Joachim Raff

[Mark]

To quote the lady detective/anthropologist "Bones": "I don't know what that means."

How exactly does one transcode an Mp3 file?  

Google for it.

Basically, you want to convert the MP3 file into a lower bitrate, thereby reducing its filesize ... and sound quality, sadly.

[Cato]

Google for it.

Basically, you want to convert the MP3 file into a lower bitrate, thereby reducing its filesize ... and sound quality, sadly.

Okay, thank you, I will see what happens. 

[Scion7]

Just discovered the Suite in G for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 180, and the Thüringian Suite.
Finely crafted Romantic pieces.
The latter piece has quite a program for it.

[Scion7]

Even with CPO's survey of his works for violin and piano, there doesn't seem to be any recording of this piece,
which is a shame.



Suite for Violin and Piano in A, Op.210

    I. Prélude
    II. Pavane
    III. Chanson de Louis XIII varié
    IV. Gavotte et Mu

[Scion7]

(born May 27, 1822, Lachen, near Zürich, Switz.—died June 24/25, 1882, Frankfurt am Main, Ger.), German composer and teacher, greatly celebrated in his lifetime but nearly forgotten in the late 20th century.
Raff became a schoolteacher in 1840 and taught himself the piano, violin, and composition. After early compositional efforts influenced by Felix Mendelssohn and Robert Schumann, he joined ranks with the new German school of Franz Liszt and Richard Wagner, and from 1850 to 1856 he was Liszt's assistant in Weimar. Raff was a piano teacher in Wiesbaden from 1856 to 1877. Composing in almost every genre, Raff was extremely prolific and was commonly regarded by his contemporaries as the peer of Johannes Brahms and Wagner. From 1877 until his death he was the highly esteemed director of the Hoch Conservatory in Frankfurt. Raff produced 11 symphonies, concerti for various instruments, operas, choral and chamber music, and piano works.
- Item: his music was admired by Mendelssohn, Liszt and Bulow
- Item: he became an acquaintance of Brahms and Joseph Joachim
- Item: Raff's symphonies had some influence on the development of Bruch and Strauss
- Item: despite recognizing his "talent and fantasy" Clara Schumann was astute enough to foresee his popularity would not be long-lasting

      Chamber music
============================================
Piano Quintet, in a, Op.107, 1862 
2 piano quartets, in G, in c, Op.202, 1876
Piano Trio, in g, 1849, lost
4 piano trios, in c, Op.102, 1861
    in G, Op.112, 1863
    in a, Op.155, 1870 
    in D, Op.158, 1870
5 violin sonatas, in e, Op.73, 1853–4 (1859), in A, Op.78, 1858 (1861), in D, Op.128, 1865 (1867), in g, Op.129, 1866 (1867), in c, Op.145, 1868 (1869), (1876)
Aus der Schweiz, violin, piano, Op.57, 1848
2 Fantasiestücke, violin, piano, Op.58, 1850, 1852
3 duos, on themes from Wagner's ops, violin, piano, Op.63, 1853
6 morceaux, violon, piano, Op.85, 1859
Volker, cyclic tone poem, violin, piano, Op.203, 1876
Suite, A, violin, piano, Op. 210, 1879 
Duo, violin, piano, WoO.55 1882
Cello Sonata, in D, Op.183, 1873
Duo, cello/violin, piano, in A, Op.59, 1848 
2 Fantasiestücke, cello, piano, Op.86, 1854
Octet, in C, Op.176, 1872 
Sextet, in g, Op.178, 1872
Quartet, in C, 1849–50, lost
5 string quartets, in d, Op.77, 1855 (1860), in A, Op.90, 1857 (1862), in e, Op.136, 1866 (1868), in a, Op.137, 1867 (1869), in G, Op.138, 1867 (1869);
3 string quartets, Op.192, no.1, no.2, no.3 1874 (1876): 1-Suite in älterer Form, 2-Die schöne Müllerin, 3-Suite in Kanonenform
Fest-Ouvertüre, in B ww, Op.124, 1865, arr. piano 4 hands (Bremen, 1865);
Sinfonietta, in F, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 2 horns, Op.188, 1873 
2 Romanzen, horn/cello, piano, Op.182, 1873

     Orchestral
==================================
op.
—      Grosse Symphonie, e, 1854, lost
96   Sym. no.1 'An das Vaterland', D, 1859–61 (1864)
140   Sym. no.2, C, 1866 (Mainz, 1869)
153   Sym. no.3 'Im Walde', F, 1869 (1871)
167   Sym. no.4, g, 1871 (1872)
177   Sym. no.5 'Lenore', E, 1872 (1873)
189   Sym. no.6, d, 1873 (Berlin, 1874)
201   Sym. no.7 'In den Alpen', B, 1875 (1876)
205   Sym. no.8 'Frühlingsklänge', A, 1876 (1877)
208   Sym. no.9 'Im Sommer', e, 1878 (1879)
213   Sym. no.10 'Zur Herbstzeit', f, 1879 (1882)
214   Sym. no.11 'Der Winter', a, 1876 (1883)
Ode au printemps for Piano, G, op.76, 1857 (Mainz, 1862);
Piano Conc., c, op.185, 1873 (1874);
Suite for Piano, E, op.200, 1875 (1876)
La fée d'amour (Die Liebesfee), a, op.67, 1854 (Mainz, 1878);
Violin Conc. no.1, b, op.161, 1870–71 (1871);
Suite for Violin, G, op.180, 1873 (1873);
Violin Conc. no.2, a, op.206, 1877 (1878)
Cello: Conc. [no.1], D, op.193, 1874 (1875);
          Conc. no.2, G, 1876
Cavatina for Violin & Orchestra, Op.85
Ungrischer for Violin & Orchestra, Op.203
Incid music to Bernhard von Weimar (W. Genast), 1854, ov., rev. as Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott, op.127, 1865 (1866),
2 marches (Munich, 1885)
Suite no.1, C, op.101, 1863 (Mainz, 1865);
Suite no.2 'in ungarischer Weise', f, op.194, 1874 (Berlin, 1876);
Italienische Suite, 1871 (Berlin, 1884);
Thüringer Suite, 1875 
Fest-Ouvertüre, G, 1851–2, lost;
Jubel-Ouvertüre, C, op.103, 1864 (1865);
Fest-Ouvertüre, A, op.117, 1864 (1865);
Konzert-Ouvertüre, F, op.123, 1862 (1866);
Festmarsch, C, op.139, 1867 (Mainz, 1878);
ovs. to Shakespeare plays, 1879: The Tempest, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, Othello;
Elegie, 1880 [orig. 3rd movt of Sym. no.10];
Grosse Fuge, 1882, inc.
World's End, oratorio, Op.212
Overture to Prometheus Unbound

      Piano music
====================================
   •   Album lyrique, Op.17  
   •   Allegro agitato, Op.151
   •   Chaconne, for 2 pianos in A-, Op.150
   •   5 Eglogues, Op.105
   •   Fantaisie-polonaise, Op.106
   •   Fantasie in B, for piano, WoO15A  
   •   Fantasie-Sonate, Op.168
   •   Fruhlingsboten, 12 pieces for piano, Op.55  
   •   Impromptu-valse, Op.94  
   •   3 Klavier-Soli, Op.74
   •   La cicerenella, for piano, Op.165  
   •   3 Piano Pieces, Op.125
   •   2 pieces, for piano (1871), Op.166  
   •   4 Pieces, for piano, Op.196
   •   Romance No.1, for piano, WoO11 (after Beethoven's Romance for violin, Op.40)
   •   12 romances en forme d'etudes, for piano, Op.8
   •   Souvenirs de Musique de W.A. Mozart 'Don Giovanni' (K.527), Op.45, for piano
   •   Variationen uber ein Originalthema, Op.179 
   •   Grande Sonate, Op.14
   •   Blatter und Bluten, for piano, Op.135a 
   •   Erinnerung an Venedig, for piano, Op.187  
   •   Barcarolle, for piano, Op.143  
   •   6 Poemes, for piano, Op.15  
   •   Fantaisie, for piano, Op.142  
   •   2 Pieces, for piano, Op.169

      Stage Works
========================
König Alfred (4, G. Logau), 1848–50, rev. 1852, Weimar, 13 March 1853
Samson (musikalisches Trauerspiel, 5, J. Raff), 1853–7
Die Parole (3, Raff, after von Saldern), 1868
Dame Kobold (komische Oper, 3, P. Reber, after P. Calderón de la Barca), op.154, 1869, Weimar, Hof, 9 April 1870, vs (Berlin, 1871), ov., fs (Berlin, 1870), lib. (Wiesbaden, 1870)
Benedetto Marcello (lyrische Oper, 3, Raff), 1877–8
Die Eifersüchtigen (komische Oper, 3, Raff), 1881–2

- various lieder and choral works

[kyjo]

Raff was pretty inconsistent, but his finest works merit greater attention. Out of his symphonies, his Third, Fifth, and Ninth are the best - picturesque works with plenty of memorable tunes and colorful orchestration. His Piano Concerto is quite wonderful as well, with is beautiful slow movement. Also of note are his second and fourth piano trios, which are full of soaring melodies and satisfying part-writing.

[SonicMan46]

Raff TTT!  Thread started in 2007, then a 10 year 'burial' until 2017, now resurrected!

Just as a brief reminder, a short bio below (longer bio and MUCH more information, including his catalog listings at the official Raff Website).  Currently, I own just the 3 chamber music CDs shown below - listening now and each is well done and performed - would like to add some more works, especially a few symphonies (don't need all 11) - so, hope other Raff fans will join in and leave comments, recommendations, etc.  Doubt that there will be a 'Raff Revival' but music does deserve some more attention.  Dave

Joachim Raff (born May 27, 1822, Lachen, Switz.—died June 24/25, 1882, Frankfurt, Ger.), German composer and teacher, greatly celebrated in his lifetime but nearly forgotten in the late 20th century. Raff became a schoolteacher in 1840 and taught himself the piano, violin, and composition. After early compositional efforts influenced by Felix Mendelssohn and Robert Schumann, he joined ranks with the new German school of Franz Liszt and Richard Wagner, and from 1850 to 1856 he was Liszt's assistant in Weimar. Raff was a piano teacher in Wiesbaden from 1856 to 1877. Composing in almost every genre, Raff was extremely prolific and was commonly regarded by his contemporaries as the peer of Johannes Brahms and Wagner. From 1877 until his death he was the highly esteemed director of the Hoch Conservatory in Frankfurt. Raff produced 11 symphonies, concerti for various instruments, operas, choral and chamber music, and piano works. (Source)

   

[Jo498]

I have two discs with trios and one with quartets on cpo and clearly preferred the trios. I have a handful of the symphonies (3,5,7,8,10) and was not totally convinced. I guess I liked #3 ("Im Walde"/in the forest) and #5 "Lenore" best. They are both (like all Raff symphonies) somewhat programmatic although in the former case it is a rather general evocation of moods connected with romantic forest topics. The #5 is based on a ghost ballad by Gottfried Bürger that used to be rather famous (so that my mom's generation in the mid 20th century still sometimes had to learn it by heart in school, there are also some parodies). It's a variant of the ghost lover who comes back from the grave to claim his bride.
The more recent Tudor recordings with Stadlmair seem to be clearly better in sound and playing than the older Tudor set with different conductors.

[SonicMan46]

I have two discs with trios and one with quartets on cpo and clearly preferred the trios. I have a handful of the symphonies (3,5,7,8,10) and was not totally convinced. I guess I liked #3 ("Im Walde"/in the forest) and #5 "Lenore" best. They are both (like all Raff symphonies) somewhat programmatic although in the former case it is a rather general evocation of moods connected with romantic forest topics. The #5 is based on a ghost ballad by Gottfried Bürger that used to be rather famous (so that my mom's generation in the mid 20th century still sometimes had to learn it by heart in school, there are also some parodies). It's a variant of the ghost lover who comes back from the grave to claim his bride.
The more recent Tudor recordings with Stadlmair seem to be clearly better in sound and playing than the older Tudor set with different conductors.

Hi Jo498 - thanks for the comments - listening to the Piano Trios, Nos. 1 & 4 at the moment and am enjoying - went ahead after perusing Amazon USA and ordered two 'used' CDs from the MP - shown below - probably about all that I need - Raff wrote so much that a more substantial collection could easily amount to one or two dozen CDs!  Dave

ADDENDUM: Reviews attached for those interested.
.
 

[SonicMan46]

Raff Mania!    Well over the last month or so, I've added nearly a dozen Raff discs to my collection, including the 6-CD box of piano works below.  Just arrived from JPC are the 3 Symphonies shown (own No. 5 on Marco Polo), on sale there for $4 USD each - now the Tudor box of all 11 Symphonies + much more is currently selling for $50 USD ($70+ on Amazon USA) - just did not want to invest that much in these works - for those interested in the Symphonies etc., reviews attached, plus take a look at the David Hurwitz Video.  Dave  

 

   

[vers la flamme]

After recently "clicking" with some of the music of Richard Wetz, I'm trying to see if any of the other "unsung" late Romantic German composers are worth exploring. Raff is another obvious example, but I haven't heard a single work of his. Anything worth recommending?

[Daverz]

After recently "clicking" with some of the music of Richard Wetz, I'm trying to see if any of the other "unsung" late Romantic German composers are worth exploring. Raff is another obvious example, but I haven't heard a single work of his. Anything worth recommending?

Symphony No. 5 "Lenore" is a good start (not Beethoven's Leonore, Raff's program is basically the same as that of Dvorak's The Spectre's Bride).  I'm not sure what recording to recommend, though.

[Symphonic Addict]

Symphony No. 5 "Lenore" is a good start (not Beethoven's Leonore, Raff's program is basically the same as that of Dvorak's The Spectre's Bride).  I'm not sure what recording to recommend, though.

Herrmann and the LPO do a stunning performance. It seems Järvi on Chandos is regarded as quite good and exciting.

[kyjo]

I love the Jarvi recording of the 5th Symphony; then again, I prefer brisk tempi in this sort of repertoire. If you prefer a more expansive approach, avoid! Jarvi's recording is a full 17 minutes quicker than Herrmann's!

One Raff piece that blew me away recently is his String Sextet in G minor, which is filled with energy, humor, lyricism, and great tunes. It's performed marvelously on the below MD&G disc, coupled with the also superb Piano Quintet:



In general, Raff's chamber music is consistently enjoyable and satisfying.

[vandermolen]

I love the Jarvi recording of the 5th Symphony; then again, I prefer brisk tempi in this sort of repertoire. If you prefer a more expansive approach, avoid! Jarvi's recording is a full 17 minutes quicker than Herrmann's!

One Raff piece that blew me away recently is his String Sextet in G minor, which is filled with energy, humor, lyricism, and great tunes. It's performed marvelously on the below MD&G disc, coupled with the also superb Piano Quintet:



In general, Raff's chamber music is consistently enjoyable and satisfying.

I love the Jarvi and the old Bernard Herrmann recordings. That last movement of the Raff with the ghostly night-ride is quite something. I also like this recording (Yondani Butt, Philharmonia on ASV):

[vers la flamme]

That wouldn't be the Bernard Herrmann, the composer, would it? Anyway I think I'll check out the Järvi if I can find it.

[VonStupp]

Through this recent thread discussion, I realized I had this box of Raff symphonies sitting around, but never listened to it. I know I listened to Francesco D'Avalos on ASV in Raff's Symphony 3 ages ago, so I must have been impressed enough to get this box.

[André]

That wouldn't be the Bernard Herrmann, the composer, would it? Anyway I think I'll check out the Järvi if I can find it.

Yes, one and the same. My first - and only - exposure to his music, through this old Nonesuch lp:

[Roasted Swan]

That wouldn't be the Bernard Herrmann, the composer, would it? Anyway I think I'll check out the Järvi if I can find it.

Haven't heard the Jarvi but the Herrmann is excellent.  Not sure any of the other Raff Symphonies quite live up to that standard even in good performances.  Generally avoid the old Marco Polo discs which sound like under-prepared read/record sessions with a 2nd rate orchestra that marco Polo were rather noted for in their early days........  Raff is NOT a great composer so he needs performers and interpreters who really believe in what they are doing to bring out the best (hence Herrmann) in the music.

[vandermolen]

Haven't heard the Jarvi but the Herrmann is excellent.  Not sure any of the other Raff Symphonies quite live up to that standard even in good performances.  Generally avoid the old Marco Polo discs which sound like under-prepared read/record sessions with a 2nd rate orchestra that marco Polo were rather noted for in their early days........  Raff is NOT a great composer so he needs performers and interpreters who really believe in what they are doing to bring out the best (hence Herrmann) in the music.

No.5 is by far the best IMO. I don't especially enjoy any other work by him but No. 5 is something special.