neoclassical Henze recommendations?

[bwv 1080]

find I like his neoclassical works better than his modern ones, but really am only familiar with the music with guitar. Any recommendations of other pieces?

[not edward]

I don't know the operas at all well, so that's a big caveat right away. Having said that, most of the less modernist Henze that I know I would probably class more as neoromantic than neoclassical (though in most Henze stylistic categories are very much blurred).

Obvious choices would include the first five symphonies and the ballet Undine draw much from neoclassical Stravinsky--most obviously Orpheus (which was Henze's favourite amongst the Stravinsky ballets). Some of the vocal works from the '50s and early '60s also have some neoclassical aspects--Whispers from Heavenly Death, Fünf neapolitanische Lieder, Being Beauteous, Ariosi and Nachtstücke und Arien might be a good selection. To this one could add some of the works related to the much-cannibalized opera King Stag--perhaps most impressively La selva incantata and the previously mentioned 4th symphony.

Later works of a more conservative nature tend to be perhaps even closer to neoromanticism--though it'd be entirely possible to read the 7th symphony as a commentary on (and negation of) Beethoven's symphonies, particularly his 7th. The 8th symphony (a three-part fantasia on A Midsummer Night's Dream) would probably be a good selection, too (Marek Janowski's excellent accounts of both can be found on a Wergo CD).

[Mirror Image]

Checkout Knussen's recording of the ballet Ondine. That should move you along quite well.

[pjme]

The cantata ( on a text by Elsa Morante) is the highlight of this disc. Edda Moser is stunning.
recommended!
P.

[bwv 1080]

thanks for the recs, there is alot of stuff here.  I do have a recording of Ondine.

I just bought this, Carillion, Recitatif, Masque was the type of music I had in mind when posting this, and here is a disk of that plus a bunch of other chamber works:

[Cato]

Certainly the early symphonies can be heard as "neo-classical" with the influence of Karl Amadeus Hartmann.

(That would be an interesting topic: Is Hartmann "neo-classical" ?)

Anyway, I still recall the DGG set of early symphonies showing a picture of Henze in his "socialist chic" phase, conducting with the sleeves of his factory-worker's shirt rolled up!