Almost from the time the professional music business was established in this country, the expected route for success has been for artists to head off to the larger market down south and set up shop there. Canadians from Percy Faith and Maynard Ferguson to Joni Mitchell and Teresa Stratas effectively followed that formula. But today, as American musical hegemony lessens and modern communications almost literally shrink the world, musicians, especially those who play improvised music, can demonstrate that a permanent home in Europe is as beneficial as becoming an American resident. Take Vancouver-born Joe Williamson for instance. On Weird Weapons 2 (Creative Sources CS197 CD www.creativesourcesrec.com), the bassist, who now lives in Stockholm after stints in London, Berlin and Montreal, is matched with German guitarist Olaf Rupp and drummer Tony Buck, an Australian turned Berliner, for two extended selections of intuitive improv. No lounge guitar trio, this band creates sonic sparks that almost visibly fly every which way. Rupp’s constant, intense strumming often elasticizes into slurred fingering as Buck buzzes drumstick on cymbals, pops his toms, door-knocks his snares and rattles and reverberates any number of bells, chains and wood blocks for additional textures. Keeping the improvisations grounded is Williamson, who splays, stretches or saws upon his instrument’s strings, scroll and body wood when he’s not creating added continuum by slapping out pedal point resonation. On the nearly 30-minute Buckram, the three reach such a level of polyphonic coherence that the cumulative textures seem to ooze into every sonic space. Moving to the forefront then fading back into the ensemble, Rupp pinpoints jagged licks that eventually accelerate to stentorian multi-string runs, as Buck concentrates pitter-pattering and agitatedly clanking into tremolo whacks. Finally, a climax is reached, as Williamson’s multi-string variations, consisting of col legno strokes vibrating with a near-electronic pulse, push the three to a decisive conclusion.

Less than 300 kilometres southwest, in Copenhagen, lives drummer Kevin Brow, an Orangeville native and part of the trio on Hopscotch (ILK 179 CD www.ilkmusic.com), completed by Italian-born tenor saxophonist Francesco Bigoni, another Copenhagen resident, plus local guitarist Mark Solborg. Paced and cooperative, Brow’s rhythmic sensibility here is like Williamson’s on the other CD. Brow’s backbeat alternately advances or bonds the others’ extended techniques during ten notable improvisations. With Solberg’s solos including distorted power chords with rock music antecedents plus organ-like echoes, and Bigoni’s bitten-off reed strategies accelerating to intense, repetitive phraseology, the drummer’s playing creates thematic definition. Case in point is Almost. Before Brow’s hard thwacks define a conclusive tipping point where unison harmonies from the guitarist and saxist advance to similar legato patterning, the variegated strategy from each differs markedly. Solberg’s licks are trebly and echoing, while Bigoni’s behind-the-beat tones split and squeak. The percussionist can also express himself more forcefully as he does with carefully positioned press rolls and flanges on Brainwashing. Meantime the saxophonist appears to be exploring the limits of his instrument with intense vibrato, lip bubbling sprays and pressurized staccato tones, as serpentine guitar strokes harden into splayed fingering plus crunching, echoing twangs, leavened by a bit of amp buzz. Bigoni’s tone alternates among magisterial reed quivers, speech-like inflection and legato lines, which helps define the remaining tracks’ scope(s).

Over in the United Kingdom, the band Splice consists of two British players – trumpeter Alex Bonney and drummer Dave Smith – plus French reedist Robin Fincker who has lived in London for a dozen years, and Montreal-born Pierre Alexandre Tremblay. Tremblay, who plays bass guitar and electronics, has taught at England’s University of Huddersfield since 2005 and oversees its electronic music studio. Perhaps that’s why this disc is entitled Lab (Loop Records 1013 www.loopcollective.org). It certainly has a more extensive electronic palate than the others. Although slippery and shuddering bass guitar runs are heard infrequently throughout, Tremblay’s electronics maintain the sometimes opaque methodical pulsations which pervade the disc. A track such as The Wanderer is smooth and bouncy, built on Fincker’s chromatic clarinet runs, Bonney’s trumpet obbligatos, a shuffle drum beat and electroacoustic colouring that could be Arabic music played on an accordion. The blurry wave forms which elsewhere quiver alongside, process or complement instrumental textures such as alphorn-like vibration from Fincker’s tenor saxophone, Bonney’s brassy or muted asides and drum pops and backbeat, are more upfront on Luna Verde. Stacked horn lines, sliding bass guitar licks and percussion rebounds are accompanied by processed textures that come in-and-out of aural focus. This crackling interface concretely outlines the theme statement from the harmonized horns.

Not surprisingly of course, the stateside lure still exists and is beneficial for some musicians. Vancouver-born, Toronto-educated pianist Kris Davis, has, after a decade in New York, become one of the go-to musicians there. While the Canadians on the other CDs may provide the backdrop for improvisations, Davis not only plays on Novela (Clean Feed CF 232 CD www.cleanfeed-records.com), by Tony Malaby’s nine-piece band, but wrote all the arrangements and conducts. A career retrospective for Malaby, Davis recasts six of his original compositions to show off his tenor and soprano saxophone prowess. The extended Remolino, for example, is given a Mexicali flavour by intertwined horn lines broadened with Dan Peck’s harsh tuba snorts and drummer John Hollenbeck’s press rolls. Dramatic chording from the pianist introduces a Malaby soprano saxophone solo which reaches an elevated level of pressurized multiphonics before downshifting to moderato timbres in unison with the other horns. Before a climax of piano key plinks and a brass fanfare, the saxophonist winds his way among clanks and scrapes from the percussionist and trombonist Ben Gerstein’s brays as close harmonies are produced by alto saxophonist Michael Attias, baritone saxophonist Andrew Hadro and Joachim Badenhorst’s bass clarinet. Carefully shaping arrangements to expose distinct sound tinctures like xylophone rhythms or plunger trombone friction, Davis makes Floral and Herbaceous another highpoint. Following trumpeter Ralph Alessi’s lead and ending with a crescendo of staccato noises, the tune plays out as a duel between Malaby’s distinctive soprano reed bites and a sequence of more muted tones from the baritone saxophonist.

Whether it’s as co-leader, arranger, teacher or improviser, each of these Canadians appears to have found the proper foreign context for his or her musical development.

MatadoR - The Songs of Leonard Cohen
Patricia O’Callaghan
Marquis 81417

I was delighted when I got the nod from the DISCoveries editor to go ahead and review Patricia O’Callaghan’s newest album, MatadoR – The Songs of Leonard Cohen. Not only have I marvelled at O’Callaghan’s immense talent over the years, but I had the pleasure of attending her thrilling performance titled “Patricia O’Callaghan Sings Leonard Cohen” at last year’s Global Cabaret Festival. And I was very curious to see how it all would translate to disc.

Generally, it’s next to impossible to recreate the intimacy, immediacy, spontaneity and energy of a live performance on CD. I was utterly transfixed, watching and listening to O’Callaghan on stage. I was less so, listening to the recording; but the more I listened, the more I was drawn in. O’Callaghan’s voice (she trained as a soprano at the University of Toronto) is as rich, pliable and luminous as ever, interpreting Cohen’s songs with tremendous tenderness and a mature, worldly sensitivity and insight. Yes, the soprano nails Cohen!

It doesn’t hurt, either, that she has members of the Gryphon Trio backing her up on several tracks, as well as the fine jazz pianist, David Restivo; their collective work on Alexandra Leaving is particularly beautiful. And bassist Andrew Downing’s gorgeous arrangements are outstanding on If It Be Your Will and Anthem. But, for me, the jewel is O’Callaghan’s take on Dance Me to the End of Love. Translated into Spanish, it’s pure joy and downright sexy.

O’Callaghan co-produced MatadoR. She can be very proud of this project.

Concert Note: Patricia O’Callaghan is featured in Masques of Love – a cabaret presentation by Toronto Masque Theatre, February 3 and 4.

ChaCha
Michele Mele
Independent (www.michelemele.com)

With the release of ChaCha, composer and vocalist Michele Mele clearly illustrates not only her ineffable sweetness of soul, but a gamin wit, impeccable phrasing and mastery of the delicious musical hook. On this, her fifth (and finest) recording, Mele shines on keyboards and her pure, distinctive vocals are in full force and gorgeously recorded. For this project, brilliant producer and guitarist Greg Kavanagh has assembled a tight, groovy cadre of A-List players, including Michael Stewart on sax, Bill McBirnie on flute and guitarist Lou Bartolomucci (notably on Cabana Boy and Answer Every Question). The material on ChaCha is a tasty mix of brand new songs and several previously recorded tunes that have been given a complete (and delightful) re-imagining, such as the charming Tree Frogs (originally written for her then ten-year-old son in celebration of his love of amphibians).

Mele is a natural, highly connective and communicative performer and writer, who made quite a splash recently with her hit one-woman show “Naked on the Rocks.” Her appealing Astrud Gilberto-ish vocals are a refreshing change from the over-wrought divas all too frequently holding sway on the airwaves and in the clubs. The title track is irresistible – rhythmic, clever and sexy – and the Latin sizzler Hold Back Trigger is another stand-out, as is the lilting bossa, One Thing for Sure. Check out Michael Stewart`s potent solo on Stop Talking. This is a gem of a recording – the optimum soundtrack for a languid Sunday afternoon with the New York Times, a mimosa and the perfect company.

Onionoise
The Vegetable Orchestra
Transacoustic Research/Monkey TRES008 (www.vegetableorchestra.org)

With popular concern about fresh and organic produce as its height, Vienna’s 12-piece Vegetable Orchestra (VO) should garner kudos from environmentalists. That’s because all of the instruments the members play are painstakingly fashioned from fresh vegetables.

More than gimmickry – although most of these sound legumes can only be played once and are then turned into soup for the concert audience – these compositions and improvisations are part of the Viennese tradition of sonic experimentation that dates back to Schoenberg and Webern; although it’s more bio-degradable. Unlike self-contained serialism however, the VO’s repertoire draws from pop, concrète, noise, improvised and electronic music. Krautrock, for instance, approximates the sound of that noisy genre with distorted cabbage scrapings. Meanwhile Le Massacre du Printemps reaches a level of timbral intensity by layering repetitive percussion from a pumpkin bass drum, an eggplant clatterer, a carrot xylophone and a bell pepper hooter with parsley, leek and celeriac crackles that seem to emanate from a frying pan. The mélange finale showcases an opposing lyrical airiness propelled by radish bass flute and carrot flute.

There are other tasty interludes of sound mulching. They include Regen which suggests electronic oscillations, actually created by leek membrane pulsations as well as French bean crackles processed through a bean-tip pickup; and Brazil, whose swinging Latin-American-like maraca motion plus percussion and castanet-like resonations result from a bean shaker, eggplant clapper, celeriac bongo and leek pulses. The tune even ends with some swaying vamps from carrot xylophone and calabash bass.

High quality rather than high caloric sounds, it seems somehow appropriate that this sonic salad is served up on a CD, which after all is the same shape as a dinner plate.

In 2002 Radio Netherlands Music issued the first volume of an Anthology of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, a 13-CD box of live performances from 1935 to 1950. Five future volumes were promised that would cover performances, decade by decade, to the end of the century. The projected series is now complete with Volume Six containing great performances from 1990 to 2000 (RCO 11004, 14 CDs). Artists in that first volume included Walter, Monteux, Ansermet, Mengelberg, van Beinum, Abendroth, Jochum, Karajan, Kleiber, Boult, Klemperer, Furtwangler and others, all of whom were deceased by 1990. The works were from the standard concert repertoire of the day. This final edition brings us pretty well up to date with performances by eminent maestros and soloists of the decade. The editors who selected performances for inclusion have done well as there are no second rate renditions to be heard in any of the 37 individual works presented. Collectors may be relieved to know that there is no Beethoven Fifth or Ninth, (but there is a Sixth with Sawallisch); no Brahms symphonies, no Le Sacre du Printemps or Bolero to add yet another version to a balanced collection. There are two Shostakovich symphonies, the First (Solti) and the Fifth (Kurt Sanderling); an Elgar Second (Previn); an overwhelming Mahler Fifth (Tennstedt); Sibelius Fourth (Berglund); Bluebeard’s Castle (Ivan Fischer) and scores conducted by Chailly, Dutoit, Skrowaczewski, Jansons, Flor, de Leeuw, Fournet, de Waart, Boulez, Harnoncourt, Gardiner, Rozhdestvensky, Berio, Haitink and others. Composers include Frank Martin, Dutilleux, Lutosławski, Ravel, Zemlinsky, Bartok and the list goes on. Check Archivmusic.com for the complete contents … but buy it in Canada where it’s cheaper. Not only are the performances exemplary but the recorded sound is of audiophile quality throughout, aided by the special acoustics of the Concertgebouw. The Dutch engineers have the art of recording this orchestra down pat. An impeccable, if somewhat esoteric (but not for long), collection.

Although it has been 22 years since his death in 1989, Herbert von Karajan’s entire recorded repertoire, beginning in 1939 with Tchaikovsky’s “Pathétique” symphony, is still available. He recorded the nine Beethoven symphonies four times; for EMI in the early 1950s and then a new cycle every decade with his Berlin Philharmonic for DG. When that final nine was issued, the critics had a field day comparing and twittering about the felicities of movement versus movement of the three DG cycles. His interpretations did evolve through the years culminating in the 1982-4 performances which is the cycle chosen for Beethoven: Karajan, a 13-CD set of all Karajan’s Beethoven repertoire with the Berlin Philharmonic (DG 4779830). Also included are all the overtures, all the concertos – piano (the first with Eschenbach, and Weissenberg for the rest), violin (Mutter) and the triple (Zeltser, Mutter and Ma); Wellington’s Victory; the Missa Solemnis; the Grosse Fuge, and a couple of short pieces without opus numbers. Only Fidelio is missing. This is an exceptional collection offering superb performances in state-of-the-art re-mastering at an absurdly low price that would have been unimaginable just a few years ago when, if bought separately, these discs would have left the buyer with little change from $300.

I must add that my very favourite recording, by anyone, of Beethoven’s Symphony No.9 is the Karajan/Vienna Philharmonic performance recorded in the Musikverein under very difficult, near impossible conditions in 1947. The resourceful, now legendary producer, Walter Legge, was the driving force who actually did make it happen. The astute Legge engaged Elizabeth Schwarzkopf, Elizabeth Hongen, Julius Patzak and Hans Hotter. It was by this recording that the world first heeded the young (not of the old school) Herbert von Karajan. This outstanding performance is a celebration, a triumphant and positive statement of what Beethoven is all about. (EMI CD 0724347687822).

EMI has been assembling their recordings of particular musicians, instrumentalists, ensembles and conductors and issuing performer-dedicated packages at super-budget prices. Sir John Barbirolli – The Great EMI Recordings (EMI 5099945776724) is a ten-CD set containing 36 of his best performances, conducting seven different orchestras, dating from 1957 to 1969. Collectors will be especially thrilled with these selections as Barbirolli was a superlative musician and one of the great conductors of the century. Many of these are not only his best but, arguably, the best available versions of many repertoire staples. The 1957 recordings are all with the Halle Orchestra: the Elgar Cello Concerto with Andre Navarra; Ravel’s Ma Mère l’Oye Suite; Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No.4; Vaughan Williams “London” symphony; Bax’s Garden of Fand; and Butterworth’s A Shropshire Lad. Some of the later recordings included here are La Mer, La Valse, Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings, Mahler’s Symphony No.5 and Elgar’s Symphony No.1 and Enigma Variations. Janet Baker is the soloist in Les Nuits d’été by Berlioz, Mahler’s Rückert-Lieder and Elgar’s Sea Pictures. Brahms, Sibelius and Puccini are also represented. The sound is remarkably fresh.

Sir Charles Mackerras (1925-2010) was an Australian musician who left for England in 1947 to become a conductor after a jaunt as principal oboist in the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. He played oboe and cor anglais in the Sadler’s Wells orchestra and later, on a scholarship from the British Council, he studied conducting with Václav Talich in Prague. He was enamored with, and became an authority on, Czech repertoire, in addition to being a respected interpreter of music from every period. EMI’s box Charles Mackerras – Master of Orchestral Texture (5099909818927) has a delightful collection of Mackerras specialties including Mozart’s Symphony No.40 in G Minor, Dvorak’s Seventh, Janáček’s Sinfonietta, Mahler’s Fifth, Delius’ Paris – The Song of a Great City, Elgar’s Enigma Variations and some shorter showpieces including two Mackerras arrangements of Sir Arthur Sullivan: the Cello Concerto and the ballet Pineapple Poll. By the way, there is also a budget set of acclaimed performances of the nine Beethoven symphonies with Mackerras conducting the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic from EMI (CFP 7243575751 5 CDs).

John Blow - Venus and Adonis

Amanda Forsythe; Tyler Duncan; Mireille Lebel; Boston Early Music Festival; Paul O'Dette; Stephen Stubbs

CPO 777 614-2

The Boston Early Music Festival and the German Cpo label have successfully collaborated on five recording projects of early opera so far, including Conradi’s Ariadne, Charpentier’s Acteon, two by Lully - Thésée and Psyché - and this, John Blow’s little-performed masterpiece from the early 1680s, Venus and Adonis. It’s a powerful and economical piece, full of drama, humour, action and, ultimately, deep poignancy.

The performance, co-directed by the legendary lutenists Paul O’Dette and Stephen Stubbs, is as close to perfect as one could hope for. Tempos are well-chosen and the small baroque band and chorus are lively and colourful and really dive into the score with emotional intensity. BEMF has a strong Canadian connection and the two Canadian soloists – mezzo Mireille Lebel (Cupid) and baritone Tyler Duncan (Adonis) – both acquit themselves with a combination of beautiful sound and superb attention to text. The third soloist, American soprano Amanda Forsythe, is less appealing, not for lack of drama, but because her sound tends toward the relentlessly steely, not well-suited to the character of Venus. She more than redeems herself, however, in a stunning performance of Blow’s Welcome, ev’ry guest, one of three additional pieces at the end of the recording.

The accompanying booklet is packed full of interesting essays, biographies of everyone involved (even bassoonist Dominic Teresi, of Tafelmusik), full texts and translations. The photos of the original BEMF production of Venus and Adonis give some idea of what a special project this was. How lucky for us that it was recorded so exquisitely for posterity.

Concert Notes: Mireille Lebel can be heard with Tafelmusik in Koerner Hall performances of Handel’s Hercules January 19 to 22. Tyler Duncan performs in Mozart’s Requiem with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra January 18 to 22 and will give the premiere of Jeffrey Ryan’s The Whitening of the Ox with New Music Concerts at the Enwave Theatre on January 29.

Handel - Streams of Pleasure

Karina Gauvin; Marie-Nicole Lemieux; Il Complesso Barocco; Alan Curtis

Naïve V 5261

With the exception of Hercules, Alexander Balus and Theodora, the Handel oratorios on this disc clearly mark him as an Old Testament composer (in contrast with his contemporary, New Testament composer J.S. Bach). Handel composed oratorios almost exclusively in his later years and his choice of Old Testament historias such as Belshazzar, Susanna, Judas Maccabeus, Joseph and his Brethren, Joshua and Solomon offer every bit of dramatic variety as the operas he composed in his earlier career, albeit without the staging.

Just as in his operas, the oratorios offer many an opportunity to showcase both sopranos and contraltos through the use of stirring arias and duets. “Streams of Pleasure” indeed, with arias such as Crystal streams in murmurs flowing (Susanna) sung gorgeously by Karina Gauvin in all its sensuous beauty, contrasting brilliantly with the fiery Marie-Nicole Lemieux’s Fury with red sparkling eyes from Alexander Balus. Both sing with the warmest tenderness in the recording’s title love duet from Theodora and add a most regal tone in the more contrapuntal Welcome as the dawn (Solomon).

In the solo arias, both singers exploit the da capo form to the fullest with supremely virtuosic trills and ornamentations on the second round. Complesso Barocco’s superb ability to shine whilst still allowing the fullest expression of the singer is demonstrated best in the sighing pathos of violin and descending continuo parts that highlight the grief and resignation in My father (Hercules). An exquisite addition to one’s collection of Handel’s vocal music.

Concert Note: Karina Gauvin is featured in Toronto Symphony Orchestra performances of Britten’s Les Illuminations February 22 to 23 at Roy Thomson Hall.

Bach

Daniel Taylor; Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra; Jeanne Lamon

Analekta AN 2 9878

Daniel Taylor joins Tafelmusik for two selections on their 78th recording, performing two of Bach’s four cantatas for solo alto voice. Both on texts by Darmstadt court poet, Georg Christian Lehms, BWV54, Widerstehe doch der Sünde, is from Bach’s Weimar period while the other, BWV170, Vergnügte Ruh, beliebte Seelenlust, was composed and performed in 1726 at the Thomaskirche in Leipzig. While in the exhortation to “resist sin” in Cantata 54 Bach provides a dramatic struggle complete with harmonic discord and a chromatic fugue, Cantata 170 focuses on the peace of a promised “delightful rest” in heaven. Rather than voice strictly accompanied by continuo, there is much interest in the interplay between voice, strings and particularly organ. Taylor maintains a reverential character throughout, even in the dramatic moments, focusing instead on the calm and steadfast reassurance of faith with superb tonal control that never sacrifices its sublime beauty.

The Tafelmusik orchestra is in fine form along with director Jeanne Lamon, violin and John Abberger, oboe, who are featured respectively in the Suite in A minor for violin and strings, BWV1067 and the Concerto for oboe and violin in C minor, BWV1060. The middle adagio cantabile movement in the latter allows the two soloists to engage in an exquisite musical exchange. All perform with deftness, poise and grace worthy of Bach’s enduring artistry.

Gluck - Ezio

Max Emanuel Cencic; Ann Hallenberg; Sonia Prina; Il Complesso Barocco; Alan Curtis

Virgin Classics 50999 07092923

Gluck is often styled an operatic reformer, but he composed many successful examples in the earlier opera seria style in which virtuosic da capo arias alternated with simple recitatives. In the year 1750 he selected texts by Pietro Metastasio of Rome, partly because Metastasio specialized in classical themes and partly because his librettos were admired by composers and performers alike.

Ezio is set in Rome after the title character, a Roman general, has defeated Attila the Hun, promptly arousing the jealousy of Emperor Valentiniano III. An intense romantic intrigue is grafted by Metastasio onto the historical background.

From the start, Metastasio’s words vary between heart-felt and lengthy arias and quick-fire exchanges during the recitatives. This is apparent in Act One, Scene Two when Ezio, Massimo and Fulvia reveal the initial romantic intrigue within the plot in a very short space of time before Ezio devotes an aria to pleading with Fulvia to be loyal to him.

Metastasio has created characters who are contradictory and flawed: Valentiniano is virtuous but at the same time he is cowardly and credulous, while Ezio is courageous but lacks a sense of caution. This is the backdrop against which Gluck composed his opera while Gluck had not yet himself settled in Vienna.

For all these problems and challenges, the opera lover can settle down to a complex but rewarding work, aided by Bruce Alan Brown’s comprehensive and explanatory notes.

Mozart - Piano Concertos 6, 8 & 9

Angela Hewitt; Orchestra da Camera di Mantova

Hyperion CDA67840

Has it really been 26 years since Angela Hewitt made the world sit up and take notice as the winner of the Toronto International Bach Competition? Since then, the Ottawa native (now based in London) has gone on to achieve international fame through her interpretations of such diverse composers as Bach, Couperin, Ravel and Messiaen (himself one of the judges in the competition). This newest Hyperion release features three early piano concertos by Mozart, the nucleus of a proposed project to record all 27. Together with the Orchestra da Camera di Mantova, under the leadership of Carlo Fabiano, Hewitt proves that she is as at home with Mozart as she is with music from the baroque or late romantic period. The disc is a gem! Her playing is stylish and elegant, demonstrating well-articulated phrasing and a refined sensitivity to the technical demands, while the 29-member ensemble constitutes a formidable musical partner.

These concertos were all written before Mozart was 22 and, not surprisingly, contain a mood of youthful optimism. Yet the music is not all galanterie. Indeed, for me, the highlight of the recording is surely the slow movement from the Concerto No.9, a work completed in January 1777 for Victoire Jenamy, the daughter of the famed choreographer Jean-Georges Noverre. Here, the sombre and elegiac mood is so perfectly evoked that I can’t help but envision a country churchyard in late autumn, the bare tree branches silhouetted against a grey sky. Sunshine returns with the jubilant finale – among the only concerto movements Mozart wrote in which the soloist begins before the orchestra – thus bringing this pleasing disc to a close. Bravissimo a tutti on a fine performance – we look forward to others in the series.

Liszt Recital

Janina Fialkowska

ATMA ACD2 2641

Canadian pianist of world renown, Janina Fialkowska made an heroic recovery from cancer in 2002 and bravely returned to her brilliant career. Although primarily known for her Chopin interpretations she now surprises us with a full blown Liszt recital. A sensitively selected program of not-so-well-known works of enormous difficulty played with tremendous skill, masculine power, stamina and charming feminine grace would sum up this very successful issue. Interestingly, only two of the pieces are original Liszt compositions. All the others are transcriptions, or rather complete reworkings, of Schubert, Chopin and even Gounod, all propelled into Liszt’s magical sound world.

First an elegant Waltz by Schubert from Soirées de Vienne, greatly extended by Liszt’s cascading fioraturas is dashed off with superb panache. Next comes original Liszt, Benediction de Dieu dans la Solitude, a deeply religious piece that reminds me of the Petrarca Sonnets with most heartfelt and beautifully built up melodies. The “Polish Connection” brings a rarely heard set of six songs by Chopin put into piano settings and dedicated to Liszt’s paramour, Polish princess Carolyne. They include virtuoso mazurkas, tender nocturnes and a wild, stormy finale that thunders along like the Revolutionary Etude.

The final portion of the disc dedicated to Goethe’s Faust is represented by a piano transcription of the second movement (Gretchen) of the Faust Symphony. Fialowska’s sensitive, deeply felt and fully understood performance sounds even better on the piano than with full orchestra. Here one can concentrate on the girlish longings of its simple melody followed by the more menacing themes of Faust. The two in combination build to a passionate climax like a love duet.

A sumptuous paraphrase of the delightful waltz from Gounod’s Faust brings us to a brilliant close. Liszt sums it up by saying that, “in the compass of the piano’s seven octaves it includes the entire scope of the orchestra, and the 10 fingers of a single man suffice to render all the harmonies produced by the concurrence of over a hundred concerted instruments.”

Busoni - Piano Concerto

Roberto Cappello; Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma; Francesco La Vecchia

Naxos 8.572523

Ferruccio Busoni’s gigantic Piano Concerto (1902-1904) is rarely performed in concert due to its lengthy duration (c. 80 minutes), super-human demands on the soloist and the unusual incorporation of an invisible male chorus singing a Hymn to Allah in the finale of the work. It is stylistically unorthodox as well, with the piano cast as more of a commentator on the ongoing symphonic events rather than the usual self-centred protagonist. It has fared well on disc however, with multiple releases following the landmark 1968 performance by the legendary Busoni champion John Ogdon.

The present disc features the rarely recorded Italian pianist Roberto Cappello in a truly spectacular display of the challenging amalgam of power, energy and nobility the score demands. Balances in this production are straightforward, emphasizing the elaborate piano writing with a judicious mixing of the orchestra. The Rome Symphony Orchestra proves itself a proficient partner, though the attention to dynamics and voicing by conductor Francesco La Vecchia is tenuous. To truly appreciate the finesse of Busoni’s orchestration I would recommend the 1989 Telarc recording by pianist Garrick Ohlssohn with Christoph von Dohnányi leading the incomparable Cleveland Orchestra. That being said, at this price one need not be too picky and the soloist is indeed truly magnificent. Thank you Naxos for making this awesome leviathan of a concerto more widely available.

Bruckner - Symphony No.7

Bayerischen Staatsorchester; Kent Nagano

Sony Classical 88697909452

The critic Edouard Hanslick ridiculed Bruckner so much that when he was decorated by the Emperor and asked if there was anything he could do for him, Bruckner naively answered (I paraphrase), “please, Majesty, do something with this Hanslick, he is making my life miserable!” Seriously though, little Bruckner, the Austrian country bumpkin kept writing his symphonies one after another not really caring what the world was thinking about them but by the time he wrote the Symphony No.7 in E major the world was noticing. The rest is history as the rather hackneyed expression goes.

Indeed Bruckner is enjoying a tremendous renaissance these days. What was at one time the sole territory of the great German-Austrian tradition, with venerable old conductors like Klemperer, Celibidache, Schuricht, Wand, Karajan and others is now the property of a new generation no longer German nor old, let alone venerable.

One of these is Kent Nagano and this new recording by Sony Classical makes us listen with renewed interest. It is so fresh and exciting and indeed unpredictable that it is as if we have never heard the symphony before. From the first bars on, where the theme appears as if it has descended from heaven (in fact it came to Bruckner in a dream) with a pianissimo tremolando in the violins generating tension, the first movement builds with a sense of inevitability culminating in a magnificent peroration in the brass. The second, the essence of the work and one of the most beautiful adagios ever written, simply glows and the famous climax with the cymbal crash is overwhelming. The typical Brucknerian scherzo thumps along merrily like Fafner and Fasolt albeit with a sensuous lyrical trio interlude, perhaps reminding us of Fasolt’s love for the goddess Freia.

The finale is always a stumbling block for conductors but with a faster than usual tempo Nagano resolves the problem and the symphony ends in an outburst of glory.

Schoenberg – Orchestral Works

Berliner Philharmoniker; Simon Rattle

EMI Classics 4 57815 2

This fantastic new album juxtaposes three quite different sides of the composer Arnold Schoenberg in superlative performances by Sir Simon Rattle and the Berlin Philharmonic. The earliest of the compositions, the 1907 Chamber Symphony No.1 Op.9, is a crucial work in the composer’s oeuvre, marking his first forays towards an expanded harmonic palette. Though originally conceived for a chamber ensemble of 15 solo instruments, the composer later decided the sound of the five string players was too easily swamped by the wind ensemble and prepared an alternate version (Op.9b) in 1935 incorporating a full string section. Performances of this symphonic version remain quite rare however, and it is quite a treat to have this late Romantic score so convincingly interpreted. The Accompanying Music for a Film Scene Op. 34 was composed in 1930 on commission from his publisher. It is a curious work in that the horrific silent movie scenario Schoenberg had in mind was completely imaginary. Though conceived in his new dodecaphonic style it recalls the compelling expressionistic drama and colourful orchestration of his early atonal works, elements often suppressed in the self-constrained classicism of many of his other serial works. The performance of this nine minute wonder is truly inspired and totally engaging.

Schoenberg turned his hand to orchestrating Brahms’ Piano Quartet in 1937 while exiled in paradise in California with very few opportunities for performances of his own music. A great admirer of Brahms, his approach to the Quartet is for the most part respectful to a fault, featuring lush strings padded with opulent winds. The Berlin string section is truly in its element here and contributes some stunning sonorities. The orchestration of the gypsy-inspired music of the finale is a zany affair, featuring stylistically incongruous xylophone and glockenspiel solos and wonderfully exuberant playing from the orchestra.

Cellist Matt Haimovitz has come up with a terrific double album for his latest release, Suffle.Play.Listen (Oxingale OX2019). Haimovitz, who is no stranger to cross-over and improvisatory playing, has teamed with pianist Christopher O’Riley to record what they describe as “a collaboration that blurs the boundaries between classical and pop.”

CD 1 alternates the five movements of the Vertigo Suite, arranged by O’Riley from Bernard Hermann’s score for the Hitchcock movie of the same name, with four 20th century standard repertoire pieces: Janáček’s Pohádka; Martinů’s Variations on a Slovak Folksong; Stravinsky’s Suite Italienne (after Pulcinella); and Piazzolla’s Le Grand Tango. It’s all terrific stuff and, if anything, it shows just how close top-level film music is to the concert repertoire. CD 2 features O’Riley’s arrangements of songs by the groups Arcade Fire, Radiohead, Cocteau Twins, Blonde Redhead and A Perfect Circle, and by guitarist John McLaughlin. It gets off to an electrifying start with Arcade Fire’s Empty Room (watch a video of the recording session on www.oxingale.com) and is simply full of stunning playing by both performers. There is no mix with standard repertoire here, but it’s not needed: several tracks are strongly reminiscent of the minimalist music of Philip Glass or Steve Reich and again serve to show just how blurred the boundaries between pop and concert repertoire can be. Haimovitz is clearly right at home her, but a great deal of the credit for this outstanding issue must go to O’Riley for his stunning arrangements and playing to match.

London’s Wigmore Hall has long been a leading venue for top-class chamber music, both debut recitals and concerts by established artists. On May 25, 2010, the Russian violinist Alina Ibragimova and the French pianist Cédric Tiberghien gave the third and final recital in their complete Beethoven sonata series that started on October 27, 2009. Released on the Hall’s own label to huge critical acclaim, Beethoven Violin Sonatas Vols.1-3 (WHLive0036, 0041 and 0045) captures the whole series in simply stunning live sound quality; apart from the extended applause at the end of each sonata, there is no hint of audience noise, although you can sense their presence and really feel that special electricity of a live performance in the simply exceptional playing.

Rarely do I play CDs that noticeably increase my pulse rate, but from the opening movement of the Sonata in D Major Op.12 No.1, through a magical “Spring” sonata and a dazzling “Kreutzer” to the final G Major Op.96, this Beethoven playing is as fine as any you will hear. It engages you on an emotional as well as an intellectual level from the outset and never lets go. Everything you could possibly ask for is here in abundance: breathtaking technique; faultless intonation; commitment; passion; tenderness and sensitivity; warmth and richness of tone; wonderful attention to detail; a wide range of colour, nuance, shading and dynamics; perfect balance; two wonderful artists thinking and playing as one. If ever three CDs cried out to be issued in a box set, it’s these. They put you, front row centre, at one of the most thrilling and satisfying Beethoven recitals you will ever hear.

“Smiling faces, furious applause: that’s how this series ended,” said The Times. It’s easy to see – and hear – why.

Mozart’s Prussian Quartets K575, K589 and K590 were all that he managed to complete for an apparent commission for six quartets from King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia in 1789. It’s been a while – 20 years – since the Emerson String Quartet recorded any Mozart quartets, so these Prussian Quartets (Sony 88697935982) are a welcome addition to the catalogue. This is big, warm playing, with the players admitting that they don’t hesitate to use generous vibrato when the emotional nature of the music calls for it. Their playing and interpretation are much in the style of the 1966 Decca recordings by the Weller Quartet, long a favourite of mine, and a masterclass in how to play late Mozart with passion and intensity as well as sensitivity and style. These are wonderful works, and the Emersons never put a foot wrong.

I’m not sure exactly what I was expecting from the new CD of the Cello Concertos by the Argentinean composer Alberto Ginastera (Naxos 8.572372) who died in 1983, but I was still quite taken aback by the two works; for some reason, I had no idea that they would have such an incredibly modernistic sound and form. The jewel case notes tell us that Ginastera “…fused the strong traditional influences of his national heritage with experimental, contemporary and classical techniques” and that’s a perfect description. Soloist Mark Kosower does an outstanding job with extremely difficult and emotionally demanding works and has matching support from Lothar Zagrosek and the Bamburg Symphony Orchestra. Concerto No.1 dates from 1968, although Ginastera revised the score in 1977; the premiere of this version the following year featured the composer’s second wife, cellist Aurora Natola, as soloist. The work uses 12-tone and quarter-tone techniques, and displays an astonishing range of colour and mood. The Concerto No.2, recorded here in a live March 2010 performance, is from 1980, and was written to celebrate the tenth wedding anniversary of Ginastera and Natola. In 2008 Kosower met and played for Ginastera’s widow, shortly before her death early the following year at the age of 85; this CD is dedicated to her memory. In a 1964 programme note, the composer said that “A work which speaks only to the intelligence of man will never reach his heart.” This CD speaks loud and clear – and in a highly individual and effective voice – to both. Mark Kosower has also recorded Ginastera’s Complete Music for Cello and Piano on Naxos (8.570569), a CD that should be well worth tracking down if the performances here are anything to go by.

The Australian-American violinist Adele Anthony has a new CD on her husband Gil Shaham’s Canary Classics label, pairing the Violin Concertos of the Australian composer Ross Edwards and Sibelius (Canary Classics CC09). The Edwards concerto, subtitled “Maninyas,” has firmly established itself on the Australian musical scene, although it was at the centre of a philosophical storm over the future course of Australian music when it first appeared in the late 1980s. “Maninyas” is a word that Edwards coined to describe the new and personal style he was developing, which used rhythmic and chant-like melodies based on sound patterns from the world of the Australian bush. It’s a beautiful work, and one to which Anthony is clearly fully attuned. The Adelaide Symphony Orchestra under Arvo Volmer provides excellent support.

At first sight, the Sibelius may seem to be a bit of an odd partner, but it too was drawn from the influences of the composer’s native soil, and did much to establish an independent voice for Finnish music. It receives a wonderfully satisfying reading from Anthony, who won the ABC Instrumental and Vocal Competition in her native Australia with a performance of this concerto at the tender age of 13. Her affinity for the music and her complete mastery of the technical challenges are evident every inch of the way, and are clearly shared by Volmer, whose own experience with the orchestral works of Sibelius runs deep. This is a performance not to be missed.

Violinist Rachel Podger and violist Jane Rogers have both been astonishingly successful in the world of period performance, and their technical and musical abilities and accomplishments are indisputable. Their latest recital disc (Channel Classics CCS SA 32411) features Duo Sonatas by Mozart and Michael Haydn, Joseph’s younger brother. The two composers were good friends and Mozart’s two sonatas were probably composed to complete a set of six that Michael Haydn was writing for the Archbishop of Salzburg. Podger and Rogers have been playing these two Mozart duos together since they were teenagers, and the playing here is not surprisingly stylish and absolutely top-notch; however, I did find it a bit on the cool side emotionally at times. The first two of Haydn’s four sonatas are included, and while they are not the equal of the Mozart duos, they are delightful works presenting a different set of challenges for the players. A short Menuetto from Mozart’s 12 Duos for 2 Horns rounds out the disc.

Regular readers will no doubt have noticed that my reaction to period performance CDs is quite often rather lukewarm. I’m not sure exactly what it is - perhaps it’s the often transparent sound that many listeners simply love, but which to me too frequently comes across as thin, and not merely pure and clean, or the slightly-held-back performance manner that sometimes seems lacking in any real emotional involvement – but I often feel that the performances lack something and fail to engage me emotionally. For period performance playing that not only sets a very high standard but also draws you into the performances, try listening to the new Naxos CD by Ensemble Vintage Köln of the Handel Complete Violin Sonatas (Naxos 8.572245), featuring Ariadne Daskalakis on baroque violin, Rainer Zipperling on viola da gamba and baroque cello and Gerald Hambitzer on harpsichord. The Handel violin sonatas have been the subject of much research concerning their authenticity, and this disc presents all of the works now credited to the composer, as well as the four sonatas that were long attributed to him but are now believed to be the work of others. This is an immediately warm and fully engaging disc; Daskalakis is a marvellous soloist, and receives perfect support from Zipperling and Hambitzer. The harpsichord continuo is crisp and lively, and the cello playing simply outstanding – in fact, the interaction is so strong that it sometimes feels as if we are listening to duo sonatas. These are clean, strong, well-balanced and scintillating performances, with impeccable style but also with heart and guts. And there’s the difference: while you’re listening to this CD, you simply can’t imagine these works being played any other way, or being played better. And for me, that’s the true test of period performance – or of any performance, for that matter.

Naxos has issued a fifth volume in their ongoing series of the music of Edvard Grieg, this CD featuring the Music for String Orchestra along with the Lyric Suite for Orchestra Op.54 (Naxos 8.572403). The Malmo Symphony Orchestra is led by the Norwegian conductor Bjarte Engeset.

Most of the music here is well-known and well-loved: Two Elegaic Melodies Op.34; Two Melodies for Strings Op.53; the Holberg Suite; Two Lyric Pieces Op.68; Two Nordic Melodies Op.63. The Lyric Suite was originally the Norwegian Suite, an 1894 orchestration by Anton Seidl of four of Grieg’s Lyric Pieces for Piano; the suite was substantially revised, re-orchestrated and rearranged by Grieg himself in 1904, some six years after Seidl’s death. All of the performances here are warm and suitably idiomatic, with the sound quality up to the usual Naxos high standard.