Through a series of recordings with Naxos www.naxos.com , JoAnn Falletta www.joannfalletta.com and the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra www.bpo.org are promoting the music of another composer
who suffered at the hands of Nazi persecution, the Austrian composer, Marcel
Tyberg. A composer, conductor and organist, Marcel Tyberg (1893-1944) was born
into a musical family in Vienna. His father was a violinist and his mother a
pianist and colleague of Artur Schnabel. Little seems to be known of Tyberg’s
formal musical training. http://orelfoundation.org/index.php/composers/article/marcel_tyberg
Through his family’s friendship with the renowned violinist
Jan Kubelik, Marcel Tyberg became a lifelong friend of Jan’s son, the conductor
Rafael Kubelik. In 1927, following the death of his father, Tyberg moved with
his mother to the Croatian town of Abbazia (Opatija), then part of Italy. Here
he taught harmony, played the organ in various churches, conducted, and under
the pseudonym "Till Bergmar" composed popular dance music.
Tyberg's Piano Sonata
No. 1 (1920) and his Symphony No. 1
(1924) both date from his time in Vienna but his Symphony No. 2 was premiered by Rafael Kubelik with the Czech
Philharmonic in the early 1930s. Tyberg's Symphony No. 3 was completed just
before his detention and given to his friend, Milan Mihich, in order to save it
from the war.
When the Nazis occupied northern Italy, it was revealed that
one of Tyberg’s great grandfathers had been Jewish. Despite this rather remote
Jewish connection, Tyberg was arrested and deported to the death camps of San
Sabba and Auschwitz. It was long believed that he had died in transit, but the
date of his death was recorded in Auschwitz as 31 December 1944.
JoAnn Falletta and the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra have
already recorded Tyberg’s Symphony No. 3
together with his Piano Trio played
by Michael Ludwig (violin), Roman Mekinulov (cello) and Ya-Fei Chuang (piano).
This new release from
Naxos features Tyberg’s Second Symphony,
again with JoAnn Falletta and the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and Second Piano Sonata played Fabio Bidini
www.fabiobidini.com
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| 8.572822 |
The Symphony No.2 in F minor (1929) opens with an Allegro appassionato that has a pulsating, galloping rhythmic opening. This develops into a lively, open theme before being subjected to a variety of moods, sometimes ponderous and dark then dramatic. Although it is not without a certain Dvořákian character and certainly looks back to the 19th century, it is a very attractive, engaging movement.
In the Adagio: Langsam
– Andante con moto there is a thoughtful, wistful Adagio:Langsam still with
an underlying rhythmic plodding pulse. The Andante con moto brings a more
romantic sweep to the music, still at times held back by the plodding
underlying rhythm. The music builds to a short climax before falling back to a
rather Brahmsian quieter section, before another short climax that leads to a
tranquil coda with solo violin adding a sweet toned contribution.
Horns answer the rest of the orchestra in the opening of the
Scherzo: Allegro vivace con spirit
before timpani rolls introduce a lively, rhythmic melody, somewhat reminiscent
of Mendelssohn in the more flowing passages. The music builds to a rustic
dance, again with overtones of Dvořák, before the trio section introduces a
lighter, rhythmic, country dance that is alternated with a more flowing version
of it. When the scherzo returns, Tyberg’s attractive orchestration throws the
theme all around the various parts of the orchestra before leading to a
rumbustious climax and a sudden end.
The Preludium und
Fuge: Adagio molto – Allegro assai opens slowly in the cellos before the
gently swaying theme is taken up across the strings. If Tyberg looks to the 19th
century models for the first three movements, then the fourth uses a baroque
idea of Preludium und Fugue creating a noble adagio. When the allegro assai
fugue arrives, it is brilliantly played by JoAnn Falleta and the Buffalo
Philharmonic . Horn calls sound out as the music grows. Eventually a terrific
fugue is played by the strings with the horns still sounding out. The full
orchestra rises to a broader section with muted brass and woodwind throwing the
fugue theme around. As the music heads to the coda, tam tam and full orchestra
deliver a glorious coda with brass fanfares.
This symphony may hark back to the 19th century
but it is an attractive work, finely orchestrated and full of invention. The
recording from the Kleinhaus Music Room, Buffalo, New York, USA is excellent.
Tyberg’s Piano Sonata
No.2 in F sharp minor (1934) opens boldly with dramatic chords in a very
unsettled Allegro con fuoco before being
subjected to a number of variations. There is some fine playing from Fabio
Bidini. The Adagio, non troppo ma sempre
maestoso introduces a languid theme, quiet and withdrawn, with some
delicacy and sensitive playing. At times there is a gentle rocking melody but
the music soon rises to a series of climaxes where there is rich piano writing
before a quiet coda. This is a beautiful movement with Bidini drawing on all
the subtle shifts and dynamics.
The Scherzo: Allegro
vivace, sempre assai energico opens full of lively bouncing rhythms with
dynamics expertly controlled by Bidini. There is a lovely subdued central
section before the return of the opening theme. A series of bell like chords
open the Finale: Sostenuto e maestoso –
Allegro non troppo ma sempre con passion before a melody that sounds
familiar in that it resembles the main theme from the Vivace of Rachmaninov’s
Piano Concerto No.1 in F sharp minor Op.1, though obviously just a coincidence.
It is also rather Schumannesque in places and, after a series of variations, leads
to a strong coda.
The sonata, which is well recorded, is a highly attractive
work that I am likely to return to often. There are informative booklet notes.
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