CD Review: Shostakovich / Weinberg Piano trios & songs (Kateryna Kasper and Trio Vivente) cpo 555367-2

The pairing of works by mentor and mentee composers can make for a good concept on record. Shostakovich and Weinberg were just two such composers; they knew each other and exchanged artistic ideas for many years. On this recording, the comparison bears fruit through the pairing of piano trios and song cycles.

Shostakovich’s First Piano Trio, from 1923, is an early work. Audibly more carefree than his later compositions, it is notable for being written in a single movement. The Trio Vivente give it a convincing reading, with the instrumental lines clearly articulated in a demonstration quality recording. There is a greater contrast of emotions to be traversed within Weinberg’s Piano Trio, written in 1945. The white-hot passions of the Prelude and Toccata might be more immediately captured in the recordings led by Gidon Kremer (DG) or Linus Roth (Evil Penguin), but Trio Vivente acquit themselves with honour nonetheless. Nowhere is this more the case than in the Trio’s Aria and Poem, which are played with sophistication.

Shostakovich sets the bar rather high with his powerful setting of Seven Romances on Verses by Alexander Blok, written in 1967. Although the instrumental accompaniment provides shades of gloominess, the vocal part is almost uniformly bombastic in nature. This, Kateryna Kasper provides in spades, whilst the Trio Vivente are attentive to the nuances inherent within the accompaniment. More vocal subtlety is evident in Weinberg’s earliest published work, the Jewish Songs, written in 1943. A collection of miniatures that is quirky yet forthright at times, they provide adroit insight to the texts set, bookended by vocalises.

If you are new to Weinberg’s music, this release could provide a way in to his absorbing sound-world, even though you might end your listening experience with the impression he wrote under Shostakovich’s shadow. For that reason alone, it is worth exploring Weinberg beyond the confines of a single recording: there are interesting things to be discovered.

CD Review: Enescu Violin Concerto, Phantasy for Piano and Orchestra (Carolin Widmann/Luiza Borac, NDR Philharmonie / Peter Ruzicka) cpo 555487

Update: Read my interview with Peter Ruzicka about Enescu's orchestral music (in English und auf Deutsche)

Just how important is the juvenilia of any creative artist or composer? The answer, I suppose, depends – to some extent at least – on three factors. The composer in question; whether the work(s) in question are substantial examples or not; does that juvenilia represent a significant moment in the composer’s development.

In the case of George Enescu, his international significance is beyond doubt. It is known that he thought enough of his own juvenilia to occasionally perform some of it in later life: he conducted at least one of the ‘school’ symphonies in Bucharest and illustrated other examples of his early writing from memory at the keyboard during his recorded interviews with the French music critic and organist Bernard Gavoty.

The two works on this release are the first two movements from an incomplete Violin Concerto, from 1895, and a single movement Phantasy for Piano and orchestra, written three years later.

The Violin Concerto could almost be thought of an extended concerto ‘school torso’, a kind of hybrid equivalent between the four ‘school’ symphonies and Enescu’s single movement ‘torso’ violin sonata, written in 1911. The concerto displays obvious debts to a Viennese late Romantic soundscape. You can feel Enescu’s ambition in it: the first movement is over 19 minutes in duration, the second movement approaches 14 minutes. Within the two movements, Enescu demonstrates both his knowledge of form and a surety of touch with the orchestral accompaniment, whether in terms of instrumental colour or the use of textures to add interest along the way. The first movement is constructed from three thematic ideas, all of which possess character. The slower second movement carries an airy ambiance, above which a refined violin line floats beguilingly before finding some gravitas in the writing. The real draw of the work, though, is the writing for the solo violin part, as one would hope for from a young composer whose instrumental talents were also burgeoning in parallel. There is passion, skill and virtuosic flair in the first movement’s primary theme in particular. Of course, mention should be made of the fact that the orchestration is not Enescu’s own, but is an elaboration of the reduced score that he left. Carolin Widmann, who has experience playing Enescu’s later sonatas, proves to be a most sensitive soloist. Her playing holds the attention with its pure tone and intelligent integration alongside the orchestral accompaniment, which, in turn is sensitively and tastefully handled under Peter Ruzicka’s direction. It is to Peter Ruzicka's credit that he, after recordings of Enescu's incomplete late symphonies, he has turned his attention to these early works. That commitment goes beyond his conducting, to being the driving force in collaborating with Pascal Bentoiu and others in realising the orchestral scores. One final thought is unavoidable: with the music fading out in a slow decrescendo what, one wonders, might have constituted a third movement?

The Phantasy for Piano and orchestra demonstrates just how far Enescu matured in three years. I feel that Volker Tarnow gets it exactly right in his excellent liner notes, when he claims “it combines expressivity à la Brahms with pianistic bravura à la Liszt.” This single movement work, without a solo cadenza, is more richly conceived in terms of its orchestration and assured in its structure. The solo part is varied, with a reliance on repeated chords at the start and at times throughout, but it moves to a conversational approach with the orchestra as well as the work proceeds. Bravura moments balance out the delicate introspection, in the end though, spirited writing comes to the fore. Luiza Borac is a pianist whose experience with Enescu’s music is beyond compare. She has strayed beyond the published repertoire too and recorded the unfinished Piano Concerto in D minor, composed by George Enescu in 1897. You can hear that experience bear fruit in the present performance with her assured touch, idiomatic knowledge and sense of flair. Again, you can hear how the orchestra and conductor respond to this by delivering performances that reward with their warmth and quality.

Given the excellent recording quality, I return to where I began. Juvenilia these works might be, but for anyone with an interest in Enescu’s music this is a recording worthy of serious attention.

CD Review: Enescu String Quartets (Quatour Athenaeum Enesco) cpo 999068

In my 2005 survey of the available recordings of Enescu’s compositions for Musicweb International, I wrote about the string quartets:

“Enescu’s two essays in the [string] quartet format show, as elsewhere in his output, a tightening of thematic materials and compactness of structure from the earlier work to the later one.

An obvious candidate for pairing on disc, there are so far three main versions in contention: the Voces Quartet (Electrecord or Olympia OCD 413 - if you can track them down), Quatuor Athenaeum Enesco (cpo 999 0682) and the Quatuor Ad Libitum (Naxos 8.554721). All three are celebrated ensembles in Romania and each brings experience to their recording of the works. But as often is the case Naxos’s issue will be a clear winner – they play this music as if it were the greatest music ever for a quartet, with total conviction, commitment and love. In a recording that gives each plenty of bloom against the somewhat boxy Electrecord or recessed acoustic of cpo’s release, there seems little argument to answer.”

The cpo release under consideration here is a re-issue of the recording by the Quatuor Athenaeum Enesco. The recording was made by Swiss Radio in May 1992, and re-listening to it after some time from a digital download I stand by my earlier comments about the recorded acoustic. That is a shame, as by and large, both works are given sympathetic interpretations. If I do not find the readings quite capture the white heat and zeal of the Ad Libitum Quartet on Naxos, this does not do particular disservice to the Athenaeum Quartet’s players. I find their realisation of the first quartet's slower movement rather beautifully phrased, actually. Considering that the indications of 'moderato' and 'pensieroso' are so important within three movements there are some finely judged touches of tempo and instrumental colour.

There have been a couple of other recordings of the second quartet that have appeared since I wrote my original review. It is a slight surprise though that no string quartets of substance have risen to the demands of the earlier work, It is surely a jewel in the entire string quartet repertoire, to stand alongside anything by Beethoven or Schubert.

A worthy effort, which would be more recommendable, if it were not for the availability of stronger competition captured in a more favourable acoustic. 

CD Review: Brahms Complete Songs vol.1 (Christoph Prégardien, tenor; Ulrich Eisenlohr, piano) Naxos 8.574268

It is impossible to imagine the German lied without the contribution of Johannes Brahms. That said, in the concert hall one encounters only a narrow selection of his 204 individual songs on a regular basis. The adventurous listener who desires to gain a more complete impression of Brahms’ output might be well advised to explore this absorbing repertoire through recordings. To date, two complete sets have been issued. cpo’s 11-volume set has Helmut Deutsch as the accompanist to Iris Vermillion, Juliane Banse and Andreas Schmidt. Hyperion’s 10-volume set, each with a different singer, finds Graham Johnson at the piano. Oftentimes, Hyperion’s set presents individual songs by more than one singer to shape the recital narrative of each release. The individual volumes of both sets were well received by the music press when originally issued. Both are well recorded and continue to offer much pleasure. Against this backdrop, Naxos have embarked upon their own complete Brahms songs set. Volume 1 launches the project in admirable fashion.

The driving force behind Naxos’ series is the pianist Ulrich Eisenlohr; his previous recordings for the label include the complete lieder of Mozart and Schubert, as well as volumes of Schumann and Busoni lieder. Eisenlohr also contributes concise yet informative booklet notes. Following Naxos’ practice, texts and translations are available via their website.

This volume includes the songs of four opus numbers, written across almost 25 years. As Eisenlohr’s notes points out, the songs were often gathered together by Brahms some time after composition. The common thread is in themes that the songs explore: love, loneliness, solitude and a farewell to life.

Several of the songs in this volume suggest natural affiliations to a female voice, given the lyrics that are sung. Both the cpo and Hyperion sets reflect this in their programming, though whilst cpo group the songs under opus number as Naxos have done, Hyperion often distribute individual songs from one opus across multiple volumes of their set. The nine Lieder und Gesange, op.32, explore aspects of love in combination with the downcast emotions of his selected poet, the wonderfully named August von Platen-Hallemunde. The four songs, op.43, tell of relationships to be saved and lamented. The six songs, op.86, chart a gradual journey towards death. The five songs, op.105, have a varied emotional range.

It says much, however, for Christoph Prégardien’s skills as a lieder singer – honed through a distinguished international career – that he savours the words with intelligence. In so doing, he almost turns them into his own narrative, often utilising the subtlest emphasis of breath, timbre or shading. There is absolute security of pitch throughout and his tone possesses both gravity in the lower range and a lightness that belies his years in the upper range, to convincingly realise these interpretations and almost entirely banish thoughts of female singers in this repertoire. Prégardien’s instincts are matched at every turn by Eisenlohr’s, whose pianism possesses a depth and sonority that is entirely appropriate to realising Brahms’ intentions.

The recording, made for South West German Radio, places the voice naturally against the piano, and is of excellent quality. I eagerly await the future volumes of this series, but until they arrive, I shall continue to enjoy the discoveries that are to be made in this one. Most highly recommended!