Early, Classical and Beyond

Mozart – Piano Concertos 9 & 24
Lars Vogt; Orchestre de chamber de Paris
Ondine ODE 1414-2 (naxos.com/Search/KeywordSearchResults/?q=ODE1414-2)

In a sad loss to the music world, in September 2021 at age 51 a remarkable German pianist, conductor and wonderful human being, Lars Vogt passed away leaving behind an impressive career and a worldwide reputation. He appeared as soloist with many major orchestras (including Berlin and Vienna), created his own Music Festival, won numerous awards and had a distinguished discography. Unfortunately, this is his last recording. It has already acquired numerous awards (e.g. Critic’s Choice, Gramophone) and I just couldn’t stop listening. I would include it among my “desert island” discs.

 Vogt had such love for these two Mozart concertos that he felt compelled to record them even in the midst of medical treatments. The two are as different as can be. The first piece, the bold and youthful No.9 in E-flat, Mozart’s first major statement in the genre, has a well-fitting nickname Jeunehomme. It is a concerto of contrasts. After the elegant and optimistic major key first movement, the second is in the relative C minor key and has a tragic, somber atmosphere while the final Rondo is joyful and exuberant.

Out of Mozart’s 27 piano concertos nine are undisputed masterpieces, all of them written in the last two years of his tragically short life. Among these, only two were in a minor key and No.24 is arguably his greatest. The dark C minor chords dominate the first movement which is in a very unusual 3/4 measure, obviously meant to be close to the composer’s heartbeat. (The long virtuoso cadenza at the very end of the first movement was composed by Vogt). The heavenly second movement brings some happiness, but the last one is again in a minor key. Its set of variations on a simple theme brings a virtuoso, brilliant ending.

My feeling concurs with Vogt that “this idea that despite everything things aren’t so horrible in this world… It always plays a role in Mozart.”

Schumann – Dichterliebe
Kristjan Randalu
Berlin Classics 0303295BC (prestomusic.com/classical/products/9609352--dichterliebe)

This recording of Robert Schumann’s Dichterliebe by Kristjan Randalu is one of the most ingenious piano recordings not only of anything Schumann that I have heard but possibly any recent solo piano recording. And there have been many recordings by classical pianists far more celebrated than Randalu. All is explained in the final paragraphs below. 

Dichterliebe (Poet’s Love), a cycle of 16 songs, takes its text from Henrich Heine. It introduces to German song a mingling of sentiment and irony, much as Heine’s poems had done for German verse. This is a world of disillusionment in which nature acts as an adjunct and reflection to a bittersweet love story. 

Perhaps the most immortal interpretation of this song-cycle is baritone Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau and pianist Alfred Brendel’s (Philips, 1986). In this (and every other version) the piano becomes an equal partner with the singer, appearing sometimes as a combatant, sometimes as commentator, and given the long preludes and postludes, the instrument adds an extra dimension to the possibilities of the lieder genre. Randalu makes all of the above happen by masterfully employing his insolent virtuosity and febrile imagination to Dichterliebe.

Randalu’s right hand cadenzas are “the singer” adding “vocalastics” through improvisation, a second layer of colour, liberating the lyrical element of Dichterliebe, and defining the emotional element more precisely. His left-hand acts as combatant and commentator. Together they offer Dichterliebe as Schumann dreamed: “a deeper insight into my inner musical workings.”

Breaking Glass Ceilings – Music by Unruly Women
Rose Wollman; Dror Baitel
SBOVMusic (sbovmusic.com)

Expansions of the classical canon are always welcome. Offering much needed opportunities to infuse new and diverse voices into the ongoing history of this music not only provides revitalized repertoire for potentially warhorse weary ears, but such fresh compositional contributions underscore just how relevant, vibrant and still meaningful an art form classical music remains. All of the above is most certainly the case with violist Rose Wollman and pianist Dror Baitel’s excellent 2024 duo recording, Breaking Glass Ceilings, a collection of fine music from the pens of four women composers: Florence Price, Libby Larsen, Rebecca Clarke and Amy Beach.

Released on Sounds Better on Viola (SBOV) records, Breaking Glass Ceilings showcases not only an exciting program of lesser-known pieces by three deceased and one still-living composer, but traverses style (from the lush Romantic-era inspired sounds of Beach to the contemporary and decidedly American influenced compositions of Larsen), and, perhaps most of all, offers up an exciting new duo set of viola and piano performances with impressive results. 

While described as a musical celebration of “women who were told ‘no’ and did it anyway,” the recording may have an agenda to correct long standing historical omissions but there is nothing didactic here. Instead, what we have is an effervescent contemporary recording featuring excellent interplay and blue-chip musicianship from two accomplished soloists and performers. An excellent addition to the collection for fans of the genre.

Tchaikovsky – Symphonies 4, 5 & 6
Park Avenue Chamber Orchestra; David Bernard
Recursive Classics RC4789671 (chambersymphony.com/recordings)

Conductor David Bernard has organized and conducted orchestras such as this Park Avenue Chamber Symphony, bringing them up to excellence in concerts and recordings recognized by audiences worldwide and to critical acclaim by the likes of the New York Times and Gramophone magazine. There is a photo of Bernard as a young kid getting a conducting lesson from the great Serghiu Chelibidache and I consider this his highest recommendation. By the way, chamber symphony is a misnomer. They are full size and have all the instruments of a complete symphony orchestra.

Tchaikovsky’s late symphonies, the Mighty Three, are cornerstones of musical literature. These are divinely inspired and among the most important and beautiful works of the master (and perhaps of all Russian composers). I have been in love with the passionate Fourth Symphony in F Minor since seeing Rudolf Kempe doing it so beautifully at Massey Hall back in the 60s with the Royal Philharmonic. In the entire symphonic literature there are few other works that test all sections of an orchestra and its individual instruments in technical brilliance: just think of the virtuoso pizzicato third movement that requires the entire string section to be in perfect unison and coordinated like a giant balalaika. These Park Avenue Chamber players are having a lot of fun with it and can be congratulated on passing the test very well. The sunny, optimistic, heroic and arguably the most beautiful of the three, Symphony No.5 in E Minor and the soul-searching gut wrenching but noble and magnificent Symphony No.6 in B Minor, the “Pathetique” are given equally fine performances.

As a distinguishing feature I noticed the conductor’s obvious effort to bring out all that’s written down in the score thus exposing internal voices I’ve not heard before. But what impressed me most is Bernard and his orchestra’s tremendous enthusiasm and love of this music that one can feel. It shows as if it were a live performance which is not easy to achieve. All in all, not a Mravinsky, nor a Karajan, but lovingly played and a sincere noble effort and that could be the most important element.

Prokofiev – Piano Sonatas Vol.II
David Jalbert
ATMA ACD2 2462 (atmaclassique.com/en)

One of the 20th century’s most significant composers, Sergei Prokofiev’s music continues to challenge performers and listeners alike with its thrilling rhythms, complex harmonies and technically demanding scores. An expert pianist himself, Prokofiev’s piano music is notoriously challenging, notably demonstrated in his first two piano concertos.

A prolific writer, Prokofiev composed nine piano sonatas in addition to seven completed operas, seven symphonies, eight ballets, five piano concertos and a number of other large-scale works. Featuring Piano Sonatas 5-7, Canadian pianist David Jalbert gives a commanding survey of Prokofiev’s powerhouse writing for piano in this, his second installment in a series of the complete piano sonatas.

Piano Sonata No.5 in C Major is the least-performed of all Prokofiev’s sonatas, largely due to its cumbersome history. Accused of “formalism” by the Stalin regime in 1948, Prokofiev re-composed the third movement, simplifying his music in accordance with Stalin’s dictates. These unwanted, detrimental changes weakened the structure of the sonata, so much so that Prokofiev issued it a new opus number. Despite these political-compositional accommodations, Jalbert injects great energy and conviction into his interpretation, overcoming any weakness in the score with a strong and captivating performance.

Sonatas six and seven, written in 1940 and 1942 respectively, are known as the War Sonatas (along with Sonata No.8, composed in 1944). These works are at once thrilling, expressive and devastating, effectively distilling the angst and anguish of the time into one piano and two hands. This music needs to be attacked and thrust upon the audience, and Jalbert achieves this with gripping success, making this recording essential listening for pianophiles everywhere.