I have always loved the music of this composer from the days
when I bought an HMV Melodyia LP of his Fourth Symphony and Violin Concerto. My
blog of 6th June 2012 gives more information about this composer http://theclassicalreviewer.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/weinberg-forgotten-composer.html,
as does the Weinberg website www.music-weinberg.net.
Whilst the earlier Olympia recordings of the symphonies are
no longer available I am glad to see that Chandos are continuing their releases
of these works.
Equally exciting is
the release on two CDs of Weinberg’s six piano sonatas by Divine Art Recordings www.divine-art.co.uk with
that fine pianist Murray McLachlan.
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These recordings form part of a Russian Piano Music Series covering,
so far, such composers as Shostakovich, Myaskovsky, Kabalevsky, Shchedrin,
Rebikov, Gliere, Lyapunov, Arensky, Rachmaninov, Prokofiev and Mussorgsky.
The first of these
two Weinberg CDs has the Piano Sonatas No’s 1, Op.5 (1940), No.2, Op.8 (1942)
and No.3, Op.31 (1946) as well as the 17 Easy Pieces, Op.24 (1946).
The 21 year old composer’s First Piano Sonata is remarkably forward looking in its dissonance.
It opens with strongly dissonant chords before the entry of a quiet theme that
is almost atonal in its freedom, before developing into a richer, more complex
climax before a quiet close. The allegretto is light and jolly with a slightly manic
Shostakovich sound.
The andantino is quietly flowing, dissonant melody whilst the
allegro molto finale that concludes this work is full of energy. Murray
McLachlan is excellent here, always maintaining the flow and line of the music.
Weinberg’s Second Sonata
starts with a driven allegro. There is less obvious dissonance in this sonata,
more subtlety. The central section, whilst more gentle has a forward drive which
never seems to stop. The allegretto, though with a similar momentum, nevertheless
does provide some respite after the first movement.
The third movement is a gentle adagio, freely flowing across
various keys. This is an entrancing movement, somewhat mysterious in its feel
and wonderfully played. The vivace finale, a rondo, is again very tonally free,
whilst at one point quoting from Haydn, something I hadn’t noticed until
reading Per Skans note. There is some formidable playing in this work.
By the three movement Third
Sonata there seems to be an established Weinberg style, free flowing, with
free use of tonality. The andante tranquillo is certainly such a movement. The
dissonance is still there but subsumed into the overall sweep of the movement. There
is more formidable playing from Murray McLachlan. In the wrong hands this music
could lose the flow, momentum and sense of structure but McLachlan maintains
all of this superbly.
The adagio sounds folk music inspired and is picked out
slowly, along with a dissonant accompaniment. This is another of Weinberg’s
strange slow movement creations. In the moderato con moto, Shostakovich does
seem to loom, yet Weinberg manages to enlarge on his theme and brings something
new and personal.
The 17 Easy Pieces
are a set of charming miniatures lasting between 13 seconds and 2 minutes, which
cannot be easy to play. More it is their simple charm that the title must refer
to. There are attractive pieces such as the Bach like The Nightingale, a quite beautiful little The Sick Doll, an effective little Melancholy Waltz, The
Goldfish that threatens to turn into London Bridge is Falling Down, and the
longest piece The Dolls that is quite
lovely. You can almost imagine Weinberg sitting at his piano improvising these
pieces. McLachlan certainly gives that impression.
The second of these
two Weinberg CDs has the Piano Sonatas No’s 4 Op.56, (1955), 5, Op.58, (1956)
No.6, Op.73 (1960).
By the Fourth Sonata
(1955) it is clear that Weinberg has reached a mature style. There is subtlety
and depth in the first movement allegro with the material superbly developed
with a greater sense of form. The shorter allegro second movement proves the
perfect foil for the opening movement. There is restraint in the forward
movement of the music, contrasted with some dense and formidable passages
perfectly handled by Murray McLachlan.
The adagio is a thoughtful, long drawn melody that conjures
up a stillness and withdrawn emotion. This is a wonderful movement played with great
feeling and control. McLachlan’s playing has great emotional substance. The
somewhat folksy finale allegro leads this sonata to a dynamic conclusion with
challenging writing. If this was folk inspired then it soon develops into a
much more complex piece before a quiet ending. I love this work and will return
to it often.
The three movement Fifth
Sonata is perhaps not as structurally perfect as the fourth but, in its own
way, just as fine. The allegro opens powerfully before one realises that it is
turning into a long developed passacaglia before eventually being overlaid in
the form of a canon, developing into complex writing that is still based on the
opening theme. Murray McLachlan keeps the overall line of this music superbly, despite
its complexities.
An andante separates the two outer movements in music that
is, again, reserved and withdrawn, sustaining a tentative melody over some ten
minutes. There is great sensitivity of playing before the movement ends
ambiguously. The allegretto finale has a delicate and playful opening until it
develops into a formidable and complex section before falling back again. It
builds up again but with less force before a pianissimo close. Just as with the
first movement this is a wonderfully created flow of melody.
Weinberg’s finale piano sonata, the Sixth Sonata, is a much smaller, two movement work. The adagio has
an anguished opening with bell like chords. It is obvious just how far Weinberg
had progressed since his early first sonata. There is a pause before the second
subject that is more restrained and gentle, leading to a section where the
music ruminates on a little rhythmic motif which soon ceases before the
restrained theme returns.
A lightly sprung allegro molto introduces the second
movement which works its way through fugal passages reaching a tremendous
climax. What terrific playing there is from Murray McLachlan.
Murray McLachlan is ideal in this repertoire, playing with
both sensitivity and bravura. These former Olympia recordings are excellent, with excellent
piano tone and there are first rate notes by the late Per Skans. These beautifully
produced discs are thoroughly recommended.
See also:
See also:
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