Ian Hobson and Sinfonia Varsovia provide a really fine performance of Martinů’s early ballet, Stín (‘The Shadow’) on volume two of Toccata Classics Early Orchestral Works series

Bohuslav Martinů (1890-1959) was born in Polička on the Bohemia-Moravia border in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. He studied at the Prague Conservatory before working as a teacher and orchestral violinist before going to Paris in 1923. It was there that he studied with Albert Roussel (1869-1937) and developed an interest in the neo-classical style as well as jazz, later using Czech subjects in the ballets and operas that he produced.

In 1940 he left Paris for New York where he produced five of his symphonies. After the war he divided his time between the USA and Europe, dying in Liestal, Switzerland whilst undergoing treatment for cancer. Martinů always kept in contact with family and friends in his home town as can be seen in a fascinating book published by Toccata Press Martinů’s Letters Home https://boydellandbrewer.com/martinu-and-the-symphony-hb.html

There are many recordings of Martinů mature works in the catalogue but there are precious few of his earlier compositions. Toccata Classics have sought to put this right with a series of recordings featuring his Early Orchestral Works. Volume One in this series brought us the Prélude en forme de scherzo (1929, orch. 1930),

Orchestral movement (1913–14), Village Feast (1907), Nocturno 1 (1914–15) and the Little Dance Suite (1919) with Sinfonia Varsovia conducted by the Leeds International Piano Competition First Prize winner and Artur Rubinstein and Vienna-Beethoven competition silver medallist Ian Hobson.

Volume Two has just been released by Toccata Classics https://toccataclassics.com and is given over entirely to Martinů’s Ballet in One Act, Stín again with Ian Hobson www.ianhobson.net conducting Sinfonia Varsovia www.sinfoniavarsovia.org  with Dorota Szczepańska (offstage soprano) http://dorotaszczepanska.com , Anna Maria Staśkiewicz (violin) http://annamariastaskiewicz.com  and Agnieszka Kopacka (piano).

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There is a generous quantity of orchestral music that Martinů wrote between his late teens and early thirties that is pretty well unknown with much of it unperformed.

Such is the case with Stín (‘The Shadow’) - Ballet in One Act, H102 (1916), which has its world premiere in this recording.  The scenario is that of a girl dancing with her shadow in the presence of Death for which the composer provided music that is surprisingly buoyant. It has important parts for a soprano, violin and piano.  

A horn opens the Introduction and is immediately joined by the orchestra in a really lovely theme before it shifts and slides around through some very fine passages, often wonderfully luminescent. Soprano, Dorota Szczepańska is heard, off-stage, vocalising over a light textured orchestra and harp in Song – the girl appears, out of which the solo violin of Anna Maria Staśkiewicz rises in a fine little variation. Pianist, Agnieszka Kopacka adds a fine texture along with a harp before the music rises to a terrific peak for the soprano after which the orchestra takes the music forward through some shifting harmonies that are so typically Martinů.

Ian Hobson finds some piquant rhythms as Girl’s dance arrives with the piano dominant through pizzicato strings. There are some more leisurely rhythmic passages as well as a richer textured, flowing section. There are some lovely woodwind moments of much beauty, luscious string textures and a waltz rhythm that develops a real swirl. Sinfonia Varsovia are terrific here with some lovely individual instrumental moments later.

Strings bring the Lento, a lovely gentle melody with a rhythmic touch added by the harp and a solo line from the violin. The music expands through the orchestra along with the piano with some really fine string textures. Later the violin returns with another solo line and a limpid rhythmic pulse from the harp.

The Allegretto takes up the theme in a light and transparent passage for piano and celeste before strings take over, building in energy and dynamics, through a terrific string passage that finds a lovely sway.

Moderato (di valse) brings many lovely variations on the waltz theme, the piano adding a rhythmic point before running through a rising scale over the orchestra

Ball game opens with a rising theme to which the piano adds little flourishes, extended through passages with brass dominating, adding a fine transparency. The theme is taken by piano and strings running through a short transition, The ball falls into the water and the girl sees her reflection into The shadow rises from the water and dances where there are lovely delicate, transparent textures. The woodwind bubble up beautifully over shimmering strings, the theme is taken by the piano before rising through a harmonically shifting passage. There is a solo for piano, a waltz variation, taken by the strings, then a solo violin passage over orchestra. Various wind instruments appear through the orchestral texture before the piano returns to take the theme languidly forward. Shimmering strings are heard before the piano joins to lead forward.

Strings and celeste bring a vibrant, buoyant Comodo (Allegro ma non troppo) to which the piano joins followed by a cor anglais before strings add a richness to vary the theme. There are some beautiful slower passages with lovely textures.

The strings slowly develop a rhythmic and lightly bouncing Tempo di Menuetto to which an oboe joins before the strings alone take the theme. Woodwind alternate the theme with strings before all combine together. The piano joins to add a sparkle before finding a lovely flow with some lovely harmonic shifts.

The Trio brings a staccato string passage to which the piano joins in an unusual dance theme. The solo violin joins to weave a longer line around the orchestra, finding a faster flow through some delightful passages.

The brief Vivace brings a fast, rhythmically bouncing theme that rises quickly through many variations before running into the Allegro and finding a bounding variation also with a rhythmically pointed theme. It travels through some finely controlled moments with subtly changing textures before the piano takes the theme, then woodwind as it slows. A horn appears with pizzicato strings before increasing in tempo to gallop into the Allegro vivace with woodwind bringing light textures. The strings take over to move the music on with passages for woodwind that are skilfully written with terrific textures and sonorities. Later the music finds a broader flow with the piano later adding a faster flourish.

There are dramatic, searing string phrases and a deep thundering piano line as Three dark figures appear in the background arrives. This is soon offset by a lighter, buoyant The dancing continues, becoming ever faster (Allegro vivace) with the music skipping lightly ahead. Pizzicato strings add a lovely texture along with woodwind. The violin returns over repeated piano chords in another unusual passage, bringing a lovely variation before rising in the orchestra to increase in tempo, building through some terrific passages with rich textures, full of drama before finding a luscious waltz.  

The music rises again in drama as it goes into The girl collapses exhausted but the shadow dances onwards towards the central dark figure, which covers the shadow in a cloak where suddenly, shimmering strings appear. The music swirls up with yet more drama, returning underscored by deep piano chords before falling to a hush on shimmering strings to go into the final section.

Soprano, Dorota Szczepańska is heard in the opening of The song is heard again from afar vocalising over a limpid piano and harp accompaniment. Soon the solo violin rises over the harp to weave a lovely melody before the soprano, piano and harp lead to the coda, the soprano rising before a hushed chord from the strings.

So much of Martinů’s mature voice is apparent here making this a real find worth adding to the Martinů recorded catalogue.

Ian Hobson and Sinfonia Varsovia along with their soloists provide a really fine performance and receive an excellent recording from the Witold Lutosławski Concert Studio, Polish Radio, Warsaw.

There are first rate booklet notes.

See also: 

http://theclassicalreviewer.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/martinus-letters-home-published-by.html

Infectious performances from Richard Egarr of Bach’s French Suites for Harmonia Mundi

Whether as Music Director of the Academy of Ancient Music, guest director with such other ensembles as Handel and Haydn Society and Tafelmusik or as a chamber or solo performer playing organ, harpsichord, fortepiano or modern piano, Richard Egarr’s http://intermusica.co.uk/artist/Richard-Egarr repertoire ranges widely from Monteverdi to Mendelssohn.

Richard Egarr trained as a choirboy at York Minster, at Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester and as organ scholar at Clare College Cambridge. His studies with Gustav and Marie Leonhardt further inspired his work in the field of historical performance.

He is increasingly sought-after by non-period orchestras ranging from the Scottish, Swedish and Australian chamber orchestras to the Rotterdam Philharmonic, Berlin Konzerthausorchester, and Dallas Symphony Orchestra. He made his Glyndebourne debut in 2007 conducting a staged St Matthew Passion.

He records exclusively for Harmonia Mundi where his solo output comprises works by Frescobaldi, Gibbons, Couperin, Purcell, Froberger, Mozart, and J. S. Bach (Goldberg Variations and Well-Tempered Clavier). He has an impressive list of award-winning recordings with Andrew Manze, including sonatas by Bach, Biber, Rebel, Pandolfi, Corelli, Handel, Mozart, and Schubert. With the Academy of Ancient Music he has recorded Bach’s harpsichord concertos and Brandenburg Concertos. In Handel year 2009 they completed a seven-CD series of Handel discs including the instrumental music opp.1, 2 and 5, the Concerti Grossi Op.3 (which won a Gramophone Award in 2007) and the Organ Concertos op.4 (MIDEM Award and Edison Award 2009) and Op.7.

Now from Harmonia Mundi www.harmoniamundi.com comes a recording by Richard Egarr of Bach’s French Suites played on a particularly fine copy by Joel Katzman (Haarlem, 2015) of a harpsichord by Joseph Johannes Couchet (Antwerp, c.1650) www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/503614?sortBy=Relevance&what=Musical+instruments&ft=harpsichords&pg=1&rpp=20&pos=17

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Around 1722, not long after Johann Sebastian Bach’s (1685-1750) marriage, his second wife, Anna Magdalena started an album in which he entered compositions for her to play. They include five short harpsichord suites, BWV 812-816, the first versions of what would become the French Suites. The sixth suite is thought to have been added during his early years in Leipzig to where he moved in 1723. The suites are not particularly French in any way; indeed the title was added later to distinguish them from the English Suites and Partitas.

The Allemande of Suite No.1 in D minor, BWV 812 is beautifully phrased and structured with Richard Egarr finding some lovely varied textures from his instrument. The Courante has a real sparkle, tremendous fluency and sense of spontaneity before a stately Sarabande that has a real strength with some lovely decorations. Egarr brings a lovely delicate, transparent flow to Menuet I & II, beautifully shaped with this fine musician again finding a variety of textures with a sense of never ending flow. The Gigue brings some fine, crisp rhythmic phrases, full of panache. Absolutely terrific.

The Allemande of Suite No. 2 in C minor, BWV 813 has a fine flow with terrific phrasing. Egarr has such a fine fluent touch whilst finding every detail. He brings terrific spirit and energy to the captivating Courante with the fine textures of this instrument beautifully revealed. The Sarabande brings a lovely, rather languid feel, beautifully laid out with a fine left hand counterpoint, again finding a fine flow. The Air is nothing short of breathtaking in its forward drive, fluency and sparkle with a Menuet I that is the perfect complement. The concluding Gigue has a gorgeous rhythmic spring, wonderfully phrased, with an infectious quality.

Suite No. 3 in B minor, BWV 814 brings some wonderful musical lines as the Allemande flows ahead with fine phrasing, textures and colouring. The Courante sparkles, full of energy with Richard Egarr in full flight, providing a terrific forward impulse. There is a Sarabande that has a delightful delicacy with a certain melancholy to its lovely theme before the Menuet I & II (Trio) brings a steady rhythm to which Egarr adds some beautifully varied textures and colours, later finding a stronger forward flow. A light textured Angloise (Gavotte) finds this player wonderfully negotiating all the twists and turns with such fine fluency before a quite lovely Gigue, full of energy and sparkle, as if caught on the wing, such is the spontaneity and panache.

Suite No. 4 in E flat major, BWV 815 opens with an Allemande that has a wonderfully mellow, gentle quality with Egarr bringing some particularly fine tone from this instrument. The Courante has a real spring, galloping ahead full of life, finely shaped before a finely laid out, slow, broad Sarabande laying bare Bach’s fine harmonies. There is a lovely little Gavotte to which Egarr brings a fine simplicity, beautifully phrased and paced. The Air picks up with lively phrases, this player bringing a terrific clarity to the fast moving phrases. Egarr finds so much variety in the little Menuet before a lovely bouncing, rhythmic Gigue with fine decorations, exquisitely phrased.

Egarr brings a fine range of textures and sonorities from his instrument in the Allemande of Suite No.5 in G major, BWV 816 revealing lovely detail with some glorious sounds from this harpsichord. He raises a real sparkle in the fast moving Courante, brilliantly fluent, never losing any clarity. There is some exquisite Bach revealed in the Sarabande with wonderful phrasing, textures and details. It just seems so perfect. The Gavotte gets a real lift with crisp, spruce rhythms, Egarr bringing a real sense of joy before a Bourrée that brings some absolutely terrific passages as the music speeds ahead with terrific energy and brio. There is a broadly laid out Loure revealing some very fine textures and sonorities from this instrument. Finally there is a rollicking Gigue where Egarr delivers a terrific fluency and some really fine textures. A real joy.

There is a wonderfully gentle forward flow to the Allemande of Suite No.6 in E major, BWV 817 allowing the Bach’s invention to unfold wonderfully, again finding lovely textures. The Courante is full of life and energy, dashing ahead brilliantly with tremendous fluency. There are glorious textures in the Sarabande, this instrumentalist bringing a fine flexibility of tempo in the intricate little phrases. After a crisp and beautifully phrased Gavotte the Polonaise brings some wonderfully varied rhythms as well as some lovely textures. The Menuet is finely shaped before the Bourrée dashes off, full of energy, yet with Egarr always keeping fine phrasing and detail. Egarr illuminates the musical lines of the Gigue brilliantly, finding more terrific fluency as it progresses.  

Richard Egarr has chosen some interesting pieces to conclude this set in the form of a quite lovely, finely shaped Menuet II to the Suite No. 2 in C minor, BWV 813 and three alternative Courantes to the second suite. Courante, BWV 813/II: (after the autograph, Klavierbüchlein 1722), Courante, BWV 813/II: (after the copy by H. N. Gerber) and Courante, BWV 813/II: Courante (after the copy by Anna Magdalena Bach, Klavierbüchlein 1725).

These are infectious performances of Bach’s French Suites that one will wish to return to over and over again. Richard Egarr gives such musicianly accounts, characterful and always a subtle spring in his step. There is something about Egarr’s phrasing, textures and ornamentations that just grab the ear. Above all Egarr reminds us again just how wonderful Bach’s invention was.

The recording from the Vereenigde Doopsgezinde, Harlem, Netherlands is really wonderful, avoiding any stridency yet revealing the detail, textures and sonority of the instrument. 

There are informative notes from Richard Egarr. 

Michael Nicolas’ debut disc for Sono Luminus is a remarkable achievement. He has a terrific technique as well as an ear for subtle beauty, texture and colour, shaping these works so well. This is adventurous programming that works brilliantly

New York based cellist, Michael Nicolas http://michaelnicolascellist.com is of mixed French-Canadian and Taiwanese heritage. A graduate of the Juilliard School, he has forged a diverse career as soloist, chamber musician, recording artist and improviser, performing masterpieces of the past in the world’s most prestigious concert halls, free-form improvisation in a downtown New York experimental venue with giants of the genre and working with contemporary composers of all styles. 

He is the cellist of the genre-defying string quartet Brooklyn Rider http://brooklynrider.com , which has drawn praise from classical, world music and rock critics alike. He is also a member of Ensemble Ditto www.facebook.com/ensembleditto , a chamber group based in South Korea that has achieved extraordinary success in reaching young and new classical music audiences, selling out concert halls all over Korea, Japan, and China. As a member of the acclaimed International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE) http://iceorg.org he has worked with countless composers from around the world, premiering and recording dozens of new works. Another group, Third Sound, which Michael helped found, made its debut with an historic residency at the 2015 Havana Contemporary Music Festival, in Cuba.

Highlights of the upcoming season include performances across South Korea with Ensemble Ditto and the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, U.S, European tours with Brooklyn Rider and a six night residency at New York’s experimental music venue The Stone in December 2016 and the release of Nicolas’ debut solo album Transitions on the Sono Luminus label www.sonoluminus.com

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Michael Nicolas opens his new disc with Mario Davidovsky’s http://huseac.fas.harvard.edu/-history/HCMC/mariobio.htm Synchronisms No. 3 for Cello and Electronic Sounds which brings rich, resonant chords before developing through some virtuosic moments for the cellist as the theme leaps around with pizzicato interventions. Electronic sounds appear that cleverly dove-tail into the excitable cello line before finding longer phrases that bring a rather wistful character. The interaction between soloist and electronics is remarkable as the music moves through passages of fast moving short phrases that dart around for both soloist and electronics before a low pitched note from the electronics heralds the quick-fire coda.

Steve Reich’s www.stevereich.com Cello Counterpoint brings an insistent theme that soon expands as it drives steadily ahead with its multi-tracked cello textures, Reich finding some attractive melodic variants and harmonies. The music develops some very fine harmonies and textures with this cellist achieving terrific results, each line blending wonderfully. Later a tender little theme appears that still keeps the same tempo, whilst moving around and soon picking up a thrust before eventually slowing and finding a little relaxation. There are subtle rhythmic changes before the music regains its impetus to drive to the coda.

The soloist brings a whimsical little opening motif to David Fulmer’s http://fulmermusic.com Speak of the Spring before slowly developing the music, finding some exquisite little detailed cello sounds whilst creating a whole sound world where a myriad of lovely little sounds appear. Suddenly the music finds a stridency but falls back to discover new textures and colours. This soloist creates some exquisite little shapes and sounds, aware of every little colour and texture, every nuance his instrument can produce. The music later moves through a violent, strident passage where the soloist fairly tears into the strings of his instrument before subsiding and gently and quietly moving through a dark world of subtly shifting ideas to a gentle conclusion.

In Annie Gosfield’s www.anniegosfield.com Four Roses, for cello and electronic sampler, a firm rhythmic theme is taken forward to a pause before the theme recommences with electronic accompaniment, this soloist bringing a terrific rhythmic pulse, finding so many colours from his cello and using so much of its lower range. Along with the electronics some strange, often wiry sounds are produced including a sound very much like an old piano that brings some terrific dissonances. Soon there is a slower section with discordant harmonies from the cello and electronics with the electronic sampler taking the theme over a long drawn dissonant cello before weaving a lovely undulating theme. The rhythmic stance returns to take us to the coda.  

Annie Gosfield’s ...and a Five-spot for cello and electronic sampler was written as a companion piece to Four Roses and given its world premiere by Michael Nicolas and the composer at The Stone, New York City in September 2015. The cello brings a fine theme that is soon taken forward in a rhythmic dissonant manner, accompanied by electronic sounds. Soon the opening theme returns to be accompanied by the electronics finding many little detailed ideas. Again it is remarkable how this soloist weaves around the electronic sampler with the sound of an old piano returning. Long drawn, mournful cello sounds increase in tempo combining with a mesh of electronic accompaniment around which the cello weaves, finding so many textures and colours. Later the music finds a rhythmic nature with the sampler generated piano sounds discordantly accompanying a pizzicato cello line in a remarkable passage that takes us to the coda.

Anna Thorvaldsdottir (Þorvaldsdóttir) www.annathorvalds.com : Transitions was written in 2014. The cello appears with a high, long held note before a gentle wavering sound is heard. There are taps on the cello before more hushed sounds over which the cello rises, pulling out a mournful theme. Fleeting wiry string sounds appear as well as more taps on the cello. Anna Thorvaldsdottir always finds an underlying melodic base with this soloist bringing some exceptionally fine string textures, beautifully shaped and controlled, extracting so many lovely colours and textures.  The sad theme expands a little before the material is developed, bringing deep rich sonorities very evocative of nature, through passages of rich sonorous melody. Later there is a more quizzical, short phrased passage and more taps on the cello before the theme is drawn through a dissonant passage. A rhythmic tapping sequence is interspersed by longer cello phrases with the taps continuing over a held cello note at the coda

This is a particularly fine work, quite brilliantly performed.

Jaime E. Oliver La Rosa’s www.jaimeoliver.pe  Flexura leaps in with a rapid descending cello motif that soon quietens. This is repeated before being developed through the most amazing, often very free passages. Electronic sounds are heard subtly in the background before the cello brings much aggressive and virtuosic playing. The electronic sounds develop with a rather haunting accompaniment, the cello bringing higher phrases with lower growls. Michael Nicolas again achieves some remarkably fine cello effects, many subtleties as he eventually brings long drawn dissonant phrases around which strange electronic sounds flow. The music develops through some quite lovely, unusual passages with little melodic ideas appearing. Later the electronics bring some disturbing sounds around an anxious cello. There is a long held electronic sound over the cello before the soloist and electronics bring a wild passage with low growls, out of which the cello brings a lovely theme, a long, slowly rising and falling cello line that is surrounded by electronic sounds, creating a strangely mournful effect before descending to the coda.

Michael Nicolas’ debut disc is a remarkable achievement. He has a terrific technique as well as an ear for subtle beauty, texture and colour, shaping these works so well. This is adventurous programming that works brilliantly. 

The recording is very immediate and detailed. The booklet notes are brief but the artist and composers featured all have websites.

I find it hard to imagine any listener not getting caught up in the thrall of Robin Walker’s orchestral works on a new release from Toccata Classics

Robin Walker (b.1953) www.robinwalker.org was a chorister at York Minster before studying with David Lumsdaine (b.1931) at Durham University. He went on to study at Oxford University and the Royal College of Music, before becoming Lecturer in Music at Manchester University.

Walker writes music which acknowledges nature as the paramount creative force, working in a tradition which passes through Beethoven, Brahms, Elgar, Sibelius, Tippett and Birtwistle. 

Toccata Classics https://toccataclassics.com has just released a very fine recording featuring a selection of Robin Walker’s orchestral music with the Novaya Rossiya Symphony Orchestra www.nros.ru/nros  conducted by Alexander Walker www.alexanderwalker.org

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Great Rock is Dead: Funeral March (2007) was in the composer’s words ‘a desire to resolve the grief occasioned by my father’s death in 2005.’ It opens quietly with timpani before finding a solemn forward movement, soon building in the brass and woodwind a more anguished feel. The brass add a heavy layer to the music as it heaves itself up through passages of great drama with so many strands shifting through the orchestra. Soon there is a quiet moment as the music falls to a hush out of which new beginnings flourish throughout the orchestra, less heavy, more transparent. Many fine fascinating ideas appear out of the orchestral texture before the music builds again through a section of great grandeur pointed up by timpani, offset by a fine theme for woodwind and brass before heading to the coda where hints of the coda of Sibelius’ fifth symphony appear.

Odysseus on Ogygia: Prelude (2011) is taken from an opera that occupied the composer for a decade up to 2005. It opens with a lone harp motif to which a flute joins in a gentle solitary theme. More woodwind join, finding a rocking motion as well as occasional dissonances as the music develops. Debussian woodwind flourishes appear before the music rises dynamically, horns adding colour, to a grand peak before falling back to a calm section beneath which brass and timpani retain a restrained intensity. There are further outbursts in the brass before the harp re-appears with its gentle motif together with flute and hushed strings as the coda arrives.

The Stone King: Symphonic Poem (2005) marked Walker’s return to abstract orchestral music after his work on Odysseus on Ogygia. The scenario involves tragic loss and consequent infirmity before restitution through confession and self-interrogation.

The orchestra leap in with brass and timpani, full of drama and anger as the music positively boils with barely restrained energy. It slowly heaves itself up, very Sibelian in feel, rising to a glorious climax, full of fine colours and textures in the orchestra, with biting brass interventions. Soon the music simmers more quietly in the brass and woodwind.  The tension slackens for a gentler, flowing passage, slowly and subtly finding its impetus again. The strings take the lead, pulling the music up inexorably with a hint of Walton in the brass before trombones and horns lead the music on to growls from the lower brass. Muted brass shoot out to lighten the mood before a euphonium leads the music forward bringing its own distinctive colour and character to this striking music, over a simmering orchestra. The brass, again, shoot out in a faster, lighter motif but the heavier laden music takes us to the solemn coda that ends on string chords. This is a fabulous work.

Begun in 1987, The Stone Maker: Symphonic Poem (1995) represents the composer’s desire to ‘make something of magnitude’ that he had never attempted before.

A lone pizzicato string chord opens with brass immediately joining to add a melancholy chord. The whole orchestra brings a deeper resonance as the music slowly hauls itself forward with higher brass appearing over the orchestra and deep brass growls. The music slowly gains in dynamics with an orchestra laden with drama and angst. Woodwind sound through adding colour and texture, as do percussion.  The music subtly finds a rhythm in the brass as the music moves ahead before finding a quieter moment with a rhythmic pulse before swirling strings are heard in the background behind intoning brass. There are some magically shimmering moments here in this rather static passage before timpani herald a move forward dramatically as many sections of the orchestra contribute to the texture and colour. There is a momentary slower section where percussion bring almost the sound of a ticking clock but the music soon moves forward again.

There is another gentler, slower passage for woodwind with subtle dissonances before percussion add more colour, texture and rhythm. Longer woodwind and string passages alternate as a contrast, the latter taking the music through a mysterious section with longer phrases before percussion re-appear in a rhythmic theme. The orchestra continues to heave its way forward, full of colour and wild textures, rising in brilliance in the brass. Woodwind join adding a lovely texture as the music subtly reduces in drama though still bubbling under the surface. Brass try to bubble up as a strident, angular variation of the theme emerges with percussion adding to the angularity of the music. The woodwind subtly change the nature of the theme to which brass add colour before the music begins to rise again with timpani adding weight. It eases back with a woodwind passage before the orchestra continues its unstoppable forward momentum, deep brass rasping and woodwind heard over the orchestra. High brass sound out the theme over a pulsating orchestra, growing in strength and power with timpani and percussion adding a terrific sound as the music drives ever more powerfully forward.  Towards the end the music falls back to a hushed orchestra, a harp is heard together with gentle brass sonorities and some beautifully formed textures and sonorities. Brass intone above the gentler orchestral layer as the coda arrives. There is a subtle gentle rhythmic string motif before brass finally sound out, but the gentler orchestra move to a gentle end.

This is a sprawling yet totally engrossing work. Walker seems to have thrown all his experience at the time of its composition into this work which is of symphonic proportions. This is a remarkable work.

Whilst hints of other composers occasionally appear they cannot easily be recognised such has this composer assimilated them. I find it hard to imagine any listener not getting caught up in the thrall of these works that are full of fire and drama and, in the case of the three later works, beautifully constructed. 

The Novaya Rossiya Symphony Orchestra under Alexander Walker brings terrific performances and they are finely recorded in Studio 5, Russian State TV and Radio Company Kultura, Moscow. There are excellent booklet notes that take the form of an interview with Robin Walker and notes on the music by the composer.  

Christophorus Records release a terrific disc of sacred Russian music featuring the Moscow Patriarch Choir recorded in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, Moscow

After the October Revolution in 1917, the Communist regime confiscated church property, ridiculed religion, harassed believers, and propagated atheism in schools.

Thousands of churches and monasteries were taken over by the government and either destroyed or converted to secular use.

The Cathedral of Christ the Saviour was originally built over 40 years during the 19th century. The original church was the scene of the 1882 world premiere of Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture. It was destroyed in 1931 on the order of Stalin. Its demolition was intended to make way for a Palace of the Soviets to house the country's legislature, the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. Construction started in 1937 but was halted in 1941 when Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union. Its steel frame was taken down the following year and the Palace never built. Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Cathedral was rebuilt, replicating the original with extraordinary accuracy.

The Moscow Patriarch Choir of Christ the Saviour Cathedral http://pch.xxc.ru have recorded for Christophorus Records www.christophorus-records.de/v2.php  sacred choral works by Alexander Alexandrov, Nikolai Golovanov, Alexander Nikolsky, Pavel Chesnokov and Alexander Kastalsky representing a period of Russian history that saw great upheaval which had a profound effect on the lives and careers of these composers. Entitled Hidden Music of the Russian Church the Moscow Patriarch Choir is conducted by Ilya Tolkachev.

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Alexander Alexandrov (1883-1946) famously wrote the music for the national anthem of the Soviet Union. A former chorister in Kazan Cathedral and composer of sacred music, he seemed to find no difficulty transforming himself into a Soviet composer, even gaining favour with Stalin.

His Bless the Lord, O My Soul (First Antiphon from the Divine Liturgy) has a beautiful gentle flow with lovely textures from this fine cathedral choir, rising to moments of great power and ecstasy. In Thy Kingdom Remember Us, O Lord (Third Antiphon from the Divine Liturgy) rises from a hushed opening with this composer finding some lovely intervals and harmonies out of which tenor, Sergey Godin, rises with a lovely, very Russian voice. This is a tremendous piece that passionately rises ever upwards.

Soprano, Evgeniya Tschishikova opens We Hymn Thee (Fragment of the Eucharistic Canon from the Divine Liturgy) to lead the choir forward, bringing some terrific high notes, weaving around the choir before it ends on vocalised bass voices. Soprano, Irina Taraburina rises over a gentle choral line in the quite exquisite The Lord's Prayer (Our Father) (Hymn from the Divine Liturgy) with a wonderful arch of choral sound over which the soloist glides, often becoming quite passionate. Praise the Name of the Lord (A major) (Hymn from the All-Night Vigil) opens with female voices, soon joined by the male voices who alternate with the text before bringing fine sonorities and weaving a lovely choral tapestry, really soaring at times, filling the large acoustic of the Cathedral.

With Praise the Name of the Lord (D minor) (Hymn from the All-Night Vigil) the choir brings lovely, moderately flowing sonorous texture and harmonies, this choir following all the dynamic shaping of the music beautifully, all layers of voices sounding through the texture. From My Youth (Gradual Antiphon from the All-Night Vigil) is a quieter, gentler, yet moderately flowing work, beautifully written with lovely part writing. This choir finds great sensitivity and there are moments where a little chant is heard.

Nikolai Golovanov (1891-1953) was accepted into the Synodal Academy in Moscow at the age of nine and later taught there. Composing sacred choral works, he did not ingratiate himself with the Soviet authorities, with Stalin describing him as ‘an anti-Soviet phenomenon.’ He later pursued a career as a conductor giving a number of premiere performances, among them, in May 1924, Nikolai Myaskovsky's (1881-1950) Sixth Symphony.

He Who Closed the Abyss (Kontakion of the Great Saturday from the Midnight Office, Passion Week) rises magically out of the shadows with wonderfully rich, deep colours and harmonies, the deep Russian basses often heard to great effect.  

There is a quiet, beautifully blended opening to the Cherubic Hymn (arr. for mixed choir by M. Kotogarov) (Monastery Chant from the Divine Liturgy) this choir using the acoustic to fine effect with basses murmuring under the main body of the choir. There is a gentle rising and falling theme before lifting up in a more stirring, buoyant section midway and finding a beautifully controlled quiet coda.

Alexander Nikolsky (1874-1943) was the son of a Russian Orthodox priest and sang in church choirs from childhood. He was active as a teacher of choral music, music theory, counterpoint, and musical ethnography in a number of educational institutions in Moscow, including the Moscow Synodal School of Church Singing and the Moscow Conservatory as well as the author of numerous articles on choral and church music.  

Female voices gently rise in a most lovely theme to open O Gladsome Light (Vesperal Hymn from the All-Night Vigil), soon joined by the other voices, slowly gaining in strength until filling the space wonderfully, finding a terrific glow. There is a quiet moment with an undulating theme before the choir sounds out powerfully and confidently, alternating with the quieter idea until the coda.  

We Hymn Thee (Fragment of the Eucharistic Canon from the Divine Liturgy) rises out of the lower voices, full of rich colours and textures and much wonderful atmosphere before rising up to the heights magnificently. It leads through some wonderful passages before falling to the depths. A quite stunning work.

By the age of thirty Pavel Chesnokov (1877-1944) had completed nearly four hundred sacred choral works, but all of this came to a halt at the time of the Russian revolution. To overcome the problem of the ban on the composition of sacred music he composed an additional hundred secular works and conducted secular choirs such as the Moscow Academy Choir and the Bolshoi Theatre Choir.

Cherubic Hymn (from the Divine Liturgy) opens gently, quietly and beautifully with a lovely flow before rising magnificently with wonderfully controlled dynamics, the choir finding every last beauty of this work. They burst out joyfully before the coda to conclude this quite wonderful work.

Rich textures open It Is Meet and Right to Bless You, O Theotokos (Hymn to the Theotokos from the Divine Liturgy) with this choir finding a lovely flow and a subtle forward pulse, rising later in passion before a hushed end.

Alexander Kastalsky (1856-1926) taught piano at the Moscow Synodal School and became assistant precentor of the Moscow Synodal Choir. He became director of both until the school was dissolved and merged with the choral faculty of the Conservatory. The choir was forced to move from sacred to folk repertory for which he wrote over 130 works and established himself as an important composer of the neo-Russian style with an influence on choral composers such as Sergei Rachmaninov (1873-1943), Viktor Kalinnikov (1870-1927), Alexander Grechaninov (1864-1956) and Pavel Chesnokov.

A lone tenor, Sergey Godin opens St Simeon's Prayer (Hymn from the All-Night Vigil) soon joined by the choir as the tenor continues over them in this lovely undulating, very Russian work, bringing some especially fine choral textures before falling to the basses to conclude.

The choir rise up joyously in the opening of Let God Arise (Paschal Hymn, Eastern Orthodox Resurrection Service) with some lovely use of the acoustic from sections of the choir, rising and falling through some stunning passages to find an upward rising, unresolved coda.

This is a terrific disc of sacred Russian music that deserves to be heard. The engineers have captured the large acoustic of the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour whilst retaining a warmth of sound and detail. The Moscow Patriarch Choir are first rate and have this music is in their blood. 

There are excellent booklet notes with translations in English and German. There are beautiful colour photographs of the new cathedral dome and the cathedral in the snow as well as a photograph of the destruction, in 1931, of the old cathedral.

Playing that is a joy as the Cypress String Quartet completes their Beethoven cycle for Avie

The Cypress String Quartet http://cypressquartet.com has just completed their cycle of Beethoven’s string quartets for Avie Records www.avie-records.com with a 2 CD recording of the Early String Quartets, Op. 18.  For the past several seasons, the Cypress Quartet has immersed itself in performing Beethoven on tours throughout the United States and Europe as well as recording all 16 works plus the Große Fuge. The completion of their Beethoven cycle is a fitting celebration of the Bay Area-based ensemble’s 20th anniversary as well as their farewell season.

 

2CD
AV2348

Beethoven found the composition of his first string quartets difficult, writing of the first edition of his Op.18 No.1 to his friend, Karl Amenda to whom it was dedicated, in 1801 ’Be sure not to pass on your quartet to anyone else, because I have substantially altered it. For only now have I learnt to write quartets properly…’  Op.18 No.2 was also extensively revised and it is considered possible by some scholars that an earlier version of No.3 once existed.

The Cypress String Quartet brings a beautifully judged opening to the Allegro con brio of the String Quartet No. 1 in F major, Op. 18, No. 1 with fine phrasing and tempi, developing through some lovely sonorities and textures, finely paced, rising to some lovely little peaks. The Adagio affettuoso ed appassionato holds a really fine emotional tension, this Quartet finding many quite lovely poetic moments. The music is beautifully shaped, at times bringing a real power and fire.

In the Scherzo. Allegro molto they find a tautness and buoyancy and some wit before an Allegro that is full of lovely, often playful ideas, terrifically brought out by this quartet with some lovely interplay between players.

The opening of the Allegro of String Quartet No. 2 in G major, Op. 18, No. 2 shows this quartet at their finest, always shaping, moulding and phrasing to perfection, finding a light touch. The Adagio cantabile is really most beautiful, with a sizzling central Allegro, these players drawing some lovely sonorities in the longer phrases toward the coda.

The Scherzo. Allegro brings a fine dialogue between players as it moves quickly forward, finely shaped before the Allegro molto, quasi presto where they build some terrific passages finely offset by lighter moments with beautifully controlled dynamics and phrasing.

The Cypresses find a lovely rhythmic tempo in the Allegro con brio of String Quartet No. 6 in B-flat major, Op. 18, No. 6, with lovely textures, full of life and energy with some fine little details and some really rich and vibrant passages, quite brilliantly done. These players find a quite lovely melancholy in the Adagio ma non troppo with beautifully shaped little dynamic lifts.

Again there is a lovely lightness of touch in the Scherzo. Allegro, wonderfully phrased as it fairly darts along with such terrific precision. They bring many subtleties to the opening of the La malinconia. Adagio with some fine rich sonorities before moving into a wonderfully fluent and agile Allegretto quasi allegro allegretto.

The second disc in this set opens with the String Quartet No. 3 in D major, Op. 18, No. 3. This quartet really draws the listener in from the start of the Allegro with their lovely shaping and phrasing. There are beautifully sprung phrases with a fluidity and delicacy that is quite lovely. They provide beautiful tones and textures before building some fine dynamic passages.  They bring a lovely sonorous flow to the opening of the Andante con moto before revealing some lovely detailed moments. They later find a lovely rhythmic pulse in this wonderfully shaped movement.

The Cypress String Quartet brings a real freedom to the rhythmic sway of the Allegro, a lovely ebb and flow with a central section that arrives so naturally.  They conclude this quartet with a sparkling Presto full of buoyancy and energy, finely controlled with many lovely details.

The Allegro ma non tanto of the String Quartet No. 4 in C minor, Op. 18, No. 4 brings a nervous energy with some beautifully rich chords. These players bring a real urgency and tremendous guts to their playing with terrific dynamic contrasts, picked up vividly by this recording. They bring a light textured opening to the Andante scherzoso quasi allegretto that builds beautifully, finely shaped and controlled, through some quite exquisite passages.

The Menuetto. Allegretto has buoyant, rhythmic forward flow, finely controlled and phrased with some wonderfully dynamic moments contrasting with fast, fleet, shimmering quieter phrases in the trio section. There is a wonderfully fleet Allegro. Prestissimo, finely controlled and shaped, full of energy.

The Cypresses find a lovely overall rhythmic sweep to the Allegro of the String Quartet No. 5 in A major, Op. 18, No. 5 whilst observing all the little dynamic contrasts, finding many lovely details, full of energy and sparkle. There is beautiful phrasing as the Menuetto moves forward with a fine flow, a lovely delicacy, exposing many fine textures.

There is a lovely sad flow with some exquisite textures as these players weave the Andante Cantabile - Con variazioni ahead through some beautifully shaped variations, finding so many lovely moments. The Allegro dashes ahead, full of varied dynamics with some fine crisp phrasing later. Again their control and lightness of touch is impressive. There are some terrific dynamic surges, full of controlled energy.

This gem of a set is a very terrific way to complete The Cypress String Quartet’s Beethoven cycle. Their playing is a joy, drawing the listener in from the start. Their control and lightness of touch is impressive, always shaping, moulding and phrasing the music to perfection.

The recording, produced by the Cypress’ first violinist, Cecily Ward, is very fine, intimate yet with a fine acoustic around the players. There are useful booklet notes.

I haven’t heard the previous issues in this cycle – perhaps it’s time I did.

See also: 

http://theclassicalreviewer.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/four-american-works-for-string-quartet.html

An exceptionally fine disc from Signum Classics of choral works by Bernard Hughes that are innovative, melodic and always engaging

British composer Bernard Hughes (b.1974) www.bernardhughes.co.uk studied Music at St Catherine’s College, Oxford before going on to Goldsmiths College, London to study composition under Peter Dickinson and privately with Param Vir. He was awarded a PhD in Composition from Royal Holloway College, London, studying with Philip Cashian. Bernard Hughes is Composer-in-Residence at St Paul’s Girls’ School in London.

Bernard Hughes’s music has been broadcast on Radio 3 and King FM in Seattle, and he has appeared as a conductor on the Channel 4 series Howard Goodall’s Twentieth Century Greats. Bernard writes regularly in the new music periodical Tempo and for theartsdesk cultural review website.

He has been commissioned by the BBC Singers, the Crouch End Festival Chorus, W11 Opera in London and the pianist Jakob Fichert receiving performances at the Huddersfield, Spitalfields and Bangor New Music Festivals and at venues including Coventry Cathedral and Symphony Hall, Birmingham.

Recent commissions include a new work for the Seattle Pro Music choir and All Across this Jumbl’d Earth for the Three Choirs Festival, both in 2012. A new piece for the experimental vocal trio Juice was premiered at the National Portrait Gallery in 2014 and Salve Regina, for the Crouch End Festival Chorus.

Bernard Hughes’s music has been performed at major venues in Britain and abroad and received a number of broadcasts on BBC Radio 3. He was runner-up at the 2009 British Composer Awards for the choral work The Death of Balder, commissioned and performed by the BBC Singers.

The BBC Singers have recorded The Death of Balder for Signum Classics www.signumrecords.com on a new release that brings together a number of choral works by Bernard Hughes entitled I Am The Song. The BBC Singers www.bbc.co.uk/singers  are conducted by Paul Brough www.paulbrough.com

SIGCD 451

The Two Choral Fanfares were composed in 2010 and 2011 and are intended as short concert openers, setting poems by Siegfried Sassoon (1886-1967) and Charles Causley (1917-2003). The BBC Singers bring terrific energy to Everyone Sang, weaving some fine textures in this very effective and uplifting setting in which the choir vocalise as the work finds its gentle coda. I Am the Song, the title work of this disc, is equally buoyant, this time with a rhythmic pulse to which this choir bring some fine subtleties, weaving some very fine choral sounds.  

Three Swans opens with The Bereaved Swan, a lovely setting of a text by English poet and novelist, Stevie Smith (1902-1971) where Hughes provides the BBC Singers with some exquisite harmonies that rise gently, out of which appears a solo soprano voice.

The words of The Silver Swan are taken from a madrigal by Orlando Gibbons (1583-1625). It rises up with more power, these singers again finding many subtleties in their finely controlled phrasing and dynamics, later bringing a terrific falling and rising section that brings a sudden end.

Riddle takes its text from 10^th century The Exeter Book, also known as the Codex Exoniensis, an anthology of Anglo-Saxon poetry. Hushed chanting is soon overlaid by a firmer choral line with lovely subtly shifting harmonies. Later there are some choral surges with this choir bringing real strength, finding all of Hughes’ lovely little details before a wonderfully controlled hushed coda.

The winter It Is past was written in 2014 and is a setting of a short poem by Robert Burns (1759-1796) reflecting on the passing of the seasons. Female voices introduce this piece, bringing a lovely atmosphere, showing how this composer can create an immediate sense of place and time. Male voices join to repeat the opening before weaving around each other. It is the female voices alone that take the music to its lovely hushed end.

The Death of Balder is based on a Norse myth re-told by the distinguished novelist and scholar Kevin Crossley-Holland www.kevincrossley-holland.com . In two acts with a prologue and interlude, it has a prominent part for narrator. The individual members of the BBC Singers that feature in solo roles are Elizabeth Poole (soprano, Frigg), Olivia Robinson (soprano, Thokk), Rebecca Lodge (mezzo-soprano, Hel), Cherith Milburn-Fryer (alto, Old Woman), Edward Goater (tenor, Balder), Stephen Jeffes (tenor, Hermod), Robert Johnston (tenor, Hod), Charles Gibbs (bass, Narrator) and Edward Price (bass, Loki).

The work opens with a short spoken Prologue over which bass Charles Gibbs says ‘Hail to the speaker and to him who listens’ followed by a descending sung choral section that leads into the first act.

The narrator continues his narration in Act One over a hushed choral layer. Soon the chorus take a lovely flowing theme with the words ‘Fire swore an oath. Water swore an oath.’ The narrator continues over the choir through some finely characterised passages for individual singers and rising in power for Loki’s ‘I am Loki Sly, subtle sorcerer …’ Hughes’ idiom here is more advanced yet always holding a melodic line, however unusual the characterisations. The part of the Old Woman taken by alto Cherith Milburn-Fryer is particularly remarkable bringing out much character. There is some really finely shaped singing, rising chorally before the narrator returns for ‘Frigg looked around but the old woman was gone…’ 

The choir weave some very fine moments around the individual voices creating a fine atmosphere in ‘Eyes on fire. Body on fire. Evil was in him.’ as they chant in hushed voices. On the death of Balder the choir bring a wonderfully conceived contrast, a wordless crying of grief, superbly done by the BBC Singers, reaching moments of extreme emotion. Soprano Elizabeth Poole as Frigg unfolds a very fine ‘Does anyone here…? Will anyone…?’ superbly controlled, finding so many subtleties. Tenor Stephen Jeffes as Hermod rises magnificently in ‘I will …I am Hermod, son of Odin’ before the narrator takes us on into the Interlude where the mourning gods and goddesses bring a lovely gentle flowing line, a sensitively done funeral scene.

The narrator takes us into the underworld for Act Two where Hermod tries to negotiate with Hel for Baldr’s return. The choir are magnificent in the wild and strange ‘Ah! Help me! Save me! Pity me!’ before a remarkably done ‘Who…? What...do you…want…here?’ from Hel from mezzo-soprano Rebecca Lodge. The subsequent choral writing for the character of Hel is terrific. There is a beautiful section for choir ‘Weep for Balder’ but Thokk, sung by soprano Olivia Robinson, believed to be Hel in disguise, has no concern for Balder’s fate ‘I will weep no tears for Balder…’ The precision between choir and narrator is truly remarkable. There is a strong ‘Hail to those who listen’ from the narrator that leads to a sustained ‘Ah’ from the choir at the end.

This is a remarkable and significant work that deserves to be heard. The BBC Singers and particularly the individual voices that are featured are tremendous.

The BBC Singers bring a mellifluous harmony to anyone lived in a pretty how town (2011) before adding little dynamic emphases in this finely shaped performance of a setting of a text by the poet E. E. Cummings (1894-1962). Soloists rise out of the opening through some very fine passages that gain in strength.

Revelation Window commissioned by the Seattle based choir The Esoterics in 2010 takes as its inspiration the 1995 stained glass window of the same name in Manchester Cathedral. It uses a wordless text where syllables reflect the words ‘light, ‘colour’ and ‘revelation.’ Revelation Window is arguably the most remarkable and finely written piece on this disc. The choir bring some stunningly brilliant weaving of the wordless text, rising through some finely glowing passages, this choir bringing much subtlety to the varied dynamics. There are subtly shifting harmonies, textures and colours and later a passage where the points of light are seemingly pointed up before rising upwards to an exhilarating coda. A terrific work.

A Medieval Bestiary (2011) explores man’s relationship with animals and takes its text from a 13^th century bestiary in the Bodleian library, Oxford. Again there are soloists drawn from the BBC Singers, Olivia Robinson (soprano), Elizabeth Poole (soprano), Margaret Cameron (mezzo-soprano), Stephen Jeffes (tenor), Simon Grant (bass) and Edward Price (bass).In ten sections A Medieval Bestiary opens with a Prologue where the BBC Singers sound out wonderfully in ‘Beasts of the Land …’ Tenor Stephen Jeffes in ‘Adam being the first man, gave to all living beings a name…’ is very fine, around which the choir sing. There is some remarkable choral writing as the names of the beasts are listed, rising to a pitch of swirling choral sound.

The Beasts of the Land brings a spoken section around which the choir keep a hushed wordless line as the spoken animal descriptions are woven effectively.  

The Panther is introduced by a quiet, gentle reflection on the world ‘Panther’ before male voices join to lead forward arriving at some very fine passages for mixed choir to which, later, a soprano brings a lovely line around the choir.

A soprano opens First Sermon before the choir bring a lovely contribution, gently rising and falling with tenors of the choir taking a separate line.

There is an equally gentle choral opening to The Beasts of the Water. Again Hughes shows how well he can evoke a particular quality, here beneath the sea as a female narrator describes the scene over the choral background.

With The Whale deep male voices slowly emerge before the mezzo Margaret Cameron rises in this remarkably fine section. The music rises to create the immensity of the creature with, later, a more dramatic passage on the words ‘Hungry, the warden of the ocean…’ The way Hughes lets female voices blossom out of the lower male textures is very fine before a very evocative coda.

Mezzo-soprano, Margaret Cameron introduces the Second Sermon ‘So you, O man, the eyes of whose heart are darkened…’ before the choir takes the text gently ahead.

In The Beasts of the Air the choir bring passages of changing dynamics and tempi as they soar around creating a feeling of space and freedom.

The Phoenix has a gentle, flowing opening, almost a languid beauty before tenor, Stephen Jeffes appears with ‘When the scorching sun/Looks across the world …’ before finding more drama and energy. The music falls for a soprano to sing ‘In time its corpse grows cold …’ rising slowly again for chorus with ‘In the ashes of the pyre…’ rising to a terrific overlay of choral textures to the coda.

Third Sermon a soprano weaves and soars around a chanting chorus in the most effective final part – before a tenor join sings ‘O man, make your …’ over a hushed held note for choir – and a soprano rises in the coda

This is an exceptionally fine disc. Bernard Hughes’ choral writing is innovative, melodic and always engaging.  He could not have finer advocates for his choral music. I haven’t heard the BBC Singers in finer voice than they are here. 

They receive a first rate recording from the BBC Studios, Maida Vale, London, England and excellent booklet notes from the composer as well as full English texts (except for anyone lived in a pretty how town due to copyright restrictions).