Hans Gal(1890-1987)

[Scion7]

I quite like the piano trios but have not listened to the symphonies yet. I should do it this week.

I think you'll be pleased.
Number 3 and 4, especially, are very well written.
Gal was not a hands-wringing Romantic - he's much more on the lyrical / melodic side, but with 20th century chromaticism.
This is mostly absolute music, with an aim to tickle the intellect, rather than ponder the fate of political prisoners in some dark, forgotten cell, or yearning for an unobtainable love, etc.
He has his own style, and it is an interesting niche.  The more of his music I hear, the more I like it.  Seek out the other chamber works and the Organ concertino, also.

[Papy Oli]

Bump for this worthy fellow.

There are some absolute melodic gems scattered all over those albums, just for starters:

3 intermezzos and the sonatas for 2 violins and piano on this one :



3 Marionetten on this one :



And the 2 Cello sonatas on this one:

[Papy Oli]

I'd also recommend The Clarinet Quintet on this release :

[kyjo]

My favorite work by him I've heard so far is his early Piano Quartet in B-flat (recorded by Toccata Classics), an inventive and melodious work. I've found his symphonies and concerti to be pleasant but not particularly memorable and too consistently understated for my taste. I'll have to investigate more of his chamber music.

[aligreto]

Hans Gál: Symphonies 1-4 [Woods]





This is my first time listening to these works and this composer. I only have the 2 X CD set above in my collection and this has proved to be extremely revelatory and totally engaging from a musically expressive point of view. I find this to be exciting, interesting and engaging music. Gal definitely has a voice of his own. The musical language is straightforward but it is always very interesting and intriguing. I very much like the scoring throughout the works; he would appear to me to be a very good orchestrator. He also instills a very good sense of both drama and tension into this work as a whole. This is created by various means which includes scoring, staccato passages, dynamics and sudden tempo changes. The writing also strikes me as being very innovative. I really like these works.



Here is the link to his Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_G%C3%A1l

[aligreto]

Hans Gál: Symphonies 1-4 [Woods] 





Symphony No. 1 is a very lyrical work and it is also filled with wonderful tension and drama throughout. There is also a sense of poignancy that is ever present; the third movement Elegie is particularly fine with regard to all of these elements. This is not disconcerting but, coupled with the tension and drama already alluded to, this synthesis makes for a very intriguing and engaging tone throughout. The work follows a logical progression which culminates in a very fine and musically varied final movement which concludes with a satisfactory definitive resolution.


Symphony No. 2 is another very lyrical work. One is immediately engaged by the orchestral scoring in the opening movement, and indeed throughout the work, especially for the wind instruments. Strong elements of both tension and drama are soon introduced to upset the equilibrium of the fundamental haunting lyricism of the work. As with Symphony No. 1, I readily enjoy the juxtaposition of the lyrical element with the elements of both tension and drama which appear to be a feature of Gal's compositions. Symphony No. 2 is a very organic work; it has an inherent forward momentum that prevails throughout the work. The wonderful slow movement is a big element of this work. It is rich and deep in terms of musicality and expression. I really like it; the music is very engaging. The final movement gathers all of the previous elements of the work, augments them and presents them in an exciting way. The final movement works its way towards a very lyrical conclusion.


Symphony No. 3 comprises three movements and it is, once again, very lyrical in nature and also has a large element of both tension and drama throughout. The music is, once again, very appealing and engaging. This is continually exciting music that continues to offer up great aural rewards. The presentation here is particularly engaging and profound throughout the work. The central movement is always intriguing. The final movement is affirmative and thrilling in its presentation and  conclusion.


Symphony No. 4 I really like the various tones of the opening movement. The woodwinds are truly wonderful here. In the opening movement the music starts out in a contemplative tone and then progresses towards a more affirmative tone; always lyrical, interestingly conversational but also very self assured. The Scherzo is a quirky and joyful piece of music with, once again, wonderful woodwind scoring; the trio section is particularly intriguing. The slow, third movement, is poignant and slightly disconcerting in its musical language, but in an engaging way. Normal buoyancy is resumed in the final movement with a delightful and joyful movement.

[Mirror Image]

I hate to be the contrarian here, Fergus, but my experience has been quite different than your own with this composer. I wrote a review for that 2-CD set:

Title: A Gál Revival...Worth The Wait?

Hans Gál is a name that was new to me until this box set came out. i knew of a few composers from Europe that had fled to the UK during WWII, but the only one that stood out amongst the pack was Andrzej Panufnik (who is a fascinating composer with his own sound-world). I decided to take a chance on these symphonies from Gál because, on the surface, he seemed like an interesting composer. I went through the four symphonies twice and I have to say that I was less impressed on the second-listen. This composer just didn't have an individual voice that set him apart from say Martinů or Shostakovich. There's almost a hesitancy and uncertainty in his style that I found with each symphony --- it's almost like he just didn't know what to write and put down the first thing that popped into his head, but the ideas just didn't go anywhere or tickle my ears in a way that made me sit back and think "Man, now this composer is doing something different" or "Wow, this is gorgeous music." I just sat there, listened and didn't feel anything, which is never a good sign for me. If anything, I was bored beyond belief.

The performances seem fine from Woods/Orchestra of the Swan, but I think he should champion a composer that actually had something worthy to say and leave these third or fourth-rate composers for the Naxos label.

[foxandpeng]

Hans Gál: Symphonies 1-4 [Woods] 





Symphony No. 1 is a very lyrical work and it is also filled with wonderful tension and drama throughout. There is also a sense of poignancy that is ever present; the third movement Elegie is particularly fine with regard to all of these elements. This is not disconcerting but, coupled with the tension and drama already alluded to, this synthesis makes for a very intriguing and engaging tone throughout. The work follows a logical progression which culminates in a very fine and musically varied final movement which concludes with a satisfactory definitive resolution.


Symphony No. 2 is another very lyrical work. One is immediately engaged by the orchestral scoring in the opening movement, and indeed throughout the work, especially for the wind instruments. Strong elements of both tension and drama are soon introduced to upset the equilibrium of the fundamental haunting lyricism of the work. As with Symphony No. 1, I readily enjoy the juxtaposition of the lyrical element with the elements of both tension and drama which appear to be a feature of Gal's compositions. Symphony No. 2 is a very organic work; it has an inherent forward momentum that prevails throughout the work. The wonderful slow movement is a big element of this work. It is rich and deep in terms of musicality and expression. I really like it; the music is very engaging. The final movement gathers all of the previous elements of the work, augments them and presents them in an exciting way. The final movement works its way towards a very lyrical conclusion.


Symphony No. 3 comprises three movements and it is, once again, very lyrical in nature and also has a large element of both tension and drama throughout. The music is, once again, very appealing and engaging. This is continually exciting music that continues to offer up great aural rewards. The presentation here is particularly engaging and profound throughout the work. The central movement is always intriguing. The final movement is affirmative and thrilling in its presentation and  conclusion.


Symphony No. 4 I really like the various tones of the opening movement. The woodwinds are truly wonderful here. In the opening movement the music starts out in a contemplative tone and then progresses towards a more affirmative tone; always lyrical, interestingly conversational but also very self assured. The Scherzo is a quirky and joyful piece of music with, once again, wonderful woodwind scoring; the trio section is particularly intriguing. The slow, third movement, is poignant and slightly disconcerting in its musical language, but in an engaging way. Normal buoyancy is resumed in the final movement with a delightful and joyful movement.

Thank you! I will have a run at these, I think. Useful comments 👍

[aligreto]

Thank you! I will have a run at these, I think. Useful comments 👍

Cheers. It will be interesting to see what you make of them. Obviously you can see that there are very different opinions regarding the music here.

[foxandpeng]

Cheers. It will be interesting to see what you make of them. Obviously you can see that there are very different opinions regarding the music here.

I confess to really quite enjoying Symphony #2. The pleasing opening motif that threads through the first movement, which I found myself humming while making coffee, is quite lovely. The Allegro is bright, sunny, and bordering on pastoral, flutes and assorted woodwinds carrying some jaunty and positive elements, and ending in an upbeat atmosphere. Adagio is lyrical and attractive and kept my interest for the whole 12 minutes or so  and on initial listens, the final movement has lots of ideas that will undoubtedly gain more of a foothold on subsequent plays. My only surprise was that it exited on a whisper and not a greater voice - maybe the next couple of hearings will feel differently now that I'm expecting it to end that way. I know we all respond differently to music, and I'm no expert around form and internal nuts and bolts, but I like this work.

I can see why Gál didn't fit the avant-garde zeitgeist of the establishment in his day, but I'm keen to explore his other music if this is a representative example. Hurray for being able to have him as an honorary British composer 🙂

I'm a big fan of what Kenneth Woods is doing in exposing lesser known composers. This is another big plus in his growing repertoire.

[aligreto]

I confess to really quite enjoying Symphony #2. The pleasing opening motif that threads through the first movement, which I found myself humming while making coffee, is quite lovely. The Allegro is bright, sunny, and bordering on pastoral, flutes and assorted woodwinds carrying some jaunty and positive elements, and ending in an upbeat atmosphere. Adagio is lyrical and attractive and kept my interest for the whole 12 minutes or so  and on initial listens, the final movement has lots of ideas that will undoubtedly gain more of a foothold on subsequent plays. My only surprise was that it exited on a whisper and not a greater voice - maybe the next couple of hearings will feel differently now that I'm expecting it to end that way. I know we all respond differently to music, and I'm no expert around form and internal nuts and bolts, but I like this work.

I can see why Gál didn't fit the avant-garde zeitgeist of the establishment in his day, but I'm keen to explore his other music if this is a representative example. Hurray for being able to have him as an honorary British composer 🙂

I'm a big fan of what Kenneth Woods is doing in exposing lesser known composers. This is another big plus in his growing repertoire.

Good for you. I am pleased that you were open to and enjoyed the music.
I too need to explore this composer further.

[foxandpeng]

Good for you. I am pleased that you were open to and enjoyed the music.
I too need to explore this composer further.

Now that I've listened to #2 four or five times through, I'm really grateful for the pointer in Gál's direction. As with all music, each listen brings more familiarity, but this isn't difficult to grasp at all, so is a nice discovery 🙂. That Adagio is a winner.

Reading your brief but helpful notes, I'm going to spend some time today prodding #4, I think.

[aligreto]

Hans Gál: Clarinet Quintet [Ensemble Burletta]


I recently listened to this very pleasant work. Here is the TouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BF_Ifivw3QI



I like the relaxed tone of the work. The opening movement is a wonderful conversational piece with every voice having their say. The middle movement is delightfully lyrical and expansive. The form is not quite conversational but is rather a narrative by the clarinet. The final movement opens in the same lyrical and harmonic vein. The music is initially more intense, but, however, suddenly blossoms out into a gloriously and joyous bouquet. I find the scoring to be very fine, interesting and engaging in this work. The musical language is straightforward but the musical themes and harmonies are always very engaging. This is also a fine performance in good recorded sound. I really like this work.

[foxandpeng]

I'd also recommend The Clarinet Quintet on this release :

Hans Gál: Clarinet Quintet [Ensemble Burletta]

I recently listened to this very pleasant work. Here is the TouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BF_Ifivw3QI

I like the relaxed tone of the work. The opening movement is a wonderful conversational piece with every voice having their say. The middle movement is delightfully lyrical and expansive. The form is not quite conversational but is rather a narrative by the clarinet. The final movement opens in the same lyrical and harmonic vein. The music is initially more intense, but, however, suddenly blossoms out into a gloriously and joyous bouquet. I find the scoring to be very fine, interesting and engaging in this work. The musical language is straightforward but the musical themes and harmonies are always very engaging. This is also a fine performance in good recorded sound. I really like this work.

Nice. This is definitely another recommendable work. Thank you both

As far as the symphonies are concerned, I'm finding them a great listen. I'm not all the way through them yet, but of the three that I have heard, I would run a preference of #2, #3, and then #4. All are enjoyable, but #2 and #3 in particular.

[Symphonic Addict]

Yes, the Clarinet Quintet is a winning piece. Thus far it's the work I like the most by him. His symphonies are not my cup of tea.

[aligreto]

Nice. This is definitely another recommendable work. Thank you both

As far as the symphonies are concerned, I'm finding them a great listen. I'm not all the way through them yet, but of the three that I have heard, I would run a preference of #2, #3, and then #4. All are enjoyable, but #2 and #3 in particular.

Good for you and for Gál 

[aligreto]

Yes, the Clarinet Quintet is a winning piece. Thus far it's the work I like the most by him. His symphonies are not my cup of tea.

Yes, his music, it appears in general, does not seem to appeal to everyone. However, at least you got some enjoyment from the wonderful Clarinet Quintet.

[aligreto]

Hans Gál: Suite for Alto Saxophone & Piano Op. 102b

YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xeYC7r8NJuM

The Cantabile is very attractive and appealing.
Furioso is quirky, energetic and a bit of fun.
Con Grazia is engagingly lilting.
Burla is, once again, quirky and fun, engaging and foot tappingly enjoyable.

I found this work to be very engaging and enjoyable. The writing is imaginative and inventive. It is laden with quality melodies that are always appealing. I also like the scoring here.

[aligreto]

Hans Gál: Serenade for Clarinet, Violin and Violoncello Op. 93


https://www.youtube.com/v/23yb-BTrsVE


Delightful and beguiling music that is always very engaging.

[foxandpeng]

Still loving Gál's symphonies, and finding real beauty in them. #2, #3, #1 and #4.

I appreciate that he is off the pace to win the race to stand against the best Brits, but he is immensely underrated.