Found this today browsing on the Presto web site:
Witt Symphonies: https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/9814454--friedrich-witt-symphonies-1-3
Didn't one of Witt's symphonies get attributed to Beethoven (Jena Symphony)?
I believe the "Jena" symphony and also his symphony no.16 in A (1790s, an early work despite the number) are available on a Naxos CD.
I am glad that you clarified that the Symphony in A is also known as Symphony No 16,Eric. I thought I recognised it as the one on the old Mark Andreae LP (which I have), but Mike Herman's discography shows it as a purportedly separate entity.
Well, it seems to match, at least so far as the introduction goes :), the symphony so numbered at IMSLP. (Actually as I have an IMSLP subscription, I can stream the whole work (Naxos version- whether that's the same as the Andreae recording I don't know) while following it with the 1960s score or the original parts, so I can try to confirm they are the same, soon but later (apologies to Sondheim)).
I just found my BBC Music Magazine MM142 (Volume IV Number 6) cover CD which has the Witt Symphony in C 'Jena' with Bamert and LMP. This piqued my curiosity about the providence of the work. Maybe the Naxos notes will shed some more light.
Now I'm confused. Were you talking about symphony no.16 in A or no.14, nicknamed Jena because of a whole mixup, in C?
And do you mean providence or provenance? Asking for an enemy.. er... I mean...
From what I understand (hear):
Bamert Witt Jena Symphony (BBC Music CD) = Gallos Witt Symphony in C 'Jena' (Naxos) = imslp.org Symphony No.14 in C major (Witt, Friedrich)
furthermore, the Marc Andreae LP has Witt: Sinfonie c-dur »Jenaer« / Sinfonie A-dur which must be imslp Witt Symphony No 14 C major (Jena) and imslp Witt Symphony No. 16 in A.
Some of the confusion is that none of the CD or LP releases uses the imslp Witt numbering system, but only lists the symphony key.
The reference to the "providence" of the Witt Jena Symphony was a bon mot which fell flat, text auto-correct is to blame for that transposition. The Naxos and imslp notes clarify the "provenance".
In any case, I'm delighted to hear more Witt symphonies whatever their key, number or compositional origin.
I like his Flute Concerto.
The question is: does anyone know when he composed the three symphonies about to be issued on CD? The Presto excerpts don't even sound early Romantic ,to my ears.
Not for absolutely sure, but as I mentioned, no.16 in A is believed to be from the 1790s, and the "Jena" symphony probably from about 1793, so yes, Classical. As to the 3 on this cpo release, though, no.2 was published in 1804, so it was composed by or before the composition of the Beethoven "Eroica" (1803-4) (and before its 1805 premiere). Per Wikipedia (German) (https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friedrich_Witt_(Komponist)) No. 1 was published in 1803 and No.3 in 1807. So these three works are almost certainly all Classical.
Will see if I can catch a listen when they come out (or if they are, maybe stream them on Amazon and see if anything about no.3, say, suggest that by then he'd heard anything about more recent music he liked.)