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I don't know Koechlin's string quartets, but the symphony was his own orchestration of his second quartet, not that that per se excuses the symphony's odd, aimless construction. I quite like the accompanying symphonic poem Au Loin and the 3 Mélodies on this new disc, but this isn't first-rate Koechlin, to be sure.

Another disc of French music that has disappointed me in recent weeks. I had some hopes that Reynaldo Hahn's Le Dieu Bleu might offer something in the vein of Daphnis et Chloé, but it turned out to be turgid stuff. C'est la vie ...

Well, unless they're gay. Or "different". Or Mexican. Or Chinese. Or European. Or once even thought something uncomplimentary about King Trump.

I'm sure Shostakovich, ironically, passes muster as Putin's chum Gergiev champions him and the White House cronies won't want to upset Vlad.

I don't know whether they were ever in contention for release on cpo, but Werner Andreas Albert's fine recordings of orchestral works of Jean Louis Nicodé were recorded with NWD Philharmonie 20 years ago or so and never saw the light. Were they ever going to? Anyway, I got from our Downloads section and they miraculously seem to fit on to two discs quite nicely ... (Just as a taster for full recordings of Das Meer and Gloria, you understand)

Which makes me wonder what actually is going on with Hyperion now? Since the takeover their output seems to be restricted to two new releases a month, and those only of bigger-name artists (endless Stephen Hough, much as we and Radio 3 might love him, etc). So is it really a sad goodbye to all the less profitable (but more interesting) releases? I guess I know the answer already ...

Presumably it's from this 2023 broadcast concert as discussed in May 2023 https://www.unsungcomposers.com/forum/index.php?topic=9077.0

I have the earlier broadcast version that I think I downloaded from our Downloads section several years ago. As I recall, not having heard it for a couple of years, it's a great big piece, as you'd imagine, very impressive. It's from his mature period (a couple of years after his very fine Second Symphony). A big, richly scored oratorio from the 1900s: what's not to like?

And if it really is from a 2023 recording, perhaps it's evidence that CPO are finally hearing our pleas for a quicker release of stuff they record? Yeah, I know: perhaps not ...

Of course, if one was so minded you could use readily available free software to convert YouTube video into mp3 and download to your computer, allowing you to listen to the music without any ads. Or even burn to disc. I merely point out the technical possibility!

Ah, I should have checked the Downloads section! Many thanks for recording, britishcomposer

I've listened to the first movement and impressed by it so far! But try as I might I can't find a way to get an mp3 of this performance. Is anyone able to record it - or give any info on an app I can use (Mac)?

My copy arrived too and I've only delved into the first act as yet and while it's obviously very well-crafted, nothing has really leapt out at me yet. Perhaps it will take time. As Alan says, the booklet - well, book really - is very thorough. Alongside a couple of good essays, there are about a dozen pages of musical analysis with excerpts from the score. It's similar to the packages put together by Bru Zane, but the in-depth analysis is something I've not seen before. It helps identify the motifs Erlanger uses, but as Alan also points out, you'll be looking in vain for the big tune. Nevertheless, it's great to have another rare French opera from this era. Perhaps we might dare hope for some more Erlanger - or Bruneau or Aubert or Dupont's rather fine Antar?

You can hear that same hesitant motif appearing in the first two movements as well, before the slow movement, so I think the symphony has a coherence and integrity - until the fourth movement, that is, because I agree that the final movement just doesn't manage to pull it all together.

Got my copy of this the other day. Very pleased they edited out the horrible false note that appears in the version that was in Downloads. I am currently absolutely obsessed with the noble, yearning theme in the third movement (very Mahlerian), played by the violins at the bottom of their register apparently (I had thought it was violas). Heart-melting.

Others here may not care for the accompanying Schoenbergian Haydn Variations by Hans Erich Apostel, but there's nothing to be scared of, I promise you! And the Busch variations make a very pleasant end to a well-filled disc.

Excellent. Will be nice to hear some more of her earlier works

That's good. Thanks Alan

My copy is on order but not arrived yet. Does it have the libretto with it (preferably with translation!)?

It having been on a wants list for a few years, I finally bought the MDG CD of Hans Weisse chamber works - his Clarinet Quintet and Clarinet Sonata, both from the 1920s. I don't recall seeing anything about him here and he really is properly Unsung: there doesn't seem to be a lot known about his compositional output, but he is well known as a student of Schenker and a leading exponent of Schenkerian analysis which he introduced into America from 1930 onwards. He was born into Jewish family in Vienna in 1892. What I can say is the Quintet, in particular, is a lovely work in a late Brahmsian mould, at 43 minutes long, a major composition. I recommend.


https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hans-Weisse-Clarinet-Quintet-Sonata/dp/B07FSWS47B