What are you listening 2 now?

[Harry]

Francois Devienne.
Sonatas for Oboe & BC, Opus 70 & 71.
Sonatas for Bassoon & BC, Opus. 24 No. 2, 3, 5.
Ingo Goritzki, Oboe & Sergio Azzolini, Bassoon.
Ensemble Villa Musica.
Recorded: 2007 & 2011, at the Konzerthaus de Abtei Marienmünster.
Streaming: FLAC 44.1 kHz/16 bit. CD quality.
Label: MDG-2 CD'S. 127 minutes.

François Devienne (1759–1803), a master of wind instruments and a founding professor at the Paris Conservatoire, left behind a body of work rich in Classical elegance and Gallic charm. As a flutist, bassoonist, and prolific composer, his sonatas for wind instruments—especially for oboe and bassoon—are paragons of refined craftsmanship, designed to showcase lyrical invention over bravura display.

The oboe sonatas of Op. 70 and 71 unfold in elegant Classical architecture, full of poised dialogues between melody and harmony. They are marked by clarity of thought and melodic purity, often coloured by wistful inflections and subtle modulations that betray Devienne's innate feel for drama beneath serenity. The bassoon sonatas of Op. 24 reveal an even rarer gem: a natural idiom for an instrument still finding its voice in solo repertoire. Here, the writing is supple and vocally inspired, drawing out the expressive range of the instrument with warmth and poise.

Ingo Goritzki plays the oboe with finely spun tone and effortless phrasing, while Sergio Azzolini, ever the poet of the bassoon, crafts each phrase with sensitivity and astonishing nuance. Their performances are not demonstrations of technique, but expressions of character, of intimacy, of wit. Ensemble Villa Musica supports with subtle elegance, never imposing, always breathing with the soloists—a continuo that shapes without weight.

Despite being a standard-resolution recording, the sound quality is exceptional. The acoustic of the Konzerthaus is warm and transparent, presenting the instruments in an atmosphere of natural closeness and air. It's a textbook example of how thoughtful engineering and excellent playing can transcend bitrate.

This is music of clear lines and graceful proportions—life-affirming, generous, and utterly disarming. There is nothing overstated, and yet its emotional depth is unmistakable. It is chamber music at its most companionable: written to please, to soothe, and to uplift.

A double album to return to often. Its voice is gentle, but its spirit endures.

[Que]

I, as usual, begin my morning in a musical paradise.

Following your example with the Missa pro fidelibus defunctis, which I didn't get to before.
This set had an unfortunate start with the Missa paschale in which the balance between the (excellent) countertenor and the other singers was quite off. But after that, all good. Very nice performances.

[AnotherSpin]

Beauty Farm's live recording of Palestrina's Missa Papae Marcelli is truly impressive. Their interpretation is vivid and clear, offering an intimacy and focus that larger choirs often lack. The decision to pair the mass with hymns adds an intriguing layer. There are a few incidental sounds here and there, but that's all part of the charm of a live recording.

[AnotherSpin]

Following your example with the Missa pro fidelibus defunctis, which I didn't get to before.
This set had an unfortunate start with the Missa pascale in which the balance between the (excellent) countertenor and the other singers was quite off. But after that, all good. Very nice performances.

Is that so? It's fair to say I wasn't exactly breaking it down, more just floating along, not paying much mind to the finer points

[Harry]

Andreas Romberg.
Flute Quintets, Volume I, Opus.21 No.1, & Opus 41 No 1 & 3.
See back cover for details.
Karl Kaiser, Flute.
Ardinghello Ensemble.
Recorded: 2013, at the Konzerthaus der Abtei Marienmünster.
Streaming: FLAC 44.1 kHz/16 bit recording.
Label: MDG.


This was to be the first release of the Quintets for Flute by Andreas Romberg — a tantalising beginning that, regrettably, was never followed by a second volume. A pity indeed, considering the craftsmanship of both composer and performers. Karl Kaiser, one of the most elegant and poetic traverso players of our time, joins the ever-capable Ardinghello Ensemble, a group known for its refined touch and stylistic insight. Together they breathe vivacity into these radiant chamber works.

The three quintets featured here — Op. 21 No. 1 and Op. 41 Nos. 1 and 3 — are subtle yet virtuosic creations, poised on the border between Classical clarity and Romantic expressiveness. Romberg, a contemporary of Beethoven and admired in his own day, reveals a deft melodic gift and a keen sensitivity for instrumental colour. These pieces shimmer with lyricism and display delightful interplay between the flute and strings, particularly enhanced by Romberg's unusual scoring: two violas instead of the typical pair of violins. This darker-hued texture lends a gentle warmth and intimacy that sets them apart.

Karl Kaiser, ever the musician of taste and balance, weaves his flute lines with silken finesse, never dominating, always conversing. His tone is supple and sweet, and the phrasing shaped with innate musicality. One is reminded of a summer evening's breeze rustling through soft curtains — understated but wholly captivating. The Ardinghello Ensemble provides buoyant support, relishing the rhythmic spring and transparent harmonies of Romberg's style.

As is typical for MDG, the recorded sound is a model of natural balance and fine detail. The acoustic of Marienmünster offers just enough space to let the instruments bloom, without any excess halo. It is chamber music recorded as it should be: close to the ear, yet never dry — a sense of room, but also of touch.

A recording of elegant proportions and amiable spirits — and a melancholy reminder of what might have been had Volume II ever arrived.
If possible and fitting I enjoy putting a poem on the end of a review. My love for poetry rekindles in my twilights years, so please indulge me.

And still she cried, and still the world pursu'd..." – Keats

What we have is joy enough:
A fluting voice in civil tones,
That glides above a velvet hush
Of strings in dusky doubled drones.

And yet the ear, once graced, now grieves—
For what remains unsaid, unheard.
As if the wind had turned the leaves
But never spoken out the word.

So let these notes, now softly stilled,
Remain as sparks of grace begun—
A single lamp upon the sill
To mark a setting sun.

[Que]

Is that so? It's fair to say I wasn't exactly breaking it down, more just floating along, not paying much mind to the finer points

The countertenor was too prominent for my taste, drowning out the rest. I think it is the way it was recorded.

Now:

[Harry]

Following your example with the Missa pro fidelibus defunctis, which I didn't get to before.
This set had an unfortunate start with the Missa pascale in which the balance between the (excellent) countertenor and the other singers was quite off. But after that, all good. Very nice performances.

Yes, quite so, agreed.

[Traverso]

Bach

Further with one of the (many) joys of my life. This impressive set, for which my appreciation only increases.

CD 1

[Harry]

Henri Vieuxtemps.
Chamber music.
Works for Viola and Piano.
Viola Sonata op. 36; Unfinished Sonata for Viola and Piano op. posth.; Elegy for Viola & Piano op. 30; Capriccio for Viola Solo op. posth..
Thomas Selditz, Viola & Vladimir Stoupel, Piano.
Streaming: FLAC 44.1kHz/16 bit recording.
Label Audite.
Recorded: 2001, Studio Nalepastr, Berlin, Germany.


Both musicians on this disc know well how much tender lyricism and fantasy Vieuxtemps put into his music! Virtuoso music which Thomas Selditz and Vladimir Stoupel play very spiritedly, not necessarily only concerned with technical perfection, but very attentive to musicality which should be the prime directive of how to approach the music by any composer.
 
Henri Vieuxtemps, that singular torchbearer of Franco-Belgian Romanticism, is mostly celebrated for his violin concertos—rhapsodic and virtuosic landscapes that sweep with feeling. Yet here, in his works for viola and piano, we meet a more reflective soul, where pathos replaces bravura and the lyric voice of the viola rises not in defiance, but in devotion.

This recording—sensitive and poetic throughout—gathers the full scope of Vieuxtemps's writing for the viola: the substantial Sonata in B-flat major, the Elegy, an Unfinished Sonata, and a noble Capriccio for viola solo. It is a labour of love, played by two musicians wholly attuned to the inward language of this music.

Thomas Selditz does not merely play the viola; he breathes with it. His tone is dark as velvet yet clear as a mountain stream. The phrasing is noble, never exaggerated, and the expressiveness always rooted in the long Romantic line. Vladimir Stoupel, his partner at the piano, provides both structure and flow—responsive, never dominating, always attuned to the shape of the phrase and the breath of the bow.

The Sonata, Op. 36, written in Vieuxtemps's late maturity, reveals an artist still deeply connected to melodic invention and harmonic warmth. The second movement, Barcarolla: Andante con moto – Allegretto tranquillo – Animato – Tempo I, is truly the heart of the disc: a boat gently swaying on the waters of memory, caught between longing and release. Its melancholy is tinged not with sorrow, but with wisdom. Listen closely and you might catch the shadow of Chopin, or the twilight glow of Schumann.

The Capriccio and the Unfinished Sonata are no less affecting. The former is a meditative soliloquy, played with elegant restraint; the latter—a remarkable fragment—feels full of unspoken potential, its gestures both searching and serene.

The Élégie, meanwhile, offers a parting sigh, a moment of stillness that feels somehow infinite.

Audite's recording does this music full justice: warm, clear, and intimate, capturing every nuance with natural grace. There is no over-polishing here, only a generous acoustic space in which both musicians are allowed to breathe.

This is Romantic chamber music of the highest order—not for spectacle, but for communion. One listens, and time seems to pause. In this moment, in this sound, the heart listens back.

[Que]

Very nice! I believe this came recommended by Harry. 

[Lisztianwagner]

Cool, Ilaria. A wondrous disc, mostly for The Parables, which is a terrific concoction of moods and captivating sounds. An incredibly kaleidoscopic and unpredictable work.

Thanks for the feedback, Cesar,  both the Overture, tense under the surface of the melodious Baroque-inspired development, and the Rhapsody, quite multifaceted, were ravishing and mesmerizing; I'm looking forward to checking out the rest of the disc, I don't think I've ever listened to Martinu's The Parables.

[Harry]

Very nice! I believe this came recommended by Harry. 

Ohhh I am happy you finally play this disc and liked it, and yes it came recommended by me though that was some time ago.

[DavidW]

Easter Oratorio:

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Music for Young America: Works by Copland & Menotti & Riegger & Elwell & Shepherd.  Louis Lane/Cleveland.

[VonStupp]

Anton Bruckner
Symphony 1 in C minor, WAB 101

Chicago SO - Georg Solti
Berlin PO - Herbert von Karajan

VS

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Schoenberg & Berg: Violin Concertos. Artur Rodzinski, Dimitri Mitropoulos, et al..

[Iota]

Walton: Viola Concerto
James Ehnes (viola), BBCSO, Gardner

I've never really been able to get too excited about Walton, and because of my reservations I feel I've never really given him a fair crack of the whip either, as I know so little of his music, so another shot today with the viola concerto. And I'm happy to say it has been more successful than anything else I've tried. It didn't bowl me over, but it has some very lovely passages and some transparent orchestration that was very appealing. Perhaps most significantly I felt there was perhaps more awaiting in a second listen, which I intend to give it at some point. So a small step I guess.

I haven't heard Ehnes playing the viola before, and I must say he sounds very comfortable with it. Indeed his playing was one of the things that kept this listener a happy one.

[Cato]

Berwald: Symphony No. 3 'Sinfonie singulière'

Singular it is indeed, particularly because of the freshness of the thematic material and how it is developed. No heavy Austro-German influence in here. Moreover, I think it is the first symphony in three movements that combines the slow movement with a scherzo.

I wonder if Rachmaninov knew about the Berwald Third, for the Rachmaninov Symphony #3 also includes a scherzo in the slow movement.


This morning on the radio...

Liszt: Transcendental Etude #12

And a work which I had never heard before:

Marc-Antoine Charpentier: Symphonies pour un Reposoir

[Que]

[...] and yes it came recommended by me though that was some time ago.

You know: busy, busy... So much music and so little time...   

[Florestan]

And still she cried, and still the world pursu'd..." – Keats

What we have is joy enough:
A fluting voice in civil tones,
That glides above a velvet hush
Of strings in dusky doubled drones.

And yet the ear, once graced, now grieves—
For what remains unsaid, unheard.
As if the wind had turned the leaves
But never spoken out the word.

So let these notes, now softly stilled,
Remain as sparks of grace begun—
A single lamp upon the sill
To mark a setting sun.

That malt is rare yet abundant... 

(Love your reviews a lot, Harry, keep them coming, poetry included.)