Discovering Johann Nepomuk Hummel

[mahlertitan]

I am beginning to discover this composer, what works should I start first.
so far i have heard:
Piano concertos 1,2,3,4
piano concerto in C Op.34a
piano concerto in A major
piano concerto in G major op. 73
Piano Concerto in A flat major op. 113
Piano concerto in F major
Piano Concerto in A major WoO 24

[david johnson]

his trumpet concerto is a favorite among trumpeters...i played it on a recital.  great tune.

dj

[BachQ]

Hummel's masses are exquisite, and rank alongside Haydn's late masses . . . . . .

Go for the Hickox recordings:

[Solitary Wanderer]

I have this which is excellent and deserving of more attention. You can hear the Haydn influence at times as Haydn trained Hummel for a period.

[71 dB]

Hummel is one composer I don't know anything about.
If he is Haydn-like he is worth exploring...

[BachQ]

Hummel is one composer I don't know anything about.
If he is Haydn-like he is worth exploring...

Hummel is a romanticized Haydn . . . . . .

[71 dB]

Hummel is a romanticized Haydn . . . . . .

So he should be as he lived 1778-1837. He should be Beethoven-like. 

Naxos has many Hummel discs. This should be very good:

[BachQ]

He should be Beethoven-like. 

Only Brahms can make that claim . . . . . . .

[BachQ]

Naxos has many Hummel discs. This should be very good:

Yes, check out that Missa Solemnis . . . . . . . Good stuff . . . . . . .

[71 dB]

Yes, check out that Missa Solemnis . . . . . . . Good stuff . . . . . . .

Okay! I'll try to get it in the near future (I try not to buy CDs this month)

[Gurn Blanston]

Okay! I'll try to get it in the near future (I try not to buy CDs this month)

Elgar,
If you want to get a Hummel Naxos disk, and are just starting out on Hummel, I strongly recommend the disk with piano concertos 2 & 3 (in a minor & b minor, respectively). I have all his concerti, and those 2 are my favorites, so they make a nice coupling on this disk.

[71 dB]

Elgar,
If you want to get a Hummel Naxos disk, and are just starting out on Hummel, I strongly recommend the disk with piano concertos 2 & 3 (in a minor & b minor, respectively). I have all his concerti, and those 2 are my favorites, so they make a nice coupling on this disk.

Thanks Gurn for the rec. My wishlist grows fast! 

[Gurn Blanston]

Thanks Gurn for the rec. My wishlist grows fast! 

You're welcome.

Yes, mine too. I am ambivalent about that...

[mahlertitan]

So he should be as he lived 1778-1837. He should be Beethoven-like. 

Naxos has many Hummel discs. This should be very good:

the thing is, he is not very Beethoven-like, he's more Mozartian. Chopin was an admirer of his works btw.

[Gurn Blanston]

the thing is, he is not very Beethoven-like, he's more Mozartian. Chopin was an admirer of his works btw.

Quite agree. At least early on, he sounded quite Mozartian. Later, he fell more under the influence of composers like Weber, who was the wellspring of Romanticism, IMO. Note that a lot of his later works are things like potpourris and fantasias, a sure sign that he was abandoning the classical style.

BTW, he was also very good at arranging orchestral works into chamber works. I have 7 Mozart piano concertos and 2 symphonies that he redid for Fortepiano, Flute, Viola & Cello. They are really quite good!

[BachQ]

BTW, he was also very good at arranging orchestral works into chamber works. I have 7 Mozart piano concertos and 2 symphonies that he redid for Fortepiano, Flute, Viola & Cello. They are really quite good!

Gurn, that sounds absolutely charming!

What CD do you have? Who are the performers?

[Gurn Blanston]

Gurn, that sounds absolutely charming!

What CD do you have? Who are the performers?

d,
They are 4 disks on BIS. The performers are Fumiko Shiraga (piano)/ Wiese (Flute)/ Clemente (Viola)/ Bényi (Cello). The concerti are #10, 18, 20, 22, 24, 25, & 26, and also symphony #40. On another disk that I haven't dug out in a while (I'm not as buried as Harry in Elgar's picture, but near as dammit), I have symphony #40 again and also 41. Can't remember any details about the players, I'll dig it out later if you are interested, but I would bet it is OOP, since I got it 3-4 years ago...

[BachQ]

d,
They are 4 disks on BIS. The performers are Fumiko Shiraga (piano)/ Wiese (Flute)/ Clemente (Viola)/ Bényi (Cello). The concerti are #10, 18, 20, 22, 24, 25, & 26, and also symphony #40. On another disk that I haven't dug out in a while (I'm not as buried as Harry in Elgar's picture, but near as dammit), I have symphony #40 again and also 41. Can't remember any details about the players, I'll dig it out later if you are interested, but I would bet it is OOP, since I got it 3-4 years ago...

Thanks, Gurn.  The BIS recording of Hummel's arrangement of Mozart's Piano Concerti looks super . . . . . .

[Don]

There's a great Hummel 2-cd set of his piano trios on MDG played by the Trio Parnassus.  I've never heard Hummel played with such gusto and sharp attacks; it's a 'go for the throat' set of performances.

[Holden]

There's a great Hummel 2-cd set of his piano trios on MDG played by the Trio Parnassus.  I've never heard Hummel played with such gusto and sharp attacks; it's a 'go for the throat' set of performances.

The Piano Trios are absolutely wonderful though recommendation will be the Beaux Arts Trio on Philips