Gurn's Classical Corner

[Gurn Blanston]

People interested in Johann Nepomuk Hummel's music will be eager to know that Brilliant has released a recording of one of his operas, Mathilde von Guise. I have listened to some numbers of it. The music is very good so far, showing German roots as well as some Italian influence.

It has been the first time I've heard Solamente naturali playing; this orchestra sounds, if not exceptional, firm and competent. The overture, as far as my simple audio system allows me to judge, has been intelligently played (I'd love to listen to it in my official audio system).

Very interesting, Gabriel. I've never heard any vocal music by Hummel, except for a mass several years ago. In fact, I am so ignorant that I didn't even know he wrote an opera score!   I will see if it comes out over here, sounds like something I need to hear.

[Gurn Blanston]

And speaking of new music, I got this today:



I have only had one quick listening so far. The Haydn piece on here is not Haydn, my memory lost its grip on who actually composed it, but I will look it up tonight. It's still an interesting little piece. The Albrechtsberger duos are not the heavy, fugal compositions that you might expect, but instead are nice, light entertaining works, nicely composed. They date from around 1797. Anyway, I'm glad I ran across this, I suspect it will hold up to several more listenings.

[Opus106]

The Albrechtsberger duos are not the heavy, fugal compositions that you might expect....

When you find the time, I'd appreciate it if you could provide me with some examples of his music which are heavy and fugal.

[Gurn Blanston]

When you find the time, I'd appreciate it if you could provide me with some examples of his music which are heavy and fugal.

Well, I don't have other recordings, so I came with expectations from reading about him. Here is an excerpt from Grove's, for example;

After his imperial appointment in 1772 he became increasingly preoccupied with the composition of fugues – over 240 for instruments in addition to numerous examples in the sacred music. His two-movement sonate (slow homophonic, fast fugal), of which he wrote over 120 for various instrumental combinations after 1780, developed out of the Baroque church sonata but were intended for chamber rather than church performance. They had little influence on the already mature sonata form. His approach to Viennese church composition tended, as Weissenbäck noted, towards formal sectionalization or polarization of homophonic and polyphonic textures. In spite of their technical refinements, these late works seem less imaginative than those of his earlier years

And his real claim to fame was in theory and teaching, his specialty being polyphony and counterpoint. More from Grove's:

Nevertheless it was through his teachings and theoretical writings that Albrechtsberger exerted the strongest influence on his contemporaries and succeeding generations of composers. He began attracting students as early as 1757 (Franz Schneider), and by the time of his death he was the most sought-after pedagogue in Europe. Haydn regarded him as 'the best teacher of composition among all present-day Viennese masters' and unhesitatingly sent Beethoven to him for instruction (1794–5). The fugues of Beethoven's last years, particularly op.133, owe much to his teachings. His international reputation as a theorist rested on his extremely popular treatises on composition (1790) and figured bass (c1791). In place of innovatory theoretical concepts these works contained a skilful combination of elements borrowed primarily from Fux and Marpurg. His principal achievement in this area was to formulate 18th-century theory in a language and format which were practical and suitable to the needs of contemporary instruction.

So, yes, I had certain expectations.   I'm not sure, however, what of all these musics have been recorded.

[Opus106]

Thanks a lot for the extracts, Gurn. It's too bad that not much of his output has been put on record.

[Gurn Blanston]

Thanks a lot for the extracts, Gurn. It's too bad that not much of his output has been put on record.

I agree, I would like to hear more. I know there is a disk of string quartets, but I haven't been able to run across it yet. Other than that, I think it is just bits and pieces on compilations. I have a couple of those though and like what I've heard.

[Opus106]

Searching for his music, I came across this rather interesting compilation yesterday -- a new release, in fact, from ZigZag.


Quatuor Rincontro

A fascinating CD coupling inspired arrangements by Mozart of fugues by J. S. Bach with Haydn quartets that feature a fugal movement and music by their contemporaries Werner and Albrechtsberger, highly esteemed by Emperor Joseph II, who even opened a special department for fugal forms in the imperial library in Vienna.

If I remember correctly, I read somewhere (must be that Naxos book) that A. wrote a lot for the organ at a time when it was not in vogue, and even joined as a church organist somewhere on the recommendation of Mozart. He must have had a special place in his heart for the music of the past.

[Gurn Blanston]

Here's another bit from Grove's on that;

Eye-witness accounts by critics such as Maximilian Stadler, Burney, Nicolai and Pasterwitz leave little doubt that Albrechtsberger was an extraordinarily talented organist. Mozart, the most reliable judge of all, considered his playing the standard by which other organists were to be measured (letter to Constanze, 16 April 1789). Towards the end of his life he was recognized as 'perhaps the greatest organist in the world'.

Hard to list all the works out of there (they all use cryptic abbreviations), but there are plenty of organ works. He is credited, through his teaching influence and books, with creating the atmosphere in Vienna that facilitated the revival of polyphony (and thus Baroque music) in the early 19th century. That is a big accomplishment.

[Antoine Marchand]

Hey, Classical and Romantic fellows, Schoenberg is giving a beating to Mendelssohn in another thread. We must do something!  

[SonicMan46]

Well received a small box from BRO yesterday, and one of my selections was a classical composer who is completely 'new' to me and likely has no other recordings (can't even find a WIKI article!) - 

Pratsch, Johann Gottfried (ca. 1750-1818) (a.k.a. Ivan Pratsch) - Chamber Music from St. Petersburg w/ Lubimov on fortepiano; works for piano, piano + cello, and a Mozart transcription (K. 493) arranged for two fortepianos.

Pratsch was Czech (born in Silesia) but went to St. Petersburg in his mid-20s; he was associated w/ teaching music to aristocratic family members (assume quite popular at the time!), other teaching responsibilities, and in the maintenance and repair of pianos (which would be fortepianos then), harpsichords, and clavichords.  He first came to 'fame' for the publication of a collection of Russian Folk Songs about 1790, where the first name 'Ivan' was used.  Pratsch apparently composed a considerable amount of music, but how much? Plus, the liner notes leave little information as to his own instrumental prowess? Yet another 'lost soul' from the classical era - how many of these Europeans (including John Field) ended up to the courts of Russia?  Is there a book, and if not, a topic of potential interest?  Dave 

[Gurn Blanston]

Well received a small box from BRO yesterday, and one of my selections was a classical composer who is completely 'new' to me and likely has no other recordings (can't even find a WIKI article!) - 

Pratsch, Johann Gottfried (ca. 1750-1818) (a.k.a. Ivan Pratsch) - Chamber Music from St. Petersburg w/ Lubimov on fortepiano; works for piano, piano + cello, and a Mozart transcription (K. 493) arranged for two fortepianos.

Pratsch was Czech (born in Silesia) but went to St. Petersburg in his mid-20s; he was associated w/ teaching music to aristocratic family members (assume quite popular at the time!), other teaching responsibilities, and in the maintenance and repair of pianos (which would be fortepianos then), harpsichords, and clavichords.  He first came to 'fame' for the publication of a collection of Russian Folk Songs about 1790, where the first name 'Ivan' was used.  Pratsch apparently composed a considerable amount of music, but how much? Plus, the liner notes leave little information as to his own instrumental prowess? Yet another 'lost soul' from the classical era - how many of these Europeans (including John Field) ended up to the courts of Russia?  Is there a book, and if not, a topic of potential interest?  Dave 

Wow, Dave, he IS obscure! Nice catch. Here is his article in Grove's:

Pratsch, Johann Gottfried [Prach, Ivan; Práč, Jan Bohumir]
(b Silesia, c1750; d ?St Petersburg, c1818). Czech composer, teacher and folksong collector. Much of his life was spent in Russia. From 1780 until 1795 he taught music at the Smolnïy Institute, and in 1784 he was appointed harpsichord teacher at the St Petersburg Theatre School. His keyboard compositions include a sonata in C (1787), six variations on an allemande by Martín y Soler (1794), Fandango (1795), 12 variations (1802), a sonata based on Russian themes (1806), eight variations on the folktune Tï podi, moya korovushka, domoy ('Be off home with you, my little cow!', 1815) and an unpublished rondo. He also made a keyboard arrangement of the music from Martín y Soler's opera Gorebogatïr Kosometovich ('The Sorrowful Hero Kosometovich') and Pashkevich's Fevey (both 1789). His most important work, however, was the Sobraniye narodnïkh russkikh pesen s ikh golosami ('Collection of Russian folksongs with vocal parts'), one of the earliest collections of Russian folktunes, which he made in collaboration with N.A. L'vov. In its first edition (St Petersburg, 1790) this comprised 100 songs; larger revised editions were published in 1806 (repr. as A Collection of Russian Folk Songs by Nikolai Lvov and Ivan Prach, 1987) and 1815.

I'm going to zip over there right now and see if there is still a copy waiting for me. A man who can write variations on 'Be off home with you, my little cow!' is someone I need to look into!   Thanks for the tip.




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Now playing:
Ensemble Claviere - G 414 Quintet in Bb for Clavier & Strings Op 57 #2 1st mvmt - Allegretto moderato

[Gurn Blanston]

Speaking of St. Petersburg, Catherine must have had some kind of musical establishment. It seems as though half the musicians in Europe spent some time there. Another one who stayed for the duration of his life was Anton Ferdinand Titz. Once again the adventurous Sonic Guy turned me on to this composer, and I ended up with 2 of his disks, not knowing if there are any others available. That would be these:



They are worth seeking out, nice music.

In any case, here is some info on Titz, also from Grove's:

Titz [Tietz, Dietz, Dietzsch], Anton [August] Ferdinand (b Nuremberg, c1742; d St Petersburg, 25 Dec 1810/6 Jan 1811).
German violinist and composer, active in Russia. He was orphaned at an early age and was taught painting in Nuremberg by Johann C. and Barbara R. Dietzsch, his uncle and aunt. By the age of 16 he was a violinist at St Sebaldus's church there. After an unhappy love affair a few years later he went to Vienna, where he played in the opera orchestra and may have studied with Haydn. In 1771 he became a member of the Hofkapelle in St Petersburg; Catherine the Great paid him the highest salary of any of her court musicians. He also taught at the theatre school, gave the future Tsar Aleksandr I violin lessons, directed a court chamber orchestra (which included the clarinettist Joseph Beer and other outstanding musicians), and performed publicly, for instance in 1782, but most of his performances were at court, as a violinist and viola d'amore player. Later in life he suffered a mental disorder that sometimes prevented him from working, but he was encouraged and protected by Senator A.G. Teplov, a St Petersburg amateur musician. He dedicated three string quartets to Teplov and three more to Aleksandr I.
Titz was particularly admired for his sensitive playing of adagio passages, but by the time Spohr met him in St Petersburg in 1803 his technical assurance had gone. His compositions are mainly chamber works in the Viennese Classical style; his string quartets strive for a large dramatic compass and the three upper parts have considerable independence. He also wrote some small vocal works (now lost), including Le pigeon bleu et noir gémit, a romance that was popular in Russian salons until the mid-19th century. He has often been confused with the Dresden violinist Ludwig Tietz.
WORKS
Str qts: 6 quatuors, op.1 (Vienna, c1781–9, Paris, n.d.); 3 quatuors (Bonn, c1802, Leipzig, n.d.); 6, A-Wn; 3 pubd in St Petersburg, cited in Mooser
Other inst: 3 duos ... avec romance & rondeaux, 2 vn (Vienna, c1785); Sonate, hpd/pf, vn obbl, op.1 (St Petersburg, 1795); Sonate, op.2 (St Petersburg, c1799); Sonate, op.3 (St Petersburg, c1799); 3 sonatas, vn, b (Vienna, c1802); Sonate, vn, b (Moscow, n.d.); Sonate, vn, b (Leipzig, n.d.); 10 str qnts, A-Wgm, Wn; Sym., Pavloskiy dvorets-muzey; Vn Conc., 2 sonatas for vn, b, all Wgm; Sonata, vn, b, pubd in St Petersburg, cited in Mooser

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Now playing:
Ensemble Claviere - G 414 Quintet in Bb for Clavier & Strings Op 57 #2 2nd mvmt - Minuetto: Tempo giusto - Trio

[SonicMan46]

Wow, Dave, he IS obscure! Nice catch. Here is his article in Grove's:

I'm going to zip over there right now and see if there is still a copy waiting for me. A man who can write variations on 'Be off home with you, my little cow!' is someone I need to look into!   Thanks for the tip.

Good evening Gurn - thanks for the added information on Pratsch - the liner notes are not that informative regarding his biography or his output!

Concerning your follow-up post on Titz, he has been my 'wish list' for ages but just have not bought a CD yet - will explore; and YES that Russian court at Catherine's time must have been a fun place (and for a variety of reasons) - Dave 

[Opus106]

It is with the last movement that the quartet [Op. 59 No. 1] earns the sobriquet "Russian". In this movement Beethoven quotes an actual Theme Russe though modified somewhat, said to be found in a collection of Russian folk music published by Ivan Pratsch.

Interesting, no?

Source

[Gurn Blanston]

It is with the last movement that the quartet [Op. 59 No. 1] earns the sobriquet "Russian". In this movement Beethoven quotes an actual Theme Russe though modified somewhat, said to be found in a collection of Russian folk music published by Ivan Pratsch.

Interesting, no?

Source

Interesting yes! I had forgotten altogether that the source of that folksong was named at one time, since it is usually given without attribution. Very interesting, thanks, Navneeth!



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Now playing:
Ensemble Claviere - G 417 Quintet in E for Clavier & Strings Op 57 #5 2nd mvmt - Adagio

[Gurn Blanston]

Over the course of the last couple of years, member SonicMan has been periodically bringing up a composer named Antonio Casimir Cartellieri. Despite the fact that Dave has consummate good taste, I was tied up enough with other composers at the time that I have it a miss. My loss.   Anyway, I ran across an opportunity to acquire nearly the entire recorded oeuvre at one stroke with this 5 disk set on MD&G, which is mainly the work of Dieter Klöcker. Which should also inform you that Cartellieri is primarily one of those clarinet guys, you know the ones I mean from that time, like Carl Stamitz, Krommer, Crusell; guys that certainly wrote other stuff too, but to whom you can always turn if you are in the mood for some reliably great clarinet works. And A. Casimir is easily as good as any of them.



Here is his entry on the New Grove:
Cartellieri, Antonio Casimir
(b Danzig, 27 Sept 1772; d Liebshausen, Bohemia, 2 Sept 1807). Bohemian composer. He received a musical education at an early age from his parents: his father, an Italian tenor, Antonio Maria Gaetano, and his mother, from Riga, the singer Elisabeth Böhm, as she was known professionally at the Königliches Opernhaus in Berlin after her second marriage. His parents' unhappy marriage and subsequent divorce led to Antonio's leaving home at the age of 13. After several difficult years, he emerged in 1791 as music director and court composer to Count Oborsky. In 1792 he accompanied his employer to Berlin, where he achieved his first success as a dramatic composer. During his subsequent sojourn with the Count in Vienna, he studied counterpoint with Albrechtsberger, Seyfried and possibly Beethoven, and operatic composition with Salieri. Cartellieri's first public appearance with Beethoven was in 1795 in a concert which saw both the première of his own oratorio Gioas re di Giuda and Beethoven's first public performance as a pianist in Vienna. Prince Lobkowitz, who had noticed Cartellieri at Oborsky's concerts, engaged him in 1796 as Kapellmeister, singing teacher and violinist. In addition to directing operas at the princely court, Cartellieri had to play in instrumental concerts, which sometimes included premières of works by Beethoven under the direction of the composer, for example, the Eroica Symphony and the Triple Concerto on 23 January 1805. In 1800 he married Franziska Kraft, whose father Anton gave Haydn's well-known cello concerto its première. Unlike his parents, Cartellieri had a happy marriage which produced three sons, including Joseph who succeeded to his father's post with Lobkowitz. Cartellieri died of a heart attack at the age of 35. His premature death prevented his music from becoming more widely known. Partly influenced by his great Viennese contemporaries and partly anticipating later features of Romanticism, Cartellieri's style is nonetheless unlike any other. In terms of compass and originality his works merit revival. The popular canon 'Oh come lieto in seno' from his opera Il segreto was formerly misattributed to Mozart.
WORKS
(selective list)
sacred
Masses: B , 4vv, orch, I-Fc; C, 1806, A-Ee; C, SATB, orch, KR; C, 4vv, orch, I-Fc; c, 2 choruses, orch, Raudnitz, 1806, A-Wgm*, CZ-Pnm, I-Fc; D, 4vv, orch, CZ-Pnm, I-Fc; d, CZ-BER; d, CZ-Pnm; E , 4vv, orch, A-Wn, CZ-Pnm, I-Fc; E, 4vv, orch, Fc; g, CZ-Pnm
Orats: Gioas re di Giuda (azione sacra, 2, P. Metastasio), Vienna, 1794, A-Wgm, CZ-Pnm, I-Fc; La purificazione di Maria Vergine (L. Prividali), Prague, 1807, A-Wn, CZ-Pnm, I-Fc; Per celebrare la festività del S.S. Natale (Prividali), A-Wn, CZ-Pnm, I-Fc
Numerous motets, offs, grads and other sacred works
secular
Ops: Die Geisterbeschwörung (Spl, 2), Berlin, 1793, CZ-Pnm, D-Bsb, I-Fc; Angarda Regina di Boemia (op eroicomica, 2), Vienna, 1800, CZ-Pnm, I-Fc; Der Rübezahl (komische Oper, 3), 1801, CZ-Pnm, I-Fc; Il segreto (farsa per musica, 1, Hoffmann and Prividali), 1804, CZ-Pnm; Atalinda (op eroicomica, 2), Pnm, I-Fc; Il duello fortunato (farsa per musica, 1), CZ-Pnm, I-Fc; Il giudice nella propria causa (commedia per musica, 2), Fc
Cants.: Kontimar und Zora (poemetto musicale, 1), Berlin, 1792, I-Fc; Die Siegesfeier, Vienna, 1797, Fc
Numerous arias, duets, trios and qts
instrumental
3 syms.: c, before 1796 (Darmstadt, n.d.); E , before 1796, Fc (Darmstadt, n.d.); C, Fc
5 concs.: cl, B , Cz-Pk, Pnm (inc.); cl, E , Pk, I-Fc; 2 cl, B , Cz-Pk; cl, inc., Pk; fl, G, D-BFb, DK-Kk (Darmstadt, 1797)
3 wind divertimentos, all in F, A-Wn, Wgm, CZ-Bm
Türkische Musik, Pk; Notturno, Pk
Andantino con variazioni, pf, D-MÜs (Leipzig, n.d.)
Numerous other orch and chbr works
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Biography and list of works by Antonio Cartellieri by his son Joseph (MS, A-Wgm); partially pubd in disc notes, Antonio Casimir Cartellieri: Concertos for Clarinet and Orchestra, MDG 301 0527-2 (1996)
V. Schwarz: 'Fürst Franz Joseph Maximilian Lobkowitz und die Musikpflege auf Raudnitz und Eisenberg', Haydn Yearbook 1978, 121–31
D. Klöcker: 'Anton Casimir Cartellieri (1772–1807) und seine drei Wiener Bläserdivertimenti', Oboe, Klarinette, Fagott, vii/2 (1992), 111–16
DIETER KLÖCKER


So, if the opportunity comes along for you to snap up one of his disks for a tryout, by all means do it. Being a chamber guy, I am particularly taken by his clarinet quartets (of which there are 5 recorded). But if you prefer a good concerto, don't overlook these! 



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Now playing:
Spada (Keyboard) \ Biocotino (Flute) \ Bergamelli (Cello) - Clementi Op 32 #1 Sonata in F for Keyboard, Flute & Cello 1st mvmt - Presto

[Gurn Blanston]

Another composer who has been mentioned here a few times but had previously been nearly unexplored by me is Bernard Romberg. Not a clarinetist finally, but in fact a very well-known and highly regarded cellist instead.

I have only 2 recordings with his works, and only one of them is pure Romberg:



The "King of Prussia" disk I have had for a while. It has works for cello & fortepiano by Beethoven, Duport and Romberg. Of course, they all had the King of Prussia (Friedrich Wilhelm II) in common, and Beethoven dedicated his 2 Op 5 cello sonatas to the King. Romberg and Duport were the 2 cellists in his orchestra. In any case, there is a sonata for cello & pianoforte on this disk by Romberg and it is really quite nice, the entire disk is worth a listen if you can get hold of it.

The other disk I just got today. It has 3 symphonies by Romberg, and I have to say, he surprised me. They are very good indeed, rather more in the mold of the early Romantic than the Classical. This will bear up to more listening for sure!

So, here is a bit more info on the lad, courtesy of Grove's.

Bernhard Heinrich Romberg
(b Dinklage, Oldenburg, 13 Nov 1767; d Hamburg, 13 Aug 1841). Cellist and composer, cousin of (1) Andreas Jakob Romberg. He learnt the cello from his father, Bernhard Anton Romberg, and until about 1799 followed a career largely identical to that of his cousin, touring in Holland and Germany and in 1785 giving six performances at the Concert Spirituel in Paris. He then played with his cousin in the electoral orchestra in Bonn, 1790–92, and from 1793 at Schröder's Ackermannsches Komödienhaus in Hamburg. While visiting Vienna with Andreas in 1796, Bernhard gave the first performance in that city of Beethoven's two op.5 cello sonatas with the composer. The two cousins returned to Schröder's theatre in 1797, but left two years later following a contractual dispute.

Romberg then toured London, Portugal and Spain, visiting Boccherini in Madrid. In 1799 he arrived in Paris, where he was active as a cellist and composer and from 1801 to 1803 taught at the Conservatoire. In 1805 he joined the royal court orchestra in Berlin as Jean-Louis Duport's desk partner, but left after the French invasion of 1806. In constant demand as a soloist, he toured continually between 1806 and 1815, visiting Russia and London among other destinations. Romberg returned to Berlin in 1815 as second Kapellmeister, where his duties included the production of E.T.A. Hoffmann's Undine; he resigned after Spontini's appointment as Generalmusikdirektor (1819), and resumed his concert tours and entered a piano manufacturing business. He ceased touring in 1836, and in 1839 completed his Méthode de violoncelle. Among his pupils were J.J.F. Dotzauer, J.G. Arnold and Count Mateusz Wielhorski; his influence and personal interest extended to many other cellists and composers.

Romberg, who played a 1711 Stradivari, made several significant innovations to cello construction and technique: he introduced 'modern' instrument fittings and Tourte le jeune's bows to Germany and eastern Europe. He adopted a leveraged bow held at the frog, and his 'broad' style of playing initiated modern or Romantic concepts of tone production. Generating widened vibrations from the C string, he consequently altered the curvature of the fingerboard, a modification that Spohr adopted for the violin. He also codified cello notation to modern usage.

Called 'the hero of all violoncellists, the king of all virtuosos' by the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung, Romberg was a charismatic performer, and always played solos from memory. His own cello compositions combined techniques pioneered by earlier Mannheim cellists with those from the French violin school of Viotti. His thumb position fingerings fully exploited the stationary 'block' hand positions familiar to Anton Fils and J.B. Tricklir. By using all four fingers across all four strings, Romberg brought speed, range, dexterity and accessibility to the upper registers of the lower strings, and in his use of natural and artificial harmonics he anticipated Paganini's developments on the violin. He also explored bowing techniques suitable to the Tourte bow, and expanded the use of legato slurring and contrasting dynamics and timbres.

Romberg's instrumental works remained popular throughout the 19th century and are still used for teaching purposes. Stylistically, they reflect the influences of Mozart and Viotti, although their melodies are often derived from idiomatic figures that exploit Romberg's distinctive fingerings. In spite of abundant passage-work, his music shows structural cohesiveness, and the chamber and solo works richly explore the cello's sonority and technical resources.

WORKS
theatrical
Der Schiffbruch (operetta, J.J. Pfeiffer), Bonn, 1791
Die wiedergefundene Statue (op, A.W. Schwick, after C. Gozzi), Bonn, 1790
Ulysses und Circe (op, 3, after P. Calderón de la Barca), Berlin, 1807; as Alma, Hamburg, 1823
Rittertreue (op, F.W. Trautvetter), Berlin, 1817
Daphne und Agathokles (ballet), Berlin, 1818
Incid music: Heinrich IV. (Francke); Phèdre (J. Racine)
orchestral
5 syms., op.23 ('Trauer-Symphonie'), op.28, op.53, 1 without op. no.; Kindersymphonie, op.62; 3 ovs., op.11, op.26, op.34
10 vc concs., op.2, op.3, op.6, op.7, op.30, op.31 ('Military'), op.44 ('Swiss'), op.48 ('Brillante'), op.56 ('Grand'), op.75 ('Brillante'); 6 concertinos, vc, orch; Fl Conc., op.30; Concertino, 2 hn, orch, op.41; Double conc., vn, vc, orch
c50 rondos, variations, fantasias, capriccios, divertimentos, potpourris, vc, orch and vc, str orch/str qt; other concert works with solo fl, vn, pf and hp
other works
Chbr: 11 str qts, 3 as op.1, op.12, 3 as op.25, op.37, op.39, op.59, op.60; Pf Qt, op.22; Divertissement, pf trio, op.71; Str Trio, op.8; 3 Trios, 2 vc, va, op.38; 3 sonatas, vn/vc, pf/hp, op.5, op.6, 1 without op. no.; 9 duos, vn, vc, 3 as op.4, 3 as op.9, 3 as op.33; other duos, collab. A.J. Romberg
Vc studies, 3 bks
Variations, dance pieces, pf solo
Vocal: Laudate Jehova, motet (Russ. text); Ich weiss, das mein Erlöser lebt (P. Gerhardt); 3 passion songs; several solo songs

Good listening,
Gurn



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Now playing:
Kölner Akademie / Willens  (PI) - Romberg Op 28 Symphony #2 in Eb 1st mvmt - Allegro

[Gabriel]

Thanks, Gurn, for the advice on those composers. About Cartellieri, MD&G also released a recording of Gioas, re di Giuda, that is not included in the 5-CD set.

I have an advice for all lovers of sacred music of the Classical period: there's a new Supraphon release, containing the complete sacred works of Voříšek as well as some sacred works by Tomášek. The performance of Musica Florea led by Marek Štryncl is excellent, but in my opinion it doesn't fit very well the works by Tomášek, that would need more substantial vocal and instrumental forces. On the other hand, it does fit Voříšek, whose genius shines in the Mass - that has been recorded before - as well as in the three "minor" sacred works. They are not really "minor": the Offertorium Quoniam iniquitatem, which lasts four minutes, would justify by itself the price of the full CD. Its music is sensational, and would deserve a place among the most excellent sacred music of classicism. The first section is a model of reciprocity between text and music, while the second is an impressive fugue.

Alas, the latin text has been poorly translated to the other languages in the booklet: "Remitte tu mihi Domine priusquam abeam" is translated to English as "Look away from me, Lord, before I depart and be no more". The point is that the Christian specific meaning of "remittere" is "to forgive": the translation should have been "Forgive me, Lord, before I depart".

[Gurn Blanston]

Somewhere, here and there (probably while I was looking for Concerto Köln disks) I ran across this one and decided to have a go at it:



Turns off to be really quite interesting and worthwhile. Rigel was very well-known and popular in both pre & post Revolutionary Paris, supplying works both of his own composition, and later, work by others that he was the printer/publisher of.

I can easily recommend these works. A contemporary who would be fair to compare to would be Gossec, and I would say that Rigel would come out on the favorable end of that. Nice disk!

Now, some info about Rigel. From Grove's of course. More info than usual since apparently he is only obscure now, certainly not then!

Henri-Joseph Rigel
(b Wertheim, 9 Feb 1741; d Paris, 2 May 1799). Conductor, teacher and composer. He was the son of Georg Caspar Riegel, an intendant (from about 1725 to his death in 1754) for Prince Löwenstein. After Georg's death his widow Maria Anna petitioned the prince for the support of her under-aged children, and it is probable that he furthered the musical education of her sons. In 1767 the name Riegel appeared for the first time in the Breitkopf Catalogue, with incipits for seven symphonies and one violin concerto. According to La Borde (Essai sur la musique, 1780), Rigel studied with Jommelli in Stuttgart, was sent by F.X. Richter to France 'pour faire l'éducation d'une jeune personne', and then settled in Paris in 1768. From this statement, it could be inferred that he studied in Mannheim with Richter. However, La Borde's date for Rigel's arrival in the French capital is inexact. The French press places him in Paris early in 1767 with the announcement of his op.1, Six sonates pour clavecin, obtainable 'chez l'auteur, rue S. Marc, maison de M. Dupin de Francueil' (Annonces, 9 April 1767). The dedicatee, Mlle Dupin de Francueil (later George Sand's aunt), is possibly the 'jeune personne' referred to by La Borde. Rigel was probably first employed, about 1764–5, outside Paris on her father's estates. In 1768 he established his own residence in Paris, and that is also the probable date of his marriage; it was in these quarters that his sons were born in 1769 and 1772.

During the 1770s Rigel wrote numerous instrumental works (sonatas, quartets, concertos and symphonies) that were performed in Parisian concert rooms. On 2 February 1774 a symphony by Rigel first appeared on a programme at the Concert Spirituel. Two oratorios by him written during this period, La sortie d'Egypte (1774) and La déstruction de Jéricho (1778), enjoyed an immense success; the former was performed at the Concert Spirituel no fewer than 27 times from 1775 to 1786, and was performed in Paris as late as 1822. In about 1780 Rigel turned his attention from instrumental and sacred vocal composition to the writing of large-scale stage works. After 1780 his wife is no longer mentioned, and within the next two years, his younger brother Anton Riegel came to live with him and act as his publisher until Boyer took over the sale and publication of his works in 1784. Between 1778 and his death in 1799, Rigel composed all of his 14 operatic works. He worked with a variety of librettists, composing operas for most of the prominent Parisian theatres, including the Comédie-Italienne, Théâtre Feydeau, Théâtre de l'Ambigu-Comique and the Opéra. In 1783 (and later) he was officially listed among the ten 'compositeurs de Concert Spirituel'. According to the projet of 1783 for the Ecole Royale de Chant, Rigel was appointed maître de solfège. The same source states that he was previously associated with the Paris Opéra. After the Revolution, when the school was reorganized as the Conservatoire, he remained as a professor première classe of the piano, a position he held for the rest of his life. Also in 1783 (and in 1787–8) Rigel is listed as chef d'orchestre of the Concert Spirituel. In the early 1790s works by him appeared frequently on programmes at the Cirque du Palais-Royal and the Concert du Cirque National.

Henri-Joseph Rigel was one of the most respected musicians in Paris during the last quarter of the 18th century. His contemporaries praised the excellence of his teaching as well as the quality of his compositions. His oratorios and motets, all written for the Concert Spirituel, had remarkable records of performances. Although he composed 14 stage works (of which most of the music is lost), Rigel was less successful as an operatic composer; his talent was lyrical rather than dramatic. Of his most popular opera, Rosanie (1780), the editor of the Mercure de France, after reproaching the composer for interrupting the forward motion of his action with 'des airs à roulades', wrote the following: 'his style is pure; his workmanship is learned; his composition is full of ideas; his expression is true; his accompaniments well conceived, and his melodies of a fluent and graceful nature'. Rigel's principal contribution, however, was to instrumental music. His numerous works for the keyboard continued the tradition of the French piano school begun by Schobert. Except for the sonatas op.1 (1767), all his keyboard compositions are accompanied by a diversified assortment of instruments. Most are in two or three concise movements. Half of the Six sonates op.13 employ dance or dance-like movements: Scherzo, Allemande stirienne, Marcia maestoso à la polonese, etc. Despite their designation of both harpsichord and piano in the title, his works appear to have been conceived primarily for the piano, as evidenced by their wide range of dynamics and sonorities. The very nature of their settings, i.e. Sonates de clavecin en quatuor op.7, or Second oeuvre de symphonies pour le clavecin ou piano-forte op.17 (both with optional parts for two violins, two horns and a cello), indicates the composer's orchestral conception and treatment of the instrument. Similarly, half the solo sonatas show a strong influence of contemporary orchestral style: there are full, repeated chords in both hands at the opening of movements and important cadences, extended octave tremolos, and strongly contrasting second themes preceded by pauses. Rigel wrote more than 20 orchestral works, comprising symphonies, solo concertos, and an unusual Concerto concertant op.20 for keyboard and solo violin with orchestra. All are in three movements, except for the Sinfonie pastorale (op.21 no.4), which has an opening Andante preceding the usual fast–slow–fast movements. Frequent performances of this work were reported at the Concert Spirituel, Concert des Amateurs and the Concert de la Loge Olympique. The orchestral works are excellent examples of an internationalized style. The salient feature in Rigel's orchestral music, as pointed out by Sondheimer (1956, p.223), is its remarkable lyricism. Sondheimer distinguished two melodic types, the first of 'sweet grace and loveliness with every tone of touching affection [symbolizing] ... feminine beauty. The second is in the minor and of a passionate and yearning disposition'. Rigel applied his lyrical gifts to many genres and styles with a great deal of success.

WORKS
operas
first performed in Paris unless otherwise stated - printed works published in Paris
Le savetier et le financier (oc, 2, J.-B. Lourdet de Santerre, after J. de La Fontaine), Marly, 23 Oct 1778 (1782), airs (1778), ov. (1779)
Le départ des matelots (cmda, 1, ?J. Rutlidge), Comédie-Italienne (Bourgogne), 23 Nov 1778
Cora et Alonzo (grand opéra, 4, P.-U. Dubuisson), commissioned by Opéra, 1779, unperf.
Rosanie (comédie lyrique, 3, A.-M.-D. Devismes), Comédie-Italienne (Bourgogne), 24 July 1780, excerpts (1780); rev. as Azélie, Monsieur, 4 July 1790, F-Mc, excerpts (n.d.)
Blanche et Vermeille (comédie pastorale, 2, J.-P. Florian), Comédie-Italienne (Bourgogne), 5 March 1781; rev. (2), 26 May 1781 (1781); rev. (1), 26 March 1782, excerpts (n.d.)
L'automate (cmda, 1, Cuinet-Dorbeil), Comédie-Italienne (Bourgogne), 20 Aug 1781
Ariane fille de Minos (comédie mêlée de couplets, 1, L.H. Dancourt), Beaujolais, 1784
Les amours du Gros-Caillou (oc, 1, F.-J. Guillemain), Beaujolais, 10 April 1786
Aline et Zamorin, ou L'amour turc [also listed as Atine et Zamorin] (opéra bouffon, 3, Dancourt), Beaujolais, 26 Sept 1786, excerpts (n.d.)
L'entrée du seigneur (oc, 1, Lebas), Beaujolais, 21 Oct 1786
Lucas et Babet, ou La veillée (oc, 1, ?J.-L. Gabiot de Salins), Beaujolais, 15 June 1787, Pc*
Alix de Beaucaire (drame lyrique, 3, M.-J. Boutillier), commissioned by Comédie-Italienne, 1787, perf. Montansier, 10 Nov 1791, Mc, Pc*
Estelle et Némorin (mélodrame pastoral, 2, Gabiot de Salins, after Florian), Ambigu-Comique, 25 June 1788 (1788)
Le bon fermier (cmda, 1, ?E.J.B. Delrieu or Gabiot de Salins), Beaujolais, 18 May 1789, Pc*
Pauline et Henri (cmda, 1, Boutillier), Feydeau, 9 Nov 1793, Pc; as Edmond et Caroline, Pc*
Le magot de la Chine (opéra bouffon, 1, Dancourt), Ambigu-Comique, 6 Aug 1800 [posth.]
other vocal
Sacred (all perf. Paris, Concert Spirituel): La sortie d'Egypte, orat, 1774; La déstruction de Jéricho, orat, 1778; Regina coeli, motet, grand chorus, 1780; Ave verum, motet, 1783; Jepthé, orat, 1783; Les macchabées, orat
Revolutionary: Hymne sur l'enfance, ou Le devoir des mères (F.G. Desfontaines) (Paris, 1794); Hymne à la liberté, ou Hymne pour la Fête du 10 août (Baour-Lormian), 4vv (Paris, 1795), ed. C. Pierre, Fêtes et cérémonies de la Révolution française (Paris, 1899)
Many others pubd in collections and singly, incl. Le ménage comme il y a peu (Person) (Paris, 1793), L'amant trahi, ariette (Paris, c1778); some pubd in Mercure de France
instrumental
First published in Paris; many later editions in Mannheim, Offenbach and Vienna, usually with different opus numbers; see DTB, xxviii, Jg.xvi (1915/R)
Syms.: 7 cited in Breitkopf catalogue of 1767 [1 pubd as op.12 no.1, 2 pubd as op.21 nos.3 and 5, 1 in CH-E, 3 lost]; 1, C, c1767, D-Rtt [listed under '?A. Riegel']; 6 sinfonies, op.12 (1774), nos. 2, 4 ed. R. Sondheimer (London, 1938–9); 1, D, no.3 in 3 simphonies à grand orchestre: Gossec & Rigel (1782); 1, g, no.2 in 3 simphonies à grand orchestre: Rosetti, Rigel & Ditters (1783); 6 simphonies, op.21 (1786), no.2 ed. in B.S. Brook (1962), 2 ed. in Foreign Composers in France, 1750–1790 (New York, 1984)
Concs.: 1 for vn, G, cited in Breitkopf Catalogue of 1767; ler, hpd, op.2 (c1770); 2me, hpd, op.3 (c1770); 2 for hpd, op.11 (c1773); 1 for hpd, no.1 in Journal de pièces de clavecin, ?op.19 (1784); Concerto concertant, hpd, solo vn, no.36 of Journal de pièces de clavecin, op.20 (1786)
Chbr: 6 sonates, hpd, op.1 (1767); 6 quatuors dialogués, str qt, op.4 (c1770); Pièces de clavecin mêlées de préludes pour les commenceants, op.5 (c1770); Suite des pièces ... mêlées de préludes, hpd, acc. vn ad lib, op.6 (c1771); Sonates de clavecin en quatuor, opt. acc. 2 vn, 2 hn, vc, op.7 (c1771); 6 sonates de clavecin en quatuor, op.8 (c1772); Sonates de clavecin en quatuor, op.9 (c1772); Second oeuvre de quatuors dialogués, str qt, op.10 (c1773?, 6 sonates, hpd, acc. vn ad lib, op.13 (1777), march from no.4 ed. in G. de Saint-Foix (1924); 3 duos, pf/hpd, op.14 (c1777) [also pubd as qts, 2 vn, va, pf]; 3 sonates en symphonies, hpd/pf, op.16 (1783); Second oeuvre de symphonies, hpd/pf, op.17 (1784); 3 sonates, hpd/pf, op. 18 (1784); other chbr and kbd pieces in 18th-century anthologies; various arrs.




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Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment \ Podger - Hob 07a 01 Concerto in C for Violin 1st mvmt - Allegro moderato

[Gurn Blanston]

Thanks, Gurn, for the advice on those composers. About Cartellieri, MD&G also released a recording of Gioas, re di Giuda, that is not included in the 5-CD set.

I have an advice for all lovers of sacred music of the Classical period: there's a new Supraphon release, containing the complete sacred works of Voříšek as well as some sacred works by Tomášek. The performance of Musica Florea led by Marek Štryncl is excellent, but in my opinion it doesn't fit very well the works by Tomášek, that would need more substantial vocal and instrumental forces. On the other hand, it does fit Voříšek, whose genius shines in the Mass - that has been recorded before - as well as in the three "minor" sacred works. They are not really "minor": the Offertorium Quoniam iniquitatem, which lasts four minutes, would justify by itself the price of the full CD. Its music is sensational, and would deserve a place among the most excellent sacred music of classicism. The first section is a model of reciprocity between text and music, while the second is an impressive fugue.

Alas, the latin text has been poorly translated to the other languages in the booklet: "Remitte tu mihi Domine priusquam abeam" is translated to English as "Look away from me, Lord, before I depart and be no more". The point is that the Christian specific meaning of "remittere" is "to forgive": the translation should have been "Forgive me, Lord, before I depart".

Gabriel,
Thanks for the note about Gioas, re di Giuda. I saw that but didn't know what it was at the time. I am going to go back and see if I can still get it. Haydn kinda got me into oratorios a bit.

Voříšek and Tomášek are 2 names that have come up frequently in my reading, but I have yet to hear anything by them. Voříšek in particular wrote some pianoforte sonatas that look interesting. I am going to see what I can find there. Thanks for the tip.



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