Wagner – Tristan und Isolde
Stephen Gould; Nina Stemme; Kwangchul Youn; Michelle Breedt; Johan Reuter; Rundfunk Berlin; Marek Janowski
PentaTone PTC 5186 404

The wonderful score of Tristan und Isolde is what placed Wagner among the gods and to listen to this new PentaTone recording in natural stereo sound sensitive to the slightest dynamic change, with singers perfectly balanced, will give this statement true justification. The 200th birthday of Richard Wagner is celebrated in Germany, not by issuing more DVD’s, but recording his ten masterworks in live concert performances the best way possible, with state-of-the art technology and the best available artists.

An international cast is led by Swedish soprano Nina Stemme who literally inhabits Isolde with tempestuous outbursts, the ecstasy of love and the final transfiguration expressed by her magnificent voice and persona. A worthy partner in suffering, American heldentenor Stephen Gould journeys valiantly through the gruelling role of Tristan. South African mezzo Michelle Breedt is a passionate, deeply sympathetic Brangaene, excelling in her second act soliloquy. Korean basso Kwangchul Youn is a noble, wronged and magnanimous König Marke, while Johan Reuter’s brave and loyal Kurvenal is fine, but unfortunately no match for the Fischer-Dieskau of yore.

Marek Janowski is probably the best kept secret of our times. Now at 75 and still going strong, I always thought of him as a hard -working conductor, travelling all over Europe and bringing many orchestras up to the level of excellence and winning prizes and awards along the way. His orchestra of tenure, the Berlin Radio Symphony produces magical sounds I haven’t heard since Furtwängler, so one literally melts away in ecstasy in the welter of sound. And indeed there is ecstasy of the highest order in this performance of the Liebestod where the enigmatic Tristan chord finally gets resolved into pure harmony.

Schoenberg – Gurrelieder (reduced orchestra by Erwin Stein)
Stig Andersen; Anne Schwanewilms; Lilli Paasikivi; Fernando Latorre; Arnold Bezuyen; Jon Frederic West; Orquesta Sinfónica de Bilbao; Günter Neuhold
Thorofon CTH2606/2

Schoenberg’s magnum opus of 1911, as written, requires many more musicians on stage that the regular symphony orchestra employs, plus six soloists and an enormous choir. Erwin Stein, a one-time student of the composer, arranged the work for fewer players in order that it would reach a wider audience. He did this in consultation with Schoenberg in 1922/23. In addition to requiring smaller orchestral forces Stein also reduced the choir and did some transposing to make it less demanding. Schoenberg approved Stein’s work, realizing the practicality of making performing Gurrelieder less demanding. In fact, in 1929 Schoenberg conducted Stein’s version of the songs from “Part 1” for broadcast on Berlin radio.

The strings in the original number 84, in Stein’s version 60; flutes 8 vs. 4; oboes 5 vs. 3; clarinets 7 vs. 4; bassoons 5 vs. 3; horns 10 vs. 6; trumpets 7 vs. 4; trombones 7 vs. 4; harp 4 vs. 2. The two timpanists, six percussionists and single celeste remain untouched. However Stein introduces a piano. That is a final total of 156 players versus 102. Still, that is a formidable number to which must be added the six soloists and the choirs.

In this first recording of the reduced forces version conductor Günter Neuhold shows that he understands the work; the orchestra is right there and I hear no reason to be picky with any member of the ensemble. So how does it sound? There is clarification in the crowded passages and the only downside (to my ears) was the absence of the richness and texture of the larger version. But the lines are easier to follow now, although I missed the complex flavours of the original to which I am accustomed. Listeners less saturated with the original will be well pleased. The recorded sound is translucent and very impressive.

Recorded in concert in Bilbao at the Palacio Euskalduna on March 8 and 9, 2012 the enthusiastic applause from the audience after the glorious sunrise scene is well deserved.

Britten – Peter Grimes on Aldeburgh beach
Alan Oke; Giselle Allen; Britten-Pears Orchestra; Steuart Bedford
ArtHaus Musik 102179

The troubled Aldeburgh fisherman Peter Grimes has rowed home at last in a unique production presented on the pebbly shores of the Suffolk village by the festival that Benjamin Britten established there in 1948. Lacking a facility large enough in the town to accommodate the large chorus and sets for the presentation of this most celebrated of Britten’s stage works, Aldeburgh Music boldly proposed to celebrate the centennial of the composer’s birth with ”Grimes on the Beach.” Compromises aside (a pre-taped orchestra and headset microphones to amplify the soloists), the weather co-operated and the risk proved well worth the effort.

The three evening performances of June 2013 have been expertly assembled by Margaret Williams into a cinemascope format film which amplifies the concert experience with close-ups, cutaways and specially commissioned atmospheric videos accompanying the four orchestral interludes. The title role is sung by the redoubtable Alan Oke in his first appearance in this role, ably abetted by Giselle Allen as the ever-sympathetic Ellen Orford. The cast also includes David Kempster as Balstrode, Robert Murray as Bob Boles and Catherine Wyn-Rogers as Mrs. Sedley.

Britten stalwart Steuart Bedford pre-recorded the students of the Britten-Pears Orchestra in a raw yet energetic studio session. The excellent chorus is drawn from members of Opera North and the Guildhall. The static, multi-purpose set consists of a number of oddly angled fishing boats that serve as pub, church and shacks as needed while the costuming is vintage 1945 dowdiness. The overall solidity of the vocal ensemble and the exceptionally clear diction make for a most engaging evening best enjoyed indoors, comfortably far from the crashing waves and pesky seagulls of the rugged North Sea.

George Benjamin – Written on Skin
Christopher Purves, Barbara Hannigan; Bejun Mehta; Victoria Simmonds; Allan Clayton; Royal Opera; George Benjamin
Opus Arte OA 1125 D

Composer George Benjamin and British playwright Martin Crimp’s latest project is the opera Written on Skin, produced to great acclaim in 2012. It recounts the legend of the 12th century Catalan troubadour Guillem de Cabestaing and his fatal ménage à trois, represented here by the principal roles of The Protector (baritone Christopher Purves), his wife Agnès (Canadian soprano Barbara Hannigan) and The Boy (countertenor Bejun Mehta). The Protector has hired The Boy (incongruously much balder than his employer in this production) to craft a manuscript about this medieval lord’s mighty realm and deeds (“written on skin” refers to the vellum upon which medieval calligraphers crafted their illuminated manuscripts). Soon enough Agnès and The Boy fall in love and Agnès realizes how cruel her husband really is. The Protector himself also falls under his erotic spell. The affair ends quite messily with the husband killing The Boy and serving up his heart to his wife, who elects to throw herself off a balcony rather than submit to her misogynist husband ever again.

To the left of the stage a group of contemporary scholars in lab coats act as puppet masters, putting these characters from the past through their paces. The narrative of this psychodrama is abstract and freely poetic, with the characters referring to themselves in the third person throughout and the action shifting rapidly between past and present. Benjamin’s chromatic vocal writing is consistently mellifluous and his sensitive and radiant orchestration never fails to impress. Mehta’s eerie male soprano perfectly conveys his otherworldly, angelic character, Purves’ insightful interpretation lends an element of humanity to his nefarious character and Hannigan’s moving portrayal of a woman coming to self-awareness is both vocally gorgeous and dramatically incisive.

In an age when contemporary British operas too often resort to shock-and-schlock tactics it is a pleasure to encounter such a concise and sophisticated jewel of an opera.

Editor’s Note: Composer George Benjamin and soprano Barbara Hannigan will be the featured guests at all three concerts of next year’s Toronto Symphony Orchestra New Creations Festival where an opera-in-concert version of Written On Skin will be performed with surtitles on March 7, 2015. 

Love and Loss – Monteverdi Madrigals
Arcangelo; Jonathan Cohen
Hyperion CDA68019

The works on this CD consist of a well-chosen selection from the last three books of madrigals by Claudio Monteverdi. The ensemble Arcangelo was founded in 2010 by the British conductor Jonathan Cohen. Its performances have been acclaimed and the group has issued six CDs, of which this is the latest. On this recording the group consists of six singers and twelve instrumentalists. They are joined by the tenor James Gilchrist, who, eloquently and movingly, narrates Il Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda, a passage from Tasso’s La Gerusalemme liberata, in which the Christian knight Tancredi mistakenly kills his beloved. The record ends with the sestina, Lagrime d’amante al sepolcro dell’amata, written as a lament for the soprano Caterina Martinelli, who was to have sung the title role in Monteverdi’s Arianna but who died from smallpox when she was 18.

John Whenham, who contributes a fine essay, suggests that the ballet Volgendo il ciel may have been sent to Vienna in 1636 for the coronation of the new emperor. Halfway through, the score indicates that music for a dance is played, but Monteverdi did not write that music. On this recording a beautiful chaconne by Tarquinio Merula is added. That insertion works very well.

Perhaps the finest item on the record is the duet for two sopranos, Ohimè, dov’è il mio ben, beautifully sung by Katherine Watson and Anna Dennis. It is full of deliciously painful dissonances which are then slowly resolved.

These are all terrific performances.

Beethoven – Piano Sonatas Opp.22; 31/3; 101
Angela Hewitt
Hyperion CDA67974

It’s no surprise that accomplished musicians develop such acute discernment of their composers’ muses. One simply comes to expect that ongoing intimacy with the creative utterances of someone like Beethoven will produce a deep and evolving understanding of how the music must be played. It transcends academic debate and argument about historical authenticity. It’s a conviction that doesn’t waver. It’s just “right.”

Hewitt plays three sonatas which offer a historical progression clearly marked by Beethoven’s evolving compositional form and musical language over 17 years. The unmistakable echoes of Haydn and Mozart, the classical turns of phrase and stylistic ornaments place the Op.22 solidly at the end of the 18th century. But by the time we hear the Op.101 there are serious rumblings in the depths and a hint of recklessness that we have come to recognize as the Beethoven of the fifth and ninth symphonies.

It must, however, be tempting to take the classical bait of the early work and play it as though we need to be reminded that Haydn and Mozart are standing behind us. Hewitt in fact does the opposite. With appropriate recognition of the classical architecture, Hewitt unleashes the spirit of the young Beethoven and shows us how the composer at mid-life has already seen his destiny. There is no mistaking the volcanic potential of this pen when it meets manuscript. Major keys and scherzos notwithstanding, this young composer is already shaking his fist at the universe.

Concert Note: Angela Hewitt is featured in Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto with the Toronto Symphony on March 20 and 22 at Roy Thomson Hall.

Saverio Mercadante – Flute Concertos Nos.1, 2 & 4
Patrick Gallois; Sinfonia Finlandia Jyväskylä
Naxos 8.572731

Saverio Mercadante (1795-1870), well-known and respected in his time as the composer of many operas, has since been overshadowed by his contemporaries Rossini, Donizetti and Bellini. Insofar as he is remembered today, despite occasional revivals of his operas, it is because of his flute concertos, which were rediscovered by Jean-Pierre Rampal about 50 years ago.

As one might expect of music of Mercadante’s time, these concertos are cornucopias of melodic invention, sometimes spirited, sometimes lyrical, coupled with passages of stunning virtuosity. The long orchestral passage at the beginning of the first movement of the concerto in E minor, for example, sounds as if it could be from the overture to a comic opera; it would take little to make a case for these concertos having been the inspiration for the opera fantasies composed by Taffanel, Borne and Fürstenau some 60 years later.

As for Patrick Gallois, you could almost think it was his teacher, Rampal, playing. You hear the same effortless articulation and movement between registers, the same absence of mannerisms and the same purity of sound. What I didn’t hear was Rampal’s exquisitely refined phrasing and an indefinable quality in the sound, which mysteriously conveys what might be called the meaning of the music. The performance by Gallois’ collaborators, Sinfonia Finlandia Jyväskylä, is precise and sensitive to every nuance of the soloist. These are engaging and beautifully produced performances of a significant byway of the flute repertoire.

Liszt at the Opera
Louis Lortie
Chandos CHAN10793

Louis Lortie and Chandos records have put together a wonderful Juno-nominated CD of Liszt’s opera transcriptions. Lortie dazzles us with smooth, elegant virtuosity in O du mein holder abendstern (Tannhauser) and Spinnerlied aus dem Fliegenden Hollander. His scales, arpeggios and trills shimmer and sparkle with a light, feathery touch. The speed and flourish of his technique leave us breathless. The beautiful melodic lines are also performed with warm tone and sensitivity. His phrasing is sublime and his fingers sing out the arias.

What I really liked was the freedom with which he teased us with carefree cascades of orchestral sound. In the Valse de L’opera Faust de Gounod Lortie flirted with the music and the rhythms danced with devilish intricacy. His spectacular finger dexterity allows Lortie to play cleanly but with resonance. There is a natural flow that never overshadows the music but enhances it. He has immaculate control of dynamics and can perform pianissimos as gentle whispers and fortes like a full orchestra. His tone can be warm and gentle. The only minor moments of harsher tone were in two of the Wagner transcriptions. The Overture to Tannhauser and the Prelude and Liebestod from Tristan und Isolde are the only pieces in which I missed an actual orchestra. However, Louis Lortie is an extraordinary Liszt interpreter who definitely deserves that Juno nomination and a win for this CD.

The program notes are also excellent. They give a real insight into the era when opera transcriptions were numerous.

Brahms – The Complete Symphonies; Discovering Brahms
Staatskapelle Dresden; Christian Thielemann
Cmajor 715108

Sets of the complete Brahms symphonies on DVD are not all that common, so this one featuring the Dresden Staatskapelle with Christian Thielemann is indeed a welcome arrival. It features live performances from 2012 and 2013 recorded at two different venues, in the NHK Hall in Tokyo, Japan (1 & 3) – during the 10th NHK Festival – and at the Semperoper in Dresden (2 & 4).

A conductor very much of the old-school German tradition, Thielemann studied at the Hochschule für Musik in Vienna and later worked as an assistant to no less a conductor than Herbert von Karajan. He has been chief music director of the Staatskapelle Dresden since October, 2009.

From the moment he raises his baton to a most appreciative Japanese audience in the Symphony No.1, it’s clear to everyone that this music holds a special place for both him and his orchestra. The ensemble invokes a deeply romantic spirit throughout, from the tempestuous opening movement to the jubilant finale. Little wonder this darkly uplifting music is often referred to as “Beethoven’s Tenth.”

In contrast to the tragically noble character of Brahms’ First Symphony, the Second is all placid geniality, so much so that it has often been referred to as his “Pastoral.” Recorded in the Semperoper in Dresden (before a seemingly less appreciative audience!) the orchestra demonstrates a keen clarity and finely judged balance. Thielemann is sometimes known for “pushing boundaries” with respect to tempos, but that is clearly not the case in these performances.

The collection also contains a bonus disc in the form of a 52-minute interview with Thielemann where he reflects on Brahms’ symphonies. During the conversation, he alludes to the solidity of the scoring, and the difficulty in achieving a cohesive orchestral sound, an aspect in which the Staatskapelle Dresden succeeds brilliantly. Indeed, it’s this wonderful melding of orchestral timbres that make the SD’s interpretations so appealing. One of the high points for me in the set (and there are many) is the famous third movement of Symphony No.3. For this poignant and wistful music, Thielemann coaxes a luxuriant sound from the players, the mellow brass perfectly complementing the warmth of the strings – and principal horn Erich Markwart deserves kudos for his hauntingly lovely solo.

Special mention must also be made of the exemplary camerawork in both venues. The shots of both Thielemann and members of the orchestra provide a live presence and further enhance these superb performances. It’s been said that Thielemann has the ability to make familiar repertoire sound new again and he certainly succeeds in doing so here. This set is a must-have for any serious music lover, a sublime combination of wonderful music magnificently performed. Highly recommended.

This has been a bumper few months for string quartet CDs, with some outstanding issues from several world-class ensembles.

Britain’s Brodsky Quartet adds another winner to its already extensive discography with New World Quartets (Chandos CHAN 10801). The main works on the disc are Dvořák’s String Quartet Op.96 (“American”) and Samuel Barber’s String Quartet Op.11, best known for its slow movement that later became his Adagio for Strings; it remains extremely effective in its original version. The shorter works are Gershwin’s Lullaby, Copland’s Two Pieces and the Hoe-Down from Rodeo (here in a transcription by two of the Brodsky members) and Dave Brubeck’s Regret, a hauntingly beautiful piece presented here in an arrangement that the classically trained Brubeck prepared specifically for the Brodsky Quartet.

Everything on this CD simply glows: the playing is warm, radiant and expressive, and the balance and sound quality are ideal.

The latest CD from the Jerusalem Quartet celebrates the Czech national school, with the first – and best known – of Bedřich Smetana’s two quartets, the String Quartet in E minor “From My Life,” and both quartets by his spiritual heir Leoš Janáček (harmonia mundi HMC 902178).

The players take a thoughtful, carefully measured approach to the Smetana, with a steady underlying rhythm and a wide range of dynamics. Overall, though, the result seems more controlled than rhapsodic; there’s no real outburst of joy and exhilaration at the start of the second movement, and little sense of desolation at the end of the finale.

The two Janáček quartets, however – subtitled the “Kreutzer Sonata” and “Intimate Pages” – are worth the price of the CD on their own, the Jerusalem Quartet capturing the wide emotional range and almost improvisatory rhythms of this astonishingly personal and achingly beautiful music in stunning performances.

Another British ensemble, the Dante Quartet, is now approaching its 20th year. Their latest CD on the Hyperion label is devoted to the music of the Hungarian composer Zoltán Kodály, and features the String Quartets Nos.1 & 2 and the Intermezzo for String Trio, all three works dating from the first 18 years of the 20th century (CDA67999). The very short Gavotte from 1952 completes the CD.

The quartets in particular are wonderful works, and the Dante Quartet displays a really terrific feel for this music in highly idiomatic performances.

The excellent booklet notes for the Dante CD stress the close relationship between Kodály and his friend and compatriot Béla Bartók, and the Alexander String Quartet take things to the logical conclusion with their 3-CD set of the Complete String Quartets of Bartók and Kodály (Foghorn Classics CD2009).

Again, the Kodály works receive outstanding performances, with possibly even more depth in the slow movements than in the Dante recording.

The Bartók quartets are of an equally high standard, with a refined and polished feel to them, although the tougher, abrasive moments never lose their edge. All in all, a marvellous set, especially at the mid-range price.

I’ve probably received half a dozen different 2-CD sets of the Bach Suites for Solo Cello over the past three or four years, and I always find them difficult to review. It’s not simply the sheer amount of music and its emotional and intellectual range and depth, but the almost limitless possibilities for phrasing, bowing, interpretation, ornamentation, tempo choice, style, tone and vibrato use available to the soloist. No two sets are ever the same, and there are so many available that to try comparison reviews would be almost impossible. All you can really do is give prospective listeners some idea of what to expect. After that, it just comes down to personal taste.

Rachel Mercer’s new release on the Pipistrelle label (PIP1403) is her September 2011 recording from Walter Hall of the Suites on the 1696 Bonjour Stradivarius cello, which was on loan to her from the Canada Council from 2009 to 2012. Mercer felt an immediate affinity with the instrument, and began performing the Suites on it as often as possible. It certainly has a big, strong sound, with a good deal of bite that sounds almost rough in places. Mercer’s approach is quite slow and introspective, although the dance movements have a nice line, and it’s clearly a very personal journey for her.

The French violinist Laurent Korcia is in terrific form on Mister Paganini, his latest CD on the naïve label (V 5344). It features transcriptions by Fritz Kreisler and Eugène Ysaÿe that were inspired by Paganini. Korcia is joined by the Orchestre de chamber de Paris under Jean-Jacques Kantorow for the opening and closing tracks: Kreisler’s Concerto in One Movement transcribed from the first movement of Paganini’s Concerto No.1 in D Major; and Paganini’s own I palpiti Op.13, the Introduction and Variations on the aria di tanti palpiti from Rossini’s opera Tancredi. Pianist Haruko Ueda joins Korcia for the remaining tracks on the disc, apart from one piano solo – Kreisler’s lovely Petite Valse.

There are real fireworks in the Kreisler concerto, particularly in the cadenza, terrific dynamics in the Albéniz-Kreisler Malagueña, and a real gypsy feel in Kreisler’s La gitana. Kreisler was justifiably famous for the accuracy of his double-stopping, and Korcia is superb in this respect in all the Kreisler transcriptions, and in particular in La campanella, Kreisler’s transcription of the finale of Paganini’s Concerto No.2 in B Minor.

Ysaÿe is represented by his Paganini Variations, a set of 15 short variations on Paganini’s famous 24th Caprice. This is apparently the first recording of the work.

Korcia has a huge tone, especially in the lower register, and always lets his technical brilliance serve the music and not overpower it. Some astonishing playing in I palpiti brings an outstanding CD to a rousing close.

The Hungarian violinist Orsolya Korcsolan, now resident in Vienna after studying with Dorothy DeLay and Itzhak Perlman at the Juilliard School in New York, returns to her Hungarian Jewish roots on the CD KornGOLDMark on the German label Solo Musica (SM 202). She is joined by pianist Emese Mali in a recital of works by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Carl Goldmark and Rubin Goldmark, each of whom spent a significant part of his life in Vienna.

Korcsolan’s playing is strong and confident, with a really big tone, but some of the music here doesn’t seem to give her much opportunity to display her undoubted musicality; the short Korngold pieces in particular are pretty straightforward. Korngold was a child prodigy, and his Serenade from the ballet Der Schneemann was written when he was only 11. There are also three arias from his operas, the best-known being Marietta’s Lied from Die Tote Stadt, and the four-movement Much Ado About Nothing Suite, Op.11, arranged by the composer from his orchestral incidental music for a 1920 production of the Shakespeare play.

There is certainly more substance to Carl Goldmark’s Suite Op.11 in E Major, and to the lovely Romanze in A Major, Op.51, and Korcsolan makes the most of the opportunity to shine.

Rubin Goldmark was Carl’s nephew; although he studied in Vienna, he was born in New York, and spent his entire teaching career in the United States, ending up as head of composition at the new Juilliard School in 1924. He is represented here by the world premiere recording of his Plaintive Air, a short but very effective piece.

Korcsolan ends the CD with a bonus track that she admits doesn’t really fit with the program, although she does feel that there are links (she doesn’t elaborate) with the other three composers. Robert Dauber wrote his Serenata in 1942 in the Theresienstadt concentration camp; he died in Dachau in 1945. It is his only surviving composition, and is a short, delicate Kreisler-like work that bears little hint of the circumstances of its composition. Korcsolan says that of all the works on the CD it is probably the one closest to her heart, and it shows in her performance. It’s arguably the most satisfying track on the CD.

The excellent 8-volume Naxos series of the complete violin music of Pablo Sarasate reaches completion with the issue of Volume 4 of the Music for Violin and Piano – Transcriptions and Arrangements (8.572709). Violinist Tianwa Yang has been in tremendous form throughout the series, and displays the same warmth, dazzling technique and interpretative skills that marked the earlier volumes. German pianist Markus Hadulla provides excellent accompaniment in short pieces by Moszkowski, Chopin, Handel and Bach, and by the French Baroque violinists Jean-Pierre Guignon, Jean-Joseph de Mondonville, Jean-Marie Leclair and Jean-Baptiste Senaillé. The two more substantial works on the CD are Sarasate’s own Souvenirs de Faust on themes from the Gounod opera, and Joachim Raff’s exceptionally difficult La fée d’amour, which was apparently Sarasate’s favourite concert item. Needless to say, Yang seems to navigate the challenges with effortless ease.

There’s an all-star line-up for the Beethoven Piano Trios Op.70 No.2 and Op.97, The Archduke, on the harmonia mundi label (HMC 902125), with pianist Alexander Melnikov joining violinist Isabelle Faust and Jean-Guihen Queyras cellist in the composer’s last two works in the genre. Melnikov plays a restored 1828 fortepiano, so the sound and approach are softer and more intimate than in performances with a modern grand piano. These are committed and thoughtful interpretations, though, and no less powerful for the somewhat reduced dynamic range in the keyboard.

The French cellist Sébastien Hurtaud, winner of the 2009 Adam International Cello Competition, is featured in a recital of Hindemith’s Music for Cello with pianist  in the Naxos Laureate Series (8.573172). The Three Pieces for Cello and Piano Op.8 seem a bit uneven in places, with the piano quite dominant at times, but A frog he went a-courting – Variations on an Old English Nursery Song fares much better. Hurtaud is terrific in the Sonata for Solo Cello, Op.25 No.3, and is joined by Hurtado again for the Sonata for Cello and Piano from 1948.

Julius Isserlis – Piano Music
Sam Haywood
Hyperion CDA68025

The Isserlis family name is familiar to most by virtue of cellist Steven whose career has its own impressive discography. The music of his grandfather Julius is, however, a recent discovery and makes its first recorded appearance on this disc by pianist Sam Haywood.

Haywood is a long time friend of the Isserlis family. It was Haywood who found the manuscripts and early published music of Julius Isserlis among the family papers, and it was Haywood who set about editing, correcting and recording these works for Hyperion.

Born in 1888 in Moldova (then a part of Russia) Julius was a child prodigy who earned his admission to conservatories in Kiev and Moscow and the attention of the great musicians of the day such as Taneyev. The rise of Bolshevism and Nazism in Europe severely restricted career options for the young pianist and composer. He was fortunate to escape the continent with his family and settle in England where he spent the rest of his life teaching and performing.

He seems to have been a master of the short form, writing brilliant little pieces of every kind, skillfully evoking a wide range of moods…very French and very Russian. The Ballade in A Minor for cello and piano, with a cameo by grandson Steven, is the longest work and offers some hint of what Isserlis might have achieved had he written more frequently on a larger scale.

This recording is something of an Isserlis family project, but offers a very fine example of hitherto unheard music.

Britten to America: Music for Radio and Theatre
Hallé; Sir Mark Elder; Andrew Kennedy; Jean Rigby; Mary Carewe; Ex Cathedra; Jeffrey Skidmore
NMC NMC D190

This disc could be called “an entertainment,” being a collection of short compositions disbursed with spoken passages. Some are satirical or humorous or quite serious but none is long enough to ebb the listener’s interest. Britten collaborated with his good friends (at the time) W.H. Auden and Christopher Isherwood. The most productive and closest collaboration between Auden and Britten was between 1936 and about 1941 and by 1947 they rarely even spoke. Subsequently Britten had a succession of librettists and Auden went on to write the libretto for Stravinsky’s The Rake’s Progress. The Britten-Auden collaboration produced, among other works, the operetta Paul Bunyan (1941, revised 1971) and the two main items on this recording; The Ascent of F6 in 1936 and On the Frontier (1938).

The Ascent of F6, written by Auden and Isherwood is set around the climbing of F6, a mountain in Sudoland, a British colony of indeterminate location and the anti-hero Michael Ransom, a Renaissance man, who wants to climb the mountain because it is there. Essentially it is a didactic drama on social responsibility. The authors were enthusiastic about Britten and his little pieces, some robust, some irreverent and brash but all arresting, including a blues number! On the Frontier was a metaphorical play concerned with the rise of Fascism in the 30s. An American in England recreates some of the Edward R. Murrow broadcasts from the early 1940s with narrator Samuel West.

These stylized 2013 performances emulate the 1930s in this delightful and unusual recording revealing the young composer’s diversity of styles. The vocal octet Ex Cathedra is heard in the potpourri of styles from chant to brash ensemble numbers, all in state-of-the-art sound.

Kara Karayev – The Seven Beauties; The Path of Thunder
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra; Dmitry Yablonsky
Naxos 8.573122

For listeners unfamiliar with Azerbaijani composer Kara Karayev (1918-1982), these ballet suites are an attractive introduction. Karayev studied with Shostakovich, and his rhythmic, tuneful music is well-suited to the ballet. The two works’ stories lend themselves to Karayev’s incorporation, respectively, of Azerbaijani folk song and dance, and of African and African-American musical traditions.

Karayev remained acceptable in the Soviet musical establishment at a time when the government criticized other composers severely for “formalism.” The story and folk elements in The Seven Beauties(1949) no doubt helped, as did his conventional and conservative musical style. His melodic gift is notable, as in the “Adagio”’s horn solo, and he sets the mood in each of The Seven Portraits with a few deft, colourful strokes. The solo winds of the Royal Philharmonic excel here. Yablonsky paces the orchestra well, leading to a climax just before the final Procession.

The Path of Thunder (1958) dates from the Khrushchev years, with a tragic story from South Africa involving lovers of different races. The music is now more hard-edged and spiky, with influences of Stravinsky and of Ravel`s Bolero. Syncopations and irregular metres are effective, as in the “Finale”’s 7/4 ostinato. The “Scene and Duet” of the lovers is particularly attractive, with violin and cello solos that are played beautifully by Royal Philharmonic principals. The passionate and idiomatic performances on this disc led by Dmitry Yablonsky make it a significant addition to the recorded repertoire.

Hot
Ryan Muncy; Various Artists
New Focus Recordings NFR130

Chicago-based saxophonist Ryan Muncy has become a champion of new music, both as a soloist and as executive director of the fine new music ensemble, Dal Niente – if you have yet to hear this group deservedly dubbed “super-musicians” by the Chicago Tribune, check it out.

Muncy’s debut recording is bookended with works by two composers that few performers tackle: Georges Aperghis and Franco Donatoni. The craft and wit of these composers are the highlights of the CD. Aperghis’ Rasch for soprano saxophone and viola is almost conceptual in its difficulty; Muncy and violist Nadia Sirota give a meticulous reading, although I wish the gestures and pauses were more erratic. Donatoni’s Hot has become the most popular chamber concerto for saxophone and “jazz” ensemble. Muncy and Dal Niente perform this difficult score with ease, although the saxophone could be more present and wild in this concertante work.

Throughout the recording, Muncy shows his sensitivity and skill in works featuring instruments that the saxophone would normally overpower. In Refrain from Riffing by Anthony Cheung, the alto saxophone sweeps and quivers microtonally in tandem with the harp. Marcos Balter’s Strohbass, in which the bass flute acts as resonance for the subtle key clicks of the baritone saxophone, is so skillful and almost electroacoustic.

It would be wrong not to mention The Last Leaf, the commission from established Israeli-born Harvard Professor, Chaya Czernowin, for sopranino (!) saxophone, highlighting the plethora of extended saxophone techniques that Muncy executes effortlessly.

100 names
Rebekah Heller
Tundra Records 001

American bassoonist Rebekah Heller is a respected performer in both classical and contemporary music styles, and a core member of the U.S.-based International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE). In her debut solo release on ICE’s own Tundra label, Heller performs with a sweet tone, precise attack and colourful phrases in six recent compositions written for her.

She is especially original in her witty musical repartees to the electroacoustic tapes, feedback effects and live processing. The gut-wrenching distortion and percussive bassoon make the opening track by Edgar Guzman loud and in-your-face memorable. Though more tape effects provide colourful backdrops to the bassoon in works by Marcelo Toledo and the bonus track by Du Yun, these are no match for the superb composition On speaking a hundred names by Nathan Davis. This strong composition for bassoon and live processing is a showpiece for Heller’s sensitive interpretation and enviable breath control. The bassoon solo Calling by Dai Fujikura is a microtonal outing that demonstrates her strength as a soloist. Not only can Heller play the bassoon, she can fearlessly speak the text of Gertrude Stein’s Tender Buttons and play percussion too in the moving work …and also a fountain by Marcos Balter.

100 names features a wide breadth of extended bassoon techniques, all performed beautifully, and sure to be enjoyed by new music lovers. Rebekah Heller needs to be congratulated for her dedication to the bassoon, and her ability to inspire composers.