
David
That could explain some rather unusual things about the structure and relationship between soloists and tutti that were nagging me. I'd have to hear the Op. 100 Concerto, but it seemed odd to me that the solo violin would be silent for so much of the exposition of the first subject. Now, if a lot of the violin part of the trio was transferred to the orchestra, that makes a bit more sense. I would also have to see if Pixis used a fused exposition or opening tutti/solo exposition in his concertos, but for that, as I said I need to hear the concerto.
Since Johann Pixis' brother was a violinist, I wonder if he and Johann played with a cellist in some of those trios (and - without one - in Johann's early F major violin sonata op.14?)
Enjoy this wonderful double concerto on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMjdvXme9Sg (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMjdvXme9Sg)
I remember this one being here to download. Is it permitted for me to post it for everyone to download? My version is 320bps, taken from the original Turnabout lp.
The answer, I am afraid, is a firm 'no'. Our policy is set out in the Downloads board itself:
http://www.unsungcomposers.com/forum/index.php/topic,3679.0.html (http://www.unsungcomposers.com/forum/index.php/topic,3679.0.html)
Understood.
Thanks.
Hi .. first time here, and found the forum by way of searching for any information on j p Pixis .
Have followed this thread with interest, and wondered if anyone knows where I could purchase the composers works on vinyl ?
I prefer to listen via vinyl, and have done a bit of searching today , but cannot find anything on this media.
Any information or help would be gratefully appreciated.
Regards... mac.
Welcome to UC, Mac!
Everyone will have their preferences re finding LPs, but I often use discogs.com ... which enables you to search for whichever format you prefer. It lists old LPs and sometimes links to sales outlets. A couple of LPs featuring Pixis are currently listed ... but I don't think any for sale:
http://www.discogs.com/search/?q=pixis&type=all (http://www.discogs.com/search/?q=pixis&type=all)
There's also searchable and downloadable databases of classical LPs at:
http://www.classicrecords.co.uk/index.html (http://www.classicrecords.co.uk/index.html)
... but there's nothing listed for Pixis.
Any news about the long lost Double Concerto by Pixis? It seems that Kees Kooper has passed away this april and the mystery will continue to be unsolved.
I thought it was solved - that it's an arrangement of a piano trio. (http://www.unsungcomposers.com/forum/index.php/topic,25.msg37853.html#msg37853 (http://www.unsungcomposers.com/forum/index.php/topic,25.msg37853.html#msg37853), earlier in this same thread.) - hrm. the arrangement might have been by Pixis himself, though, it's true. You're right, some mystery remains. Sorry, I misunderstood.
Robin, have you made any progress with your reconstruction of the Pixis "double concerto", after your excellent piece of research?
discogs.com says the Turnabout Pixis/Moscheles disc was released in 1976. This was in fact a rerelease of an older Turnabout disc featuring the Pixis and the Dohnanyi Suite in F# played by the Seattle Symphony conducted by Milton Katims. The Dohnanyi was later transferred to CD paired with the Dohnanyi Variations on a Nursery Tune. It was the Dohnanyi Suite I purchased that led to my discovery of the Pixis Concerto. I too have been looking for it ever since.
Here is the Pixis recording on youtube with Boehm and Kooper:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTYisNMhxJc
My interest in this composition brought me to this thread. The original Trio was written in 1839, by the way.
I still have,and play, the original Turnabout LP. The second movement melody is so memorable that I can hear it now!
I have been advised by those at Hyperion that it is their intention to record all the piano trios in due course - I may suggest that the next instalment includes the 6th if at all possible!