Daniel Hope AIR a baroque journey

From its creation in the mid-16th century by Andrea Amati to the present day, the modern violin has had an extraordinary and tempestuous history. Arguably its greatest development came during the Baroque era, as violinists and composers, in a sense liberated from the austerity and contrapuntal strictures of The Renaissance, went on a journey, both musically and geographically, avidly seeking more extravagant and original ways in which to express themselves on this fascinating new instrument.
Air sets out to trace one such Baroque journey. It is the story of four unique composers, three of whom were virtuoso violinists, one a lutenist – Falconiero, Matteis and Geminiani from Italy, and Westhoff from Germany. They wandered throughout Europe during the 17th and 18th centuries in search of musical inspiration and crosspollination, and their music and art of performance intrigued and delighted kings, contemporaries and audiences alike.
As well as works by these four composers, this album also features some of the other music of their time, in an attempt to show the cultural exchange taking place, much of it intuitively, between musical minds across borders.
Some of these composers were influenced directly by what they heard, whether it was Geminiani by Handel, Bach by Westhoff or Matteis by the wealth of folk music he encountered on his travels to the British Isles.
This album sets out to show just how diverse the music of the Baroque era was. Air blends the simplest and at times most primitive forms of dance music with the most sophisticated and revolutionary compositions of the day, culminating in a work by Bach - the great master, whose title is my inspiration for this collection, and whose music remains for me today more modern than that of anyone else. (Daniel Hope)

Andrea Falconieri (1585 - 1656)
1. Chaconne in G Major [3:14]
George Frideric Handel (1685 - 1759)
Suite No.15 in D minor for Harpsichord, HWV 447
2. 3. Sarabande [3:07]
Diego Ortiz
3. Ricercata segunda [1:25]
Andrea Falconieri (1585 - 1656)
4. La suave melodia [3:10]
Biagio Marini (1597 - 1665)
5. Passacalio in G minor [3:38]
Nicola Matteis
6. "La Vecchia Sarabanda" [4:17]
Johann Pachelbel (1653 - 1706)
Canon and Gigue in D major
7. 1. Canon [3:41]
8. 2. Gigue [1:25]
Georg Philipp Telemann (1681 - 1767)
Concerto for Violin concertato, Strings and Basso continuo in A minor, TWV 51:A1
9. Adagio [2:59]
10. Allegro [2:22]
11. Presto [1:41]
Johann Paul von Westhoff (1656 - 1705)
Sonata for Violin and Continuo III
12. Imitazione delle Campane [1:55]
Nicola Matteis
13. Ground after the Scotch Humour [1:50]
Francesco Geminiani
Concerto grosso No.5 in G minor
Arr. from Corelli's Sonata Op.5 No. 5
14. 1. Adagio [3:02]
15. 2. Vivace [1:38]
16. 3. Adagio [2:45]
17. 4. Allegro [1:40]
Antonio Valente
18. Gagliarda Napolitana [1:51]
Andrea Falconieri (1585 - 1656)
19. Passacaglia in G Minor [2:56]
Jean-Marie Leclair (1697 - 1764)
20. Tambourin [1:44]
Anonymous
21. Greensleeves [4:40]
Johann Paul von Westhoff (1656 - 1705)
Sonata "La guerra" in A Major
22. La Guerra cosí nominata di sua maestà [0:46]
Sonata for Violin and Continuo II
Sonata for Violin and Continuo "Consacrate al Grand' Apolline di questi tempi"
23. Imitazione del Liuto. Presto [2:26]
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750)
Suite No.3 in D, BWV 1068
24. 2. Air [5:01]

2009 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Hamburg
1 CD DDD
477 8094 6

You can buy it on Amazon.com
You can download here
PASSWORD: elhenry.MusicIsTheKey

Leonard Bernstein BEETHOVEN The Amnesty International Concert

This companion volume to the Symphonies in the Bernstein Collectors Edition brings together a truly remarkable group of recordings: the 1976 Amnesty International Concert is appearing for the first time on CD, along with the 'vividly dramatic' Missa Solemnis, the orchestral arrangements of the String Quartets Opp. 131 & 135 ('a fabulous disc'), the Berlin Ninth Symphony of 1989 ('a unique event vividly caught') and the Seventh Symphony from Bernstein's final concert at Tanglewood in 1990.

'If I don't feel I'm Beethoven, I'm not doing it well' - Leonard Bernstein

CD 1: Beethoven: The Amnesty International Concert

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827)
1. Overture "Leonore No.3", Op. 72a [14:25]
Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks
Leonard Bernstein
Piano Concerto No.4 in G, Op.58
2. 1. Allegro moderato [20:00]
3. 2. Andante con moto [5:40]
4. 3. Rondo (Vivace) [10:08]
Claudio Arrau
Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks
Leonard Bernstein

CD 2:
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827)
Symphony No.5 in C minor, Op.67
1. 1. Allegro con brio [8:05]
2. 2. Andante con moto [10:25]
3. 3. Allegro [5:18]
4. 4. Allegro [11:14]
Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks
Leonard Bernstein
Symphony No.7 in A, Op.92
5. 1. Poco sostenuto - Vivace [16:20]
6. 2. Allegretto [9:48]
7. 3. Presto - Assai meno presto [10:25]
8. 4. Allegro con brio [8:39]
Boston Symphony Orchestra
Leonard Bernstein

CD 3:
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827)
The Creatures of Prometheus, Op.43
1. Overtura. Adagio - Allegro molto con brio [5:00]
Music to Goethe's Tragedy "Egmont" op.84
2. Ouverture - Sostenuto, ma non troppo - Allegro [8:59]
3. Overture "Coriolan", Op.62 [8:57]
"King Stephen or Hungary's First Benefactor", Op.117
4. Andante con moto - Presto [6:52]
Fidelio op.72
5. Overture [7:15]
6. Overture "Leonore No.3", Op. 72a [15:07]
Wiener Philharmoniker
Leonard Bernstein

CD 4:
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827)
String Quartet in C sharp minor, Op.131
Version for String Orchestra by Dimitri Mitropoulos
1. 1. Adagio, ma non troppo e molto espressivo [8:45]
2. 2. Allegretto [3:15]
3. 3. Allegro moderato - attacca: [0:54]
4. 4. Andante, ma non troppo e molto cantabile - [17:15]
5. 5. Presto - Molto poco adagio -attacca: [6:03]
6. 6. Adagio quasi un poco andante - attacca: [2:45]
7. 7. Allegro [6:58]
String Quartet in F, Op.135
Version for String Orchestra
8. 1. Allegretto [7:17]
9. 2. Vivace [3:28]
10. 3. Lento assai, cantante e tranquillo [10:01]
11. 4. Der schwer gefaßte Entschluß (Grave - Allegro - Grave ma non troppo tratto - Allegro) [10:39]
Wiener Philharmoniker
Leonard Bernstein

CD 5:
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827)
1. Kyrie: Kyrie eleison [3:53]
2. Kyrie: Christe eleison [2:02]
3. Kyrie: Kyrie eleison [4:21]
4. Gloria: Gloria in excelsis Deo [4:48]
5. Gloria: Qui tollis peccata mundi [6:28]
Edda Moser, Hanna Schwarz, René Kollo, Kurt Moll, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, Bernard Bartelink, Netherlands Broadcasting Foundation Chorus, Hilversum, Meindert Boekel
6. Gloria: Quoniam tu solus sanctus [1:13]
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, Bernard Bartelink, Netherlands Broadcasting Foundation Chorus, Hilversum, Meindert Boekel
7. Gloria: In gloria Dei Patris, Amen [2:56]
8. Gloria: Amen - Quoniam tu solus sanctus [2:22]
Edda Moser, Hanna Schwarz, René Kollo, Kurt Moll, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, Bernard Bartelink, Netherlands Broadcasting Foundation Chorus, Hilversum, Meindert Boekel
9. Credo: Credo in unum Deum [4:08]
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, Bernard Bartelink, Netherlands Broadcasting Foundation Chorus, Hilversum, Meindert Boekel
10. Credo: Et incarnatus est [5:57]
Edda Moser, Hanna Schwarz, René Kollo, Kurt Moll, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, Bernard Bartelink, Netherlands Broadcasting Foundation Chorus, Hilversum, Meindert Boekel
11. Credo: Et ascendit in coelum [5:21]
12. Credo: Et vitam venturi saeculi [1:42]
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, Bernard Bartelink, Netherlands Broadcasting Foundation Chorus, Hilversum, Meindert Boekel
13. Credo: Amen [3:13]
Edda Moser, Hanna Schwarz, René Kollo, Kurt Moll, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, Bernard Bartelink, Netherlands Broadcasting Foundation Chorus, Hilversum, Meindert Boekel
14. Sanctus: Sanctus Dominus Deus Sabaoth [2:58]
Edda Moser, Hanna Schwarz, René Kollo, Kurt Moll, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, Bernard Bartelink
15. Sanctus: Pleni sunt coeli [1:07]
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, Bernard Bartelink, Netherlands Broadcasting Foundation Chorus, Hilversum, Meindert Boekel
16. Sanctus: Praeludium [2:13]
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, Bernard Bartelink
17. Sanctus: Benedictus [10:35]
Edda Moser, Hanna Schwarz, René Kollo, Kurt Moll, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, Herman Krebbers, Bernard Bartelink, Netherlands Broadcasting Foundation Chorus, Hilversum, Meindert Boekel
18. Agnus Dei: Agnus Dei [6:53]
19. Agnus Dei: Dona nobis pacem [2:11]
20. Agnus Dei: Agnus Dei [3:01]
21. Agnus Dei: Presto [3:53]
Edda Moser, Hanna Schwarz, René Kollo, Kurt Moll, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, Bernard Bartelink, Netherlands Broadcasting Foundation Chorus, Hilversum, Meindert Boekel

CD 6:
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827)
Symphony No.9 in D minor, Op.125 - "Choral"
1. 1. Allegro ma non troppo, un poco maestoso [18:05]
2. 2. Molto vivace [10:44]
3. 3. Adagio molto e cantabile [20:14]
Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Members of the Staatskapelle Dresden, Members of the Kirov Orchestra, Leningrad, Members Of The London Symphony Orchestra, Members Of The New York Philharmonic, Members of the Orchestre de Paris, Leonard Bernstein
4. 4. Presto - Allegro assai [28:57]
June Anderson, Sarah Walker, Klaus König, Jan-Hendrik Rootering, Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Members of the Staatskapelle Dresden, Members of the Kirov Orchestra, Leningrad, Members Of The London Symphony Orchestra, Members Of The New York Philharmonic, Members of the Orchestre de Paris, Leonard Bernstein, Bavarian Radio Chorus, Berlin Radio Chorus, Members, Dresden Philharmonic Childrens Chorus, Wolfgang Seeliger

2007 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Hamburg
6 Compact discs
477 6690 2 GB6

You can buy it on Amazon.com
You can download here: CD 1 / CD 2: Part 1 - Part 2 / CD 3 /CD 4: Part 1- Part 2 / CD 5: Part 1 - Part 2 / CD 6: Part 1 - Part 2

PASSWORD: elhenry.MusicIsTheKey

Hilary Hahn MENDELSSOHN / SHOSTAKOVICH (reuploaded)

Though at first glance these two concertos seem an odd coupling, Hilary Hahn offers convincing reasons for pairing them in her scholarly but rather chatty program notes. For the listener, the most important one is her avowed love and affinity for the music, which speak through every note of her performance. At 22, Hahn has developed from an arresting teenage prodigy into a formidable violinist. Her technique is equal to all challenges and so effortless that one forgets about it. Her tone has the directness and intensity of a laser beam and the unblemished purity of fine-spun crystal. This carries over into her style: clear and straightforward, without fuss, external effects, or exaggeration--there is hardly a slide on the whole record. If her playing is rather cool, it's also noble and emotionally so genuine that she can make a popular warhorse like the Mendelssohn sound fresh and new. She takes few rhythmic liberties, but freely changes tempo for mood and expression: the second theme of the first movement is much slower than the rest. The Shostakovich, too, sounds new and different. A repertory staple of all great Russian violinists, it is usually played with a lush tone and unbridled emotionality. Hahn captures the work's bleak, lamentatious despair, the obsessiveness and sardonic irony, but her playing has the sort of fire that burns ice-blue rather than red-hot. It projects a sense of restraint, of pent-up tension and excitement that finally burst out in the cadenza. It is a riveting performance. The orchestra is very good, but often too loud in the Mendelssohn. (Edith Eisler)

FELIX MENDELSSOHN (1809-1847)
Concerto in E minor for Violin and Orchestra, Op.64
1) I. Allegro molto appassionato (12:01)
2) II. Andante (8:11)
3) III. Allegretto non troppo - Allegro molto vivace (5:56)
Hilary Hahn, violin
Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra
conducted by Hugh Wolff

DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH (1906-1975)
Concerto for Violin and Orchestra No.1 in A minor, Op.77
4) I. Nocturne. Moderato (12:35)
5) II. Scherzo. Allegro non troppo (5:36)
6) III.Passacaglia. Andante (9:24)
7) Cadenza (5:20)
8) IV.Burlesque. Allegro con brio (4:36)
Hilary Hahn, violin
Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra
conducted by Marek Janowski


2002 Sony Classical
1 CD DDD
SK 89921

You can buy it on Amazon.com
You can download here
PASSWORD: elhenry.MusicIsTheKey

Alice Sara Ott TCHAIKOVSKY / LISZT First Piano Concertos

It is simply the piano concerto that no pianist is willing to forgo. Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto is now universally popular, a status that it has enjoyed, if not since its world premiere on 25 October 1875, when it was introduced to Boston audiences by Hans von Bülow, then at least since its triumphant performance in Paris three years later. It now seems almost grotesque that the composer was obliged to defend himself against the annihilating critique of his mentor Nikolay Rubinstein, commenting defiantly: “I won’t change a single note”.
Why does a 21-year-old pianist choose this perennial and much-performed piece for her first orchestral release? “I was 14 when I first performed Liszt’s E flat major Concerto, and 17 when I first played Tchaikovsky’s op.23. More of my memories and experiences are bound up with these two works than with any other.” One such memory is of Alice Sara Ott’s visit to Kamenka following her debut with the B flat minor Concerto in Kiev four years ago. It was here at Tchaikovsky’s sister’s country house in the Ukraine – now a museum – that in 1872 the composer was inspired to use Ukrainian folk music in works such as the Second Symphony (“Little Russian”) of 1872 and the B flat minor Piano Concerto of 1874–75. “The museum director told me that the main theme of the third movement comes from a Ukrainian folksong. She sang it to me and even obtained a copy of the music for me. Since then I always sing this song to myself whenever I play this theme. Experiences like these alter one’s view of a piece.”
In the course of the last four years Alice Sara Ott has played the Tchaikovsky Concerto some 50 times. Practising is important, but for her the real work starts onstage in the special atmosphere of the concert hall and in her creative response to her own physical stamina and to the acoustics, instrument, orchestra and audience. She regards both concertos in this recording as revolutionary works that depart from tradition not least by virtue of their formal design. “Take the powerful opening movement of Tchaikovsky’s Concerto. It begins with a theme based on a Ukrainian folksong, which is repeated twice but then disappears and is never again heard in this particular form. Ukrainian folk music often features in this concerto, above all in the wistful, lyrical passages. But then Tchaikovsky strikes a completely different note and in the second movement takes over this swirling French song Il faut s’amuser, danser et rire. For me, the work reflects many different facets of life. And it tells me a lot about Tchaikovsky’s contradictory character and his complexes as a homosexual. Many composers would have gone mad without music. It was the one place where they could express themselves freely. One can sense that in this piece, which shows so many different sides of Tchaikovsky’s personality: candid, ironic, happy, optimistic and, in the wistful melodic writing, depressive.” (Oswald Beaujean)

Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840 - 1893)
Piano Concerto No.1 in B flat minor, Op.23
1. 1. Allegro non troppo e molto maestoso - Allegro con spirito 20:58
2. 2. Andantino semplice - Prestissimo - Tempo I 7:00
3. 3. Allegro con fuoco 7:02
Franz Liszt (1811 - 1886)
Piano Concerto No.1 in E flat, S.124
4. 1. Allegro maestoso 5:54
5. 2. Quasi adagio - Allegretto vivace - Allegro animato 9:31
6. 3. Allegro marziale animato - Presto 4:22

Alice Sara Ott
Münchner Philharmoniker
Thomas Hengelbrock

2010 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Hamburg
1 CD DDD
477 8779 2 GH

You can download here
PASSWORD: elhenry.MusicIsTheKey

Fischer - Helmchen SCHUBERT Works for Violin and Piano Vol. 1

Schubert’s works for violin and piano are not among his masterpieces, with one exception, not found on this disc. So I began to listen with mild feelings of resignation, but the playing is so spontaneous, invigorating and fresh that, though I wouldn’t want, on the whole, to listen straight through, I found it constantly enjoyable.
The three sonatas all come from 1816, when Schubert was 19, and a year after he reached compositional maturity with his first great songs.
These sonatas have a model, as the songs didn’t have: Mozart. The first of them is strikingly derivative, as the notes claim, from Mozart’s E minor Sonata, K304, one of his first masterpieces.
The same can’t be said of Schubert’s Sonata in D major, D384, but it is unfailingly charming, and copes well with the problems that all string plus piano sonatas encounter – the sustaining tones of the violin against the more percussive ones of the piano.
These three sonatas are all lightweight, but when played with such sweet tone as Julia Fischer brings to them, and such sensitive and responsive pianism as the remarkable young pianist Martin Helmchen commands, the results are delightful.
I wouldn’t say quite the same about the Rondo in B minor, D895, which was written ten years later, when Schubert was at the height of his powers, but was mainly designed to show off the virtuosity of the violinist Slawjk. This is not an area where Schubert was most at home, but once again the performers do all they can for the piece. (Michael Tanner)

Franz Schubert (1797 - 1828)

Sonata (Sonatina) for Violin and Piano in D major, D. 384 (Op. 137, No. 1)

1) Allegro molto [4:10]

2) Andante [4:25]

3) Allegro vivace [4:00]

Sonata (Sonatina) for Violin and Piano in A minor, D. 385 (Op. 137, No. 2)

4) Allegro koderato [6:48)

5) Andante [7:29]

6) Menuetto (Allegro) [2:13]

7) Allegro [4:36]

Sonata(Sonatina) for Violin and Piano in G minor, D. 408 (Op. 137, No. 2)

8) Allegro giusto [4:46]
9) Andante [4:43]
10) Menuetto (Allegro vivace) [2:28]

11) Allegro moderato [4:04]

Rondo for Violin and Piano in B minor "Rondo Brillant", D. 895 (Op. 70)

12) Andante-Allegro [14:28]

Julia Fischer, violin

Martin Helmchen, piano

2009 PentaTone Music

1 CD DDD

PTC 5186347

You can buy it on Amazon.com
You can download here
PASSWORD: elhenry.MusicIsTheKey