Having arguably reached its zenith of popularity in the 1960s with the legendary Oscar Peterson and Bill Evans combos, the piano, bass and drums trio continues to be the sine qua non for countless improvisers. But with any jazz trio performance weighted with the configuration’s illustrious history, it’s up to contemporary players to create a distinct musical personality.

Usually this is done subtly, as New York-based drummer Jeff Davis demonstrates on Leaf House (Fresh Sound New Talent FSNW407 freshsoundrecords.com). A frequent associate of Canadian-in-Brooklyn bassist Michael Bates, the drummer knows the value of a sophisticated timekeeper and has found one in Norwegian-born Eivind Opsvik. More crucially with Russ Lossing at the piano, the leader’s eight compositions are interpreted in a fashion which suggests an alternate piano trio history. Rather than the influence of either Peterson or Evans looming large — as it does for too many of their followers — Lossing operates at the edge of atonality while never abandoning the legato. Throughout, his mixture of perceptive pacing, with forays into the instrument’s highest and lowest portals, plus a touch that ranges from intermittent key dusting to rock-ribbed staccato power, suggests a lineage that takes in Herbie Nichols, Lowell Davidson and Paul Bley, but just skirts Cecil Taylor’s revolutionary keyboard transformations. With such an arsenal of effects literally at his fingertips, the pianist can bring forth whatever is needed to illustrate individual Davis tunes. For instance the connections and variations that define Catbird’s conclusions are very Bley-like, especially when the bassist restates the motif with which he began the piece, the better to again bond with the feather-light and gently chromatic melody he and the pianist first played. On the other hand the kineticism that marks tunes like the title track and the loping Faded relate back to Nichols, as Lossing elasticizes lines without breaking the chromatic thrust, while the drummer’s cuffs and clips or poised rim shots meet walking or bowed bass with sympathetic pacing. William Jacob may be the CD’s highpoint though. Moving from a lyrical exposition to a tremolo finale, the pianist craftily strengthens his touch and doubles his attack as the piece evolves, dovetailing into power chords from Opsvik and aggregated ruffs and rebounds from Davis before the conclusion.

Interestingly enough, the pared-down approach of Canadian Bley, who often toured Europe, is one of the modes expressed by veteran Italian pianist Claudio Cojaniz, on the dozen instant compositions that make up Dreiländer Trio (Palomar Records 39 www.giovannimaier.it). Someone who often records solo, the pianist also infuses the tunes with large dollops of entrancing romanticism, and as might be expected from an Italian, matter-of-fact lyricism. At the same time, despite his expressive glissandi and busy note collections, neither his dynamics nor his touch are ever over the top. His innate jazz-swing sense ensures that each tune evolves in a linear fashion. Moreover since the band is a cooperative trio, bassist Giovanni Maier from Trieste and Serbian percussionist Zlatko Kaučič,who has worked with the likes of American saxophonist Steve Lacy, are equally as important to this CD’s achievement. An adept colourist, the drummer is so self-effacing that the rhythm is often felt rather than heard. A master of cymbal shimmering, bell-tree shaking plus drum clanking, clipping and paddling, he cedes musical flamboyance to the other two. Maier, who is an experienced duo and trio player, takes full advantage, properly interrupting the pianist’s cascading glissandi on m&M with double stopping and rubber band-like plucks from his strings and bringing a stirring cello-like range to Trieste-Amman. Along with Kaučič’s pinpointed clatters, Maier’s bow swipes add a needed toughness to the tune which otherwise is characterized by Cojaniz repeating note clusters in many keys, barely skirting 19th century impressionism. At the same time the pianist’s command of Evans-styled passing chords and patterns doesn’t stop him on a piece like Izpoved from deconstructing the gospel-like theme, making it more staccato so that it’s no longer European, but not quite American either.

Swiss pianist Gabriela Friedli also adapts the Bley-Evans concept, albeit with a harder touch on Started (Intakt CD 214 www.intaktrec.ch). But her mixture of notated and improvising designs is part of a subtle avant-gardism that hides underneath lyrical narratives. Aided by Daniel Studer’s measured bass plucks and drummer Dieter Ulrich’s smooth pacing, she specializes in contrafacts of other tunes, telegraphing the transformation in song titles. Come Lately relates to Duke Ellington’s Johnny Come Lately; Out of Nothing to Johnny Green’s Out of Nowhere; and no prizes for figuring out the chord origin of I Wrap My Dreams in Troubles. Atop Studer’s chiming beat the last melody is stretched out by Friedli with expansive dynamics. The middle piece becomes a double-time exercise in fleeting cadenzas and string plucks from the pianist, contrasted with sul tasto rubs from the bassist, plus bull’s eye rim shots and cymbal pops from the drummer. As for Come Lately, Studer’s funky bass slaps and Ulrich’s backbeat underline the piece’s basic rhythm and blues feeling. Not content with that, the pianist makes the narrative tougher and more staccato with low frequency cadenzas and note clusters, eventually climaxing as she spins out emphasized glissandi while the drummer’s contrapuntal thumps emphasize wood and metal.

If the preceding groups quietly subvert the piano trio, the most radical reworking of the concept comes from Montreal drummer Michel Lambert. Assisted by pianist Alexandre Grogg and bassist Guillaume Bouchard his Journal Des Épisodes (Rant 1244 www.jazzfromrant.com) is made of 92 [!] brief tracks originally composed for symphony orchestra, re-jigged to fit this format. Although tracks officially clock in at between six seconds and five minutes – with the majority fewer than 30 seconds – the end product sounds like anything but patchwork. Much of the credit has to go to Grogg who manages to maintain the narrative nature of his playing, even if the musical thoughts are interrupted by frequent pauses. Bouchard mostly concentrates on steady rhythmic motions; while Lambert not only exposes every variety of beats from Latin to arrhythmic to near-terpsichorean, but is likely responsible for the sonic add-ons. Besides slide-whistle shrills and alphorn lowing, snippets from a full orchestral usually in romantic mode frequently bisect the performances. Given his head as he has on Sans Commentaire II plus R 59 Liquide or Jour De Célébration the pianist is able to display power voicing matched by Lambert’s ruffs and rolls or showcase moderato fingertip explorations matched by the drumtop strokes and cymbal shakes. When episodes inflate to a whole three minutes on Le Marteau or six [!] on L’homme-Ciseaux the trio comes across with sophistication. Straight-ahead jazz, the former mixes repeated octave jumps and key clipping with press rolls and a thumping bass solo. Even more swing-oriented, the latter is cunningly harmonized with a walking bass line, rolls, drags and ruffs from Lambert and sparkling piano work encompassing tremolo runs and a sprinkling of ringing notes.

Accepting the weight of history, but cunningly or conspicuously moving familiar concepts into new areas, these combos preserve the piano trio for the 21st century. 

As 2013 marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Giuseppe Verdi (1813–1901), record companies are issuing new and re-issuing existing recordings. Decca has outdone them all with the ultimate collection! As extensive as their catalogue and archives are, it was necessary for Decca to look beyond its own resources to assemble Verdi – The Complete Works (4784916, 75 CDs plus two 265-page hard-bound, informative books) and truly include everything. The majority of the performances come from Decca’s own archives, some from DG and two operas from EMI plus some oddments from elsewhere. Every opera is here, all 29 of them (30 if you include the 1869 version of the 1862 La Forza del Destino as a different opus), plus the Manzoni Requiem, the string quartet, sacred music, songs, ballet music, sinfonias and a group of “discoveries.” An astonishing achievement at a very low price. The packaging is unique, with each opera in an individual cardboard package listing the full cast. Synopses are included but not the libretto translations which can be found on the website. The musicians involved comprise a virtual who’s who of the last half century. Tebaldi, Pavarotti, Domingo, Caballé, Milnes, Gobbi and a page full of other great voices. Conductors include Karajan, Chailly, Abbado, Giulini, Kleiber, Muti, Solti, Levine et. al. Complete details at Arkivmusic.com.

A curiosity, The Hymn of the Nations played by the Philharmonia Orchestra and chorus and Pavarotti turns out to be a boring, indifferent piece. Compare it elsewhere to Toscanini’s electrifying arrangement and extension filmed by the American Office of War Information in December 1943. Toscanini added both the Internationale (hacked out of all subsequent audio and video reissues shortly after the war) and a heroic Star Spangled Banner.

In 1900 Schoenberg began setting to music verses by Danish poet Jens Peter Jacobsen that related the story of the doomed love of the Danish King Waldemar and his beloved mistress Tove, who is murdered by Waldemar’s jealous wife Helvig. Schoenberg worked on the project until 1903 when he laid it aside. In 1910 he applied himself to the task of setting and orchestrating parts two and three and by 1911 Gurrelieder, Songs of Gurre (Waldemar’s Castle) was completed. It is full of good tunes, clearly post-Wagnerian and regarded as Schoenberg’s Tristan and Isolde.

Leopold Stokowski conducted the North American premiere in Philadelphia on April 8, 1932 with repeat performances on April 9 and 11. RCA recorded and issued the final performance on 28 78rpm sides that included Stokowski’s brief discussion of the work. It is readily available on CD and the second performance, given on April 9 and taken from 33 1/3 transcription discs, is available on Pearl (CDS 9066, 2CDs).

There was much excitement when it was announced that Stokowski would conduct the work at the Edinburgh Festival in 1961 and Stoki’s admirers overseas awaited hearing it via the BBC transcription service. Alas no. The story in circulation was that the BBC tapes had been lost between Edinburgh and London. A recording of that historic performance has surfaced and it would be picayune and pointless to critique any of the soloists by comparing them to their counterparts in other recordings. James McCracken is Waldemar, Gré Bouwenstijn is Tove and Nell Rankin is the Wood Dove. Forbes Robinson is Bauer, John Lanigan is Klaus-Narr and Alvar Lidell is the speaker. The London Symphony Orchestra is joined by the Edinburgh Royal Choral Union. The raison d’être for the publication of this performance is Stokowski who really gets what its all about and is completely immersed in the music. Under his baton the score grows organically, culminating in the glorious and overwhelming choral sunrise. The mono recording is not quite as articulate as we now take for granted but it is eminently fulfilling with unrestrained dynamics. I was not in any sense disappointed (Guild GHCD 2388/89, 2 CDs).

Included in this set is Verklärte Nacht that was recorded by Victor in 1952 just months after Schoenberg’s death. The string orchestra was comprised of New York musicians chosen by Stokowski, whose practice it was to telephone each individual and personally engage them. Here is a passionate, heartfelt performance that, while amply dramatic, has no hint whatsoever of bathos. The transfer is exemplary. This is the first of Stokowski’s three recordings of the work. Incidentally, Stokowski is unique in having performed all of Schoenberg’s orchestral works during the composer’s lifetime.

Canada is blessed with a certain number of outstanding classical musicians of international calibre and reputation. Flutist Robert Aitken is one of them, still enjoying an impressive international career spanning more than 50 years. In addition to his engagements as a flutist, he is a composer, conductor and the founding artistic director of Toronto’s New Music Concerts. Aitken also held the position of professor of flute at the Hochschule für Musik in Freiburg, Germany until his retirement in 2004.

With more than 60 recordings over the years, his collaborations have included a host of luminaries, including the late, great harpsichordist Greta Kraus. This disc features Aitken and Kraus in live direct-to-disc recordings from 1979 of J.S. Bach’s Three Sonatas for Flute and Harpsichord BWV1030-1032 and from 1969, the Partita BWV997. Bach composed the partita for lute alone and here Aitken and Kraus play their own transcription.

This new CD amply demonstrates Aitken’s supremacy in his field ... silky tone, breathtaking virtuosity and fluid pyrotechnics. His always immaculate intonation and artistry communicate the best of the composer to his audience. In the familiar C.P.E. Bach Concerto Wq22, with John Eliot Gardiner conducting, Aitken and the Vancouver Chamber Orchestra offer a crisp and enthusiastic performance as fine as any that I’ve heard. Live from 1981, the restored sound is outstanding, as it is on each and every track on this CD (DOREMI DHR-6611). 

What a wealth of material coming out of the Canadian Music Centre these days! Four solo piano discs have been released in the past two months followed almost immediately by three discs of chamber music. The one I have in hand is history is what it is — music of Peter Hatch performed by the Blue Rider Ensemble (Centrediscs, CMCCD 18413). Kitchener-based Hatch founded NUMUS Concerts in 1985 and the Open Ears Festival of Music and Sound in 1998, both of which continue to flourish. He was composer-in-residence with the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony from 1999 to 2003, is currently the Arts and Culture Consultant with the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics and a Professor at the Faculty of Music at Wilfrid Laurier University. In addition to these administrative and academic pursuits Hatch has managed to compose an impressive body of work over the past three decades. The current collection encompasses works spanning the past dozen years including pieces written for Toronto’s Continuum Contemporary Music, Vancouver’s Standing Wave Ensemble, Montreal pianist Marc Couroux and a collaborative endeavour — a structured improvisation — with K-W’s Blue Rider Ensemble. Hatch often finds inspiration in literature and two of these works reflect that. Five Memos from 2005 draws on essays of Italo Calvino. The memos have evocative titles such as the first, In Which an Image is Formed, with its darkly lyrical cello line gradually taken over by clarinet, flute and violin. The second, In Which Things Happen Quickly, opens with a vibraphone pattern soon joined in unison by strings and eventually giving way to piano and winds while the percussionist moves to unpitched sounds. The following movements provide contrasting moods and textures ending with a whirlwind and wayward quasi-military march led by snare drum and piccolo (fife?) and the frantic scratching of block chords on the fiddle.

Music is a beautiful disease is an extended one-movement work that starts pianissimo with occasional percussive interjections before a ghostly motif reminiscent of a European police siren, but heard at such a distance as to suggest calm rather than emergency. This haunting fragment is given a variety of instrumental treatments throughout the 18-minute work, eventually heard shared by piano and vibraphone. One Says. History Is. for solo piano was written in 2003. It begins tempestuously in moto perpetuo form alternating sustain pedal drones and staccato passages. After this prolonged fast section the music calms and we hear, in the distance, a recitation of texts from Gertrude Stein’s We Came. A History. At the end of the recitation the piano returns to its former frenzied pace over which we hear a very slow wordless melody sung calmly. The relentless repeated notes eventually give way to a pointillistic denouément for the last three minutes of the first movement. This is followed by another calm section in which the recitation comes to the forefront for several minutes until the piano returns to percussive, although more subdued, textures. The final movement of this nearly half-hour long work is an extended meditation using very few notes.

The disc ends in a beautifully calm mood with the structured improvisation mentioned above, Cantabile, with grace, based, the composer says “on a simple sketch I generated for them.” Throughout the disc the members of the Blue Rider Ensemble — Liselyn Adams, flute; Paul Bendza, clarinet; Jeremy Bell, violin; Paul Pulford, cello; Pamela Reimer, piano and melodica; Beverley Johnston, percussion; Anne-Marie Donovan, voice and melodica — are in fine form.

Like Peter Hatch’s Music is a beautiful disease, Alfred Schnittke’sPiano Quintet has a haunting theme that recurs and is transformed. We hear it piece-meal in the opening movement but it really takes form in the second, a sort of demented waltz. It eventually returns in a ghostly form in the pastoral finale. The work was begun in 1972 shortly after the sudden death of the composer’s mother, but not completed until 1976, a year after the death of his idol Shostakovich. In 1978 he made an orchestral version of this dark work and called it In memoriam. It is the original version which is included on Alfred Schnittke – Chamber Music Volume 2, the latest release by Montreal’s Molinari Quartet (ATMA ACD2 2669). For the quintet and the one-movement Piano Quartet written in 1988 based on sketches by Gustav Mahler, the members of the quartet are joined by Louise Bessette. The much celebrated pianist was awarded two Opus Prizes by the Quebec Arts Council last month for her “30-year career” concert with the Société de musique contemporaine du Québec in March 2012. Incidentally, the Molinari Quartet, whose seventh ATMA recording this is, has also been honoured with Opus Prizes, 14 since its formation in 1997.

While the two Schnittke works with piano have been among my favourites for a good many years, this important addition to the discography also includes a String Trio from 1985 with which I was not previously familiar. This would be reason enough to pick up this excellent CD. My only quibble is that at 60 minutes there was more than sufficient room to include Mahler’s own movement for piano quartet that Schnittke’s was meant to accompany.

My high regard for the Molinari Quartet and its commitment to the art music of our time notwithstanding, a very different sort of string quartet has also captured my attention this month. The Fretless brings together traditional Celtic and Canadian-style folk music in what they call a “Rad Trad” amalgam using the standard formation of a classical string quartet. Three western Canadian fiddle champions, who take turns in the viola chair, are joined by a classically trained New England cellist whose interest in folk idioms came from his father’s Irish and old-time musical interests. After very successful fiddling careers in British Columbia, Victoria’s Ivonne Hernandez and Courtenay’s Trent Freeman went off to Boston to polish their skills at the Berklee School of Music where they met cellist Eric Wright. Add to this mix Saskatoon’s Karrnnel Sawitsky, a four-time Saskatchewan fiddle champion and you have the makings of a very fine ensemble indeed. Waterbound (thefretless.com) presents a lush and invigorating mix of traditional and traditional-sounding original compositions full of jigs and reels and drones. With guest spots by singers Ruth Moody and Norah Rendell in the more balladic title tune (Moody) and Harder to Walk these Days than Run (Rendell) it’s no wonder that this debut recording garnered top honours at both the Western Canadian Music Awards and the Canadian Folk Music Awards.

Another happy discovery this month occurred when I received a letter and a new CD from the iconic Canadian conscience Mendelson Joe. Perhaps best known for his outspoken letters to the editor in national publications, Joe has been adding his voice in the wilderness to the Canadian music scene since the hippie heyday of Yorkville with the blues band McKenna-Mendelson Mainline and sporadic solo acoustic releases over the past four decades. He is also the author of five books and a painter of renown. He uses all of his creative outlets to speak against oppression, injustice and environmental abuse.

Recorded last spring in Huntsville Canuckian (mendelsonjoe.com) is testament to Joe’s unflagging determination to hold societal hypocrisy and political meanness and greed up to the microscope. I Am Canuckian provides an autobiographical insight into the Canadian landscape through the eyes of someone who’s “been everywhere, man” and includes a (somewhat ambiguous, but I have been assured heartfelt) indictment of Jim Keegstra and things Albertan. I’m A Folkie is a lament for “Big, Big Mommy” (Mother Earth) and Deemo Crassy demonizes Steven Harper as “a world-class weenie and a world-class meanie.” If I’m Dreaming is simply a love song, Joe returns to his soapbox in the final track, Dissertatio, a philosophical diatribe on the subjects of truth and greed which includes reference to his mentor “the late angel” June Callwood who said “there are no innocent bystanders.” He concludes with the motto “I exist therefore I Art.” It’s reassuring to know that Joe continues to “stand on guard” for us.

We welcome your feedback and invite submissions. CDs and comments should be sent to: The WholeNote, 503–720 Bathurst St., Toronto ON, M5S 2R4. We also encourage you to visit our website, thewholenote.com, where you can find additional, expanded and archival reviews. 

—David Olds, DISCoveries Editor

discoveries@thewholenote.com

Schumann – Liederkreis
Gerald Finley; Julius Drake
Hyperion CDA67944

Canadian singer Gerald Finley is living proof that being a baritone is not some form of divine punishment. Finley demonstrates his advantage with a rich, resonant ease in a range that basses and tenors can rarely match.

His choice of the Schumann Op.24 and Op.39 song cycles offers him the opportunity to move through a wide range of poetic texts by Eichendorff and Heine. Whether nostalgic, frustrated or purely romantic, Finley captures the spirit of each iteration with a conviction as honest as Schumann’s own must have been. The writing is imbued with the passion and frustration of his romance with Clara Wieck whose father found Schumann an unsuitable match for his daughter and resisted the ever-deepening relationship that would inevitably result in their marriage.

These songs reflect a structural freedom that is neither fully through-composed nor fully strophic. Yet Schumann seems entirely comfortable with his decision to live in an evolving world between accepted forms. His writing offers singers a freedom to exploit the emotional and dramatic potential of each poem, and Finley does this exceptionally well, especially in the more gentle songs.

Finley brings an engaging tenderness to the opening tracks of Op.39, especially “Mondnacht.” Where many singers glide through the text on the merit of Schumann’s melody, Finley uses strategic pauses to heighten the sense of nocturnal mystery. The Op.24 “Berg’ und Burgen” also shows Finley’s superb artistic sensibility. Altogether a very fine performance.

Whither must I wander?
David John Pike; Isabelle Trüb
Signum Records SIGCD314
davidjohnpike.com

With a daunting range of emotional expression and poetic moods, Vaughan Williams’ Songs of Travel challenge every singer who performs them. Singers performing these songs must have a convincingly profound understanding of the composer’s affinity for the poet’s (Robert Louis Stevenson) own spiritual wanderlust. Canadian-British baritone David John Pike travels well in Vaughan Williams’ universe. He understands the evolutionary push these works gave to English parlour song, moving the art form into the 20th century and unimagined new realms of form and tonality. Vaughan Williams writes with the feel of open-ended free form that nevertheless rests on solid compositional craft. Pike seems naturally at home with this, flowing easily from the lighter-hearted “Blackmore by the Stour” to the mystical and sacred “The Call.”

Pike’s dark roast baritone voice is wonderfully robust yet clear and his articulate pleasure at singing art song in English is a joy to hear. His repertoire choice makes for a superb program on a disc that includes works by two of Vaughan Williams’ friends and colleagues: Gerald Finzi and Roger Quilter. Finzi’s language is more restrained and introspective, qualities that Pike senses and portrays beautifully. But the real surprise on the disc is Quilter’s Three Shakespeare Songs that Pike delivers with imagination and elegance. Here is an unassailable argument for hearing more of Quilter’s work performed and recorded.

Finally, accompanist Isabelle Trüb is stunningly virtuosic without stealing the limelight ... incredible.

Wagner – Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Gerald Finley; Marco Jentzsch;
Johannes Martin Kränzle; Anna Gabler; London Philharmonic Orchestra; Glyndebourne Chorus; Vladimir Jurowski
Opus Arte OA 1085 D

To sit through Wagner’s over five-hour long comic masterpiece in the opera house is a daunting task but on DVD in the comfort of home it becomes joyful and rewarding. From Glyndebourne’s new Opera House the piece springs to fresh new life under David McVicar’s innovative direction. Fully aware of how this opera has been bound to “sacred” Germanic traditions he has made a few striking departures to make it relevant to today’s audiences not with directorial “tricks” but by adding a new thoroughly human dimension.

Canadian baritone Gerald Finley is an inspired choice for Hans Sachs, the hero of the opera, traditionally portrayed as an old man. Many of Wagner’s operas are somewhat autobiographical and seeing himself as Sachs, a still handsome, virile and wise middle-aged artist surely would have pleased Wagner. Finley proves to be wonderful in this complex and difficult role.

Wagner also saw himself as the rebellious young lover, Walther von Stolzing, sung by Marco Jentzsch, not the traditional beefcake heldentenor but a handsome youth with a voice of gentle tenderness embedded in the Wagnerian power. Just like the composer, Walther is also intent on breaking into the “Establishment” with his new music, but encounters strong resistance in Beckmesser (alias Hanslick, Wagner’s arch critic) who in this new setting is no bungling fool, but a man of some stature, portrayed superbly by J.M. Kränzle.

The distinguished cast is well chosen, look the part, act and sing gloriously. Add to all this the London Philharmonic in the orchestra pit and a young conductor, Vladimir Jurowsky, who controls Wagner’s multi-layered polyphonic, contrapuntal score like a Karajan reborn.

Die Thomaner - A Year in the Life of the St. Thomas Boys Choir, Leipzig
Paul Smaczny; Gunter Atteln
Accentus Music ACC 20212

Bach - Matthaus Passion
Thomanerchor; Gewandhausorchester; Georg Christoph Biller
Accentus Music ACC 20256

The Leipzig Thomanerchor was founded in 1212 and the Thomasschule, of which the choir became part, followed soon after. The DVDs under review were issued on the occasion of the 800th anniversary of the choir. Johann Sebastian Bach was the Cantor there from 1723 until his death in 1750. It was for Leipzig that he wrote most of his cantatas as well as the two great Passions: St. John and St. Matthew.

Although now the choir is the jewel in the crown for both the school and the city of Leipzig, that was hardly true in Bach’s time. Bach was responsible for the music not in just one church but in five. He was to complain that pupils were generally admitted on academic, not musical grounds. At one point he calculated that among the pupils 17 were “usable,” 20 might become “usable” at some point and 17 were unmusical. Bach also had to find orchestral musicians. They had to be paid but the city administration refused to fund more than eight. Many of the schoolboys played instruments but, if they were used as instrumentalists, that further reduced the number of singers available. We should also remember that in Bach’s time a boy’s voice did not change until much later than is the case now. He would not become a tenor or bass until 17 or 18. The advantage of this would have been that trebles would be more mature and experienced than they are now, but it would produce difficulties with the lower voices.

The documentary presents a year in the life of the school; it also shows the trajectory from the initial auditions for five-year-olds to the tearful farewells of those who at 18 have to leave the choir after having spent much of their young lives there. We see the choir in rehearsal, in performance and on a tour to South America; we also see them playing soccer and having pillow fights.

Two recent recordings of the St. Matthew Passion perform the work one voice to a part; the Evangelist and the Christus are also the tenor and the bass of the first choir. By contrast, this performance could be called old-fashioned: it uses six adult soloists, a large (divided) boys choir, a (divided) modern orchestra, modern pitch and no viola da gamba. But if one judges it on its own terms, as one should, it is very successful; I found watching and listening to it a very moving experience. The soloists are all good but the finest is the Christus, the bass Klaus Mertens, who sings with wonderful sonority, impeccable diction and true involvement. At the end there is no applause. Quite right: who would want to applaud the Crucifixion?

James Whitbourn - Annelies (from The Diary of Anne Frank)
Arianna Zukerman; Westminster Williamson Voices; Lincoln Trio; James Jordan
Naxos 8.57307

The passages librettist Melanie Challenger has chosen from the writings of the highly intelligent, insightful and inspiring Anne Frank with added biblical passages have been set to a tender yet powerful score by composer James Whitbourn. He offers two versions: both for soloist and chorus, one with full orchestra, the other for piano trio plus clarinet. This recording is of the latter, which offers such a poignant, personal characterization that one is immediately drawn into an almost unbearable intimacy with the tragic events. Rather than straight accompaniment, it seems each instrument has several roles to play in the drama, for example, the clarinet as the voice of Jewish tradition, the violin and cello deep emotion and the passage of time with piano as chiming clock. Of course, the voices have many changes to portray: soprano Arianna Zukerman sings with a supremely controlled tone that never strays from pure beauty, but sublimely imparts the contrast of isolation vs. devotion and buoyant hopefulness.

The choir, Westminster Williamson Voices led by James Jordon, is superb and they are flawless in the delivery of passages that range from terror and alarm to prayerful and even a chorale on Anne’s Ich danke dir für all das Gute und Liebe und Schöne (Thank you God, for all that is good and dear and beautiful) that appears more delightfully Mozartian in character than one harmonized by Bach. This first choral setting of The Diary of Anne Frank certainly proves worthy.

Méhul – Le Chant du depart
Les Jacobins; Mathieu Lussier
ATMA ACD2 2659

Etienne-Nicolas Méhul — now there’s a name we don’t encounter all that often these days! But if you were an enlightened citoyen and a patron of the arts during those stormy days following the French Revolution, his name would probably have been quite familiar. Born in Givet in 1763, Méhul is now regarded as the first French Romantic composer, his operas enjoying considerable acclaim from the 1790s until the first decade of the 19th century. Today, his music has fallen undeservedly into obscurity, but what better way of re-introducing it than through this delightful ATMA recording of woodwind arrangements titled Le Chant du départ performed by the Montréal-based ensemble Les Jacobins under the direction of Mathieu Lussier?

Comprising Quebec’s top woodwind and brass players, Les Jacobins is a group of variable size that comes together to explore the little-known music of the French Revolutionary period. And what a wonderfully resonant sound they produce! The eight members delive r a thoughtful and well-balanced performance of these fine arrangements, all of which capture the dramatic intensity and orchestral colour of the original scores. Included on the disc are several of Méhul’s operatic overtures, including Mélidor & Phrosine, Joseph and La Chasse du jeune Henri. The CD also contains a number of patriotic songs for which Méhul was renowned, his most famous being Le Chant du retour, spirited music from 1797.

For those who look upon arrangements with slight disdain, it must be remembered that operatic overtures, arias and patriotic songs were frequently popularized by small woodwind ensembles in the same manner as Mozart’s Harmoniemusik. Hence, Les Jacobins has not only succeeded in recreating a sound from the streets of revolutionary Paris, it has also brought to light repertoire that definitely deserves greater recognition. Grands felicitations for some splendid music making!

The Beethoven Journey –
Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 3
Leif Ove Andsnes;
Mahler Chamber Orchestra
Sony 88725420582

One of my favorite pianists, Leif Ove Andsnes came to record this CD by way of an elevator in São Paulo, Brazil. He loved hearing short fragments of these concertos playing on a loop in the hotel elevator. Lucky for us, Andsnes fell in love again with Beethoven’s music as we will in listening to this CD. I find it difficult to believe that this is his first recording of Beethoven.

Andsnes also directs the Mahler Chamber Orchestra in this seamless journey in rediscovering the diversity of ideas and expressions in Beethoven’s mesmerizing masterpieces. Andsnes feels the music in a deeply spiritual way which he communicates in sublime phrasing, especially in the slow movements. His shaping of the melodic singing lines captures Beethoven’s soul-wrenching humanity and desire to change the world through his music.

The Piano Concerto No.1 in C Major reflects the style of Haydn and Mozart. However, Beethoven uses spaciousness and basic rhythmic patterns to create fresh and intense musical rhetoric. The slow movement which is immense is also one of the most beautiful of the concertos. The first theme in the third movement feels like a Turkish march, popular in Vienna at that time. Andsnes has the rhythmic articulation and drive, crisp runs and a sense of humour to make this movement sparkle like a gem.

The Piano Concerto No.3 in C Minor is much grander in scale, with something like a military march in the first movement. There is a rich layering of motifs building tension that results in an extreme dramatic impact. The slow movement is heart wrenching in its beauty and Andsnes milks every nuance of emotion in his performance. The technical virtuosity of Andsnes’ playing is flawless. Stylistically it is impeccable. His fingers dance over the keyboard, caress the keys with a velvet touch and display his exquisite musicianship in a myriad of tonal colours. I look forward to the rest of his Beethoven journey with anticipation.

Platero y Yo: An Andalusian Elegy
Michael Kolk
Independent
michaelkolkguitar.com

As I write this, the weather outside is seasonally grey and cold — so a disc titled Platero y Yo: An Andalusian Elegy featuring 20th century guitar music from sunnier climes performed by Michael Kolk seems the perfect antidote. Kolk’s first two recordings were as one half of the Henderson-Kolk guitar duo, but this is his first solo endeavour, presenting music by Manuel Ponce, Eduardo Sainz de la Maza, Augustin Barrios Mangoré and Joaquin Rodrigo. A native of Vancouver, Kolk studied at the University of Toronto where he earned a Master’s degree in guitar performance. Since then, he has appeared in Europe and North America, and has been the recipient of numerous first prizes in guitar competitions.

This disc is a gem! Taking for its title the name of an eight-movement suite by de la Maza, it opens with Ponce’s set of variations Theme varié et Finale from 1926. The mood is quietly introspective, and even in the brisker movements, Kolk achieves a wonderful sense of intimacy. De la Maza’s suite that follows comprises an appealing set of contrasts, apparently inspired by a book by Spanish author Juan Jiménez. Four charming waltzes by Paraguayan composer Barrios Mangoré precede Rodrigo’s Introdución y Danza, a brief but notable example of that composer’s affable style.

While all of these pieces were composed during the 20th century, there’s nothing avant-garde about them and Kolk’s sensitive and technically flawless performance further enhances their charm. Platero y Yo, (with its attractive packaging) is indeed the perfect disc to savour on a cold winter’s day — or for that matter, any time of year.

Mendelssohn
Anton Kuerti
DoReMi CD DDR-6610

As was evident from his earlier Mendelssohn CD containing the two concertos and Capriccio Brilliante, Op.22, Anton Kuerti has as wonderful a way with Mendelssohn as he has with Schumann, Beethoven and Schubert. In this new CD he is a master in all of the pianistic and artistic demands and his playing is transparent, sparkling and joyful ... a man happy at his work.

This disc presents a cross section of Mendelssohn’s solo piano pieces recorded August 25, 2009, in the Willowdale United Church and 1970 in Walter Hall, beginning with the evocative Variations Serieuses Op.54. The Fantasy Op.28, Scherzo a Capriccio in F-Sharp Minor, Andante and Rondo Capriccioso Op.14 and Three Preludes and Fugues Op.35 follow, and the miniscule Scherzo in B Minor without opus number closes this attractive recital. The sound is remarkably realistic. A welcome addition to the catalogues of both Kuerti and Mendelssohn.

Clementi - Symphonies 1 & 2
Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma; Francesco La Vecchia
Naxos 8.573071

Although we tend to think of Muzio Clementi primarily as the composer of utilitarian exercises for the piano, this disc reminds us of his considerable gifts as a symphonist and the liner notes succinctly lay out the impressive details of his remarkable and influential career. His playing, conducting and teaching brought him into contact with leading composers of his generation and in 1813 he founded – together with Viotti – the Philharmonic Society of London. He was also active in music publishing and the manufacturing of pianos.

Written somewhere between 1805 and 1820 (the exact dates of composition are a matter of speculation), these orchestral pieces invite comparison to the masterpieces of the form by Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven and the results are favourable. It’s clear that Clementi’s studies and travels – which took him from Rome to Paris, Vienna, Lyon and, eventually, London – equipped him with a formidable musical knowledge and technique. Thematic interest, clever orchestration and powerful drama make the case that these works should be more widely known.

This excellent recording will help in that regard. La Vecchia coaxes energetic and spirited performances from his orchestra, featuring particularly fine wind playing.     

Szymanowski - Symphonies 2 & 4 “Symphonie Concertante”
Louis Lortie; BBC Symphony Orchestra; Edward Gardner
Chandos CHSA 5115

Following many masterful performances of standard repertoire on Chandos, celebrated pianist Louis Lortie has branched out. In addition to his Lutoslawski Piano Concerto (Chandos CHSA 5098), there is now Karol Szymanowski’s Symphony No.4, Op.60 (“Symphonie Concertante,” 1932), a modernist concerto dedicated to Szymanowski’s friend Arthur Rubenstein. Lortie makes the most of solo opportunities, delivering the first movement cadenza with expressive rubato and drama. In a second movement including both romantic-nocturne and Bartókian night-music elements, he accompanies lovely flute and violin solos with tastefully shaped treble figuration. Edward Gardner`s orchestral pacing builds the performance steadily before a return to the original uneasy pastoral mood. The finale is an oberek, a wild Polish dance; here technique and ensemble between Lortie and orchestra are impeccable.

Comparing the work with Szymanowski’s early, derivative Straussian Concert Overture, Op.12 (1905) demonstrates his moving away from German models towards influences from Eastern Europe. Gardner and the BBC Symphony give the latter a rousing performance that shows the 23-year-old composer’s mastery of compositional and orchestral technique. Symphony No.2 (1909-10, re-orchestrated 1927-36) continues his earlier Austro-German direction, reminding me of Zemlinsky and the tonal Schoenberg. The conducting of the dramatic opening movement conveys long, wide-ranging leading and subsidiary lines, with appropriate tempo fluctuations. In the middle movement, each variation is a lyrical gem and the BBC strings shine. An adventurous fugal finale concludes this impressive disc.

The wonderful James Ehnes is back with more top-notch performances in Bartók: Works for Violin and Piano, Volume 2, with the equally terrific Andrew Armstrong at the piano (CHANDOS CHAN 10752). Volume 1 (CHAN 10705) featured sonatas and rhapsodies; this new CD features sonatas and folk dances.

Despite the CD’s title, it’s the Solo Sonata from 1944 that opens the recital, and Ehnes gives a commanding performance, perhaps not as edgy as some, but with a great sense of line and energy. The Sonata in E Minor is an early work from 1903 and is perhaps stylistically closer to Brahms than to the composer Bartók was to become. Well worth hearing, it was apparently shelved after its first performance in 1904 and remained both unplayed and unpublished until the 1960s.

Three shorter works complete a generous — almost 80 minutes — CD. The Hungarian Folksongs and Hungarian Folk Tunes were both transcribed from the piano collection For Children, and the more recognizable Romanian Folk Dances are transcriptions of the solo piano pieces of the same name.

The Latvian violinist Baiba Skride is another player in great form on her latest CD Stravinsky & Martin Violin Concertos, with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales under Thierry Fischer (ORFEO C 849 121 A). There is some beautifully spiky playing in the neo-classical Stravinsky concerto, but the longest work here – and the real gem – is the 1951 concerto by the Swiss composer Frank Martin. It’s a simply lovely work that really should be much better known. The orchestra shines in the Two Symphonic Movements from the mid-1920s by Martin’s fellow countryman Arthur Honegger: the startlingly effective Pacific 231, as good a representation of the physical power of a steam locomotive as you will ever hear and Rugby, which attempts to convey the cut and thrust of the sport. Stravinsky’s short Circus Polka rounds out a highly enjoyable CD.

Cellist Steven Doane and pianist Barry Snyder combine for a quite astonishing Rachmaninoff recital on the Bridge label (BRIDGE 9347). It’s astonishing for two reasons: the recordings were made in 1996 and have simply (and inexplicably) sat on the shelf for the past 16 years; and the playing is quite extraordinary. The brief Danse Orientale Op.2, No.2 opens the disc and is followed by an absolutely riveting performance of the Cello Sonata in G Minor. There is a wonderful balance here, with both players producing a full, rich tonal quality.

What comes next is even better, when Snyder performs the complete Études-Tableaux Op.39 for solo piano; not only is his playing quite stunning, the nine pieces were apparently recorded in a single continuous take, with only a few extraneous sounds over-dubbed after the event. Remarkable.

After back-to-back performances like those, the very brief (2:07) Lied for cello and piano that ends the CD almost seems like an afterthought. The recorded sound throughout is superb.

Sixteen years?? Difficult to explain, but boy, was this ever worth waiting for!

Two imported compilation CDs afford the opportunity to hear three string concertos by contemporary British composers. Oliver Knussen’s 2002 Violin Concerto is included on Autumnal (NMC D178) in a definitive performance by Leila Josefowicz and the BBC Symphony Orchestra, with the composer conducting. The CD also includes Alexandra Wood playing Secret Psalm for solo violin and Wood with Hugh Watkins (piano) performing the CD’s title work. Works for orchestra, solo piano, voice and piano and voice and orchestra complete a fascinating look at this 60-year-old composer’s work over 40 years.

Mark-Anthony Turnage, although only eight years younger, was once a composition student of Knussen’s. The London Philharmonic Orchestra has already issued two CDs dedicated to Turnage on its own label and this third self-titled CD (LPO-0066) features première recordings of five Turnage works. Mambo, Blues and Tarantella: concerto for violin and orchestra is a live recording of the September 2008 world première performance by Christian Tetzlaff, with Vladimir Jurowski conducting. On Opened Ground: concerto for viola and orchestra dates from 2001, and is played here by Lawrence Power, with Markus Stenz conducting. Both works provide ample evidence of Turnage’s blending of jazz and blues influences with classical traditions. Two short orchestral works and the clarinet concerto Riffs and Refrains complete the disc.

Renaud Capuçon is back with an interesting pairing of two giant concertos from the Austro-German repertoire, the Brahms and the Berg, on his latest Virgin Classics CD (50999 60265326). The disc realizes Capuçon’s long-time wish to record with the Wiener Philharmoniker, conducted here by the excellent Daniel Harding, and it’s one that will certainly please his many admirers.

Capuçon has been playing these works in public for 15 years, and he is clearly at ease with them. I was particularly interested in his interpretation of the Berg, a particular favourite of mine and a concerto that the soloist considers to be the great violin concerto of the 20th century. It’s hard to disagree. My first reaction was that Capuçon’s smooth, almost genteel approach missed some of the harsh, tragic depth of this very emotional work, but the more I listened the more he convinced me that his approach was the correct one, especially in the Bach chorale in the concerto’s final section.

The Capuçon CD gave me the opportunity to compare his performance of the Berg with one on an excellent disc that I meant to review last year, but somehow managed to overlook, that featured Isabelle Faust and the Orchestra Mozart under Claudio Abbado (harmonia mundi HMC 902105). Faust’s approach is much more gritty and acerbic, even in the quiet opening, although the orchestral detail is more clearly defined. The orchestral sound in the Capuçon disc is surprisingly indistinct at times, especially in the middle range and the percussion.

What really makes the Faust CD a great buy is her terrific performance of the Beethoven concerto. Her fairly fast vibrato is more effective here than in the Berg; the outer movements move along at a really bright tempo and the slow movement is beautifully and sensitively drawn out, with lovely dynamics. The lengthy first movement cadenza, complete with timpani accompaniment, is presumably an arrangement of Beethoven’s own cadenza for his piano transcription of the concerto; several violinists from Eugène Ysaÿe to Christian Tetzlaff have arranged the piano cadenza for violin and timpani, but there is no confirmation of this in the booklet notes. The orchestral support and recorded sound are outstanding.

There’s yet another fine recording of the wonderful Schubert String Quintet in C major, D956, this time by the Takacs Quartet with Ralph Kirshbaum on the always-reliable Hyperion label (CDA67864). Written just a few months before the composer’s death in 1828, it’s a work of great range and depth and one which always seems to draw the best out of its performers. I reviewed an excellent CD of the same work by the Arcanto Quartett just last November, and this latest issue is of an equally high standard. Schubert’s Quartettsatz, the String Quartet Movement in C minor, D703, completes the disc; it was the only completed movement of a string quartet both started and abandoned in 1820.