Francks - Eduard & Richard!

Started by SonicMan46, June 23, 2008, 08:43:45 AM

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SonicMan46

Today, I posted in the 'listening thread' on a disc of Piano Trios by Richard Franck, which prompted me to explore this 'father-son' German romantic music team - my main attraction was the excellence of the chamber music on this sole CD that I own of the two, and their presumed excellence in this area of composition.

Eduard Franck (1817-1893) was born into a wealthy banker family in Breslau; he took lessons w/ Mendelssohn, and was a talented pianist.  In addition, he taught and composed; his chamber music is generally considered his finest output - checkout the listing and comments in the Wiki article.

Richard Franck (1858-1938), the son, was born in Cologne, and like his father was also a well-respected pianist, teacher, and composer; his works centered on the solo piano and chamber music, although he did write vocal and orchestral compositions.

Like many other 'lost & lesser known' composers that have appeared in this forum, this 'father-son team' needs to be re-discovered.  The Audite Label has taken on the project of publishing much of their music - checkout their website for listings, if interested.  In addition to the disc mentioned above, I just put in an order on the Amazon Marketplace for 4 other discs from this family duo:

Eduard Franck: String Quartets, Opp. 54 & 55

Eduard Franck: Violin Concerto, Op. 57/ Symphony in B flat Major, Op. 52

Richard Franck: Works for Violin and Piano

Richard Franck: Piano Quartets; Fantasies, Op. 28

Our own Scott Morrison has been giving many of these Audite recordings superb reviews on Amazon, and agrees that this music needs to be rediscovered; also, checkout the review of Richard's Piano Quartets on MusicWeb, and the links to his father's recordings at the bottom of the page.  If you like the chamber music of Schumann & Brahms, then the Francks may be another happy addition to your collection; BTW, they are not related to Cesar Franck -  :D

ChamberNut

Quote from: SonicMan on June 23, 2008, 08:43:45 AM
  If you like the chamber music of Schumann & Brahms, then the Francks may be another happy addition to your collection

:o Hmmm, definetely will have to check that out, thanks SM!!

As Wayne and Garth of Wayne's World would say:

Schwing!!   ;D


SonicMan46

Well, before my thread enters the depths of oblivion!  ;D  Thought that I'd start the listening postings on still the only disc that I own (the others mentioned above are now in the mail):

Richard Franck - Piano Trios, Op. 20 & Op. 32 w/ the performers listed on the cover below; can't find a decent pic of the composer, although the pianist in the photo is stated in the notes to be R. Franck.  Trio, Op. 20 was published in 1893, and Op. 32 premiered in 1900 - the earilier work looks back into the 19th century and is full of wonderful melodies, harmonies, and interaction of the instruments (of which all of well represented); the later trio was dedicated to the cellist, Emil Braun, and which provides more of a dominance for this instrument; the music is somewhat more pithy & passionate - both works enjoyable, well performed, and recorded by the Audite engineers.  This CD (a bargain chance purchase from BRO for $7) was a 'little shocker' for me relative to the quality of the music - really can stand up there w/ many other Piano Trio recordings that I own from this era -  :)

If interested & would like anothe opionin, checkout Scott Morrison's Comments on Amazon -  :D


SonicMan46

Two recent arrivals to add to my first only disc of his Piano Trios - now need to start exploring the father's music, Eduard!  :D

Now listening to the Works for Violin & Piano, i.e. Violin Sonatas, Nos. 1 (Op. 14) & 2 (Op. 35; and Three Pieces for Violin & Piano, Op. 52; despite Richard Franck living until 1938, he was in ill-health many of his latter years - most of his large-scale composing occurred from about 1880 to 1910; plus, his music writing really 'looks back' into the Romanticism of the middle & late 19th century; Schumann, Mendelssohn, & Brahms were his father's models, plus Carl Reinecke (1824-1910) was Richard's main teacher thus instilling Viennese German musical traditions in his pupil.  These works certainly show that influence, and are wonderfully rich & melodic w/ virtuoso writing for both instruments; Audite again does a great job at recording these musicians - both discs are SACDs (unfortunately I do not have a SACD player, so am listening in standard audio).

The performers, who are on all of the discs that I have of this composer are Christoph Schickedanz (violin) & Bernhard Fograscher (piano), born in Germany & Romania, respectively, in the 1960s; interestingly, the two met at the Music School at Indiana University in Bloomington, a beautiful BIG 10 campus in the rolling hills & quarries of southern Indiana (been there a half dozen times - my son went to undergraduate school at IU - got a funny story of a composer who was there at the time - had the same name as me, so for years I was getting TONS of donation requests from the music school!).

Now just starting and for the second time, the Piano Quartets, Ops. 33 & 41; Fantasies, Op. 28 - same two performers above w/ the addition of Marius Nichiteanu (viola) and Mathias Beyer-Karlshoj (cello) - pretty much similar comments to the above regarding the style & playing of the music - good review on MusicWeb:)

 

SonicMan46

Well, I'm surprised that nobody seems to have an opinion or comments on this father-son duo - they are quite good and the music excellent - Audite has done a superlative job in putting this music on disc - despite this neglect, I'm still exploring their music - today, received the disc shown below of the father's String Quartet, Op. 49 & Piano Quintet, Op. 45 w/ the Edinger Quartett + James Tocco on the piano for the second work - these are excellent romantic works & recordiings - love the cover art which apparently is an early portrait of the composer's daughter - must look up her outcome?

 

SonicMan46

About to re-listen to the Eduard Franck Chamber Works in my previous post, but was fascinated w/ the beautiful watercolor picture of the girl - the inside notes are in German, but appears to be a watercolor painting of Franck's (the elder) daughter, Ida, done in 1866 by the artist, Johann Friedrich Dietler (1804-1874) - apparently quite a popular portrait painter in Bern, Switzerland, where the Francks moved to about six years earlier.

Not much at all on this artist or his other pics on the web (found the one below up for auction) - the Audite label which is putting together quite a few discs of the Franck's music seems to be using other 'watercolors' by this artist - well, just a side light -  :D


Don

I have three or four Eduard/Richard Audite discs.  Haven't played them much, but they sounded promising. 

SonicMan46

Quote from: Don on July 08, 2008, 03:26:24 PM
I have three or four Eduard/Richard Audite discs.  Haven't played them much, but they sounded promising. 

Hello Don - please give them a spin - would appreciate your comments; otherwise, this thread is 'going no where', and these two guys are pretty good!  ;D    Thanks - Dave

mc ukrneal

I hate that such interesting composers should languish so unloved, when there there is true quality to be had. I picked up this disc earlier this year. Sterling frustrates with its high prices and rare sales, but I have enjoyed the music. 
Be kind to your fellow posters!!

SonicMan46

Ukrneal - thanks for rejuvenating this Franck thread - Florestan was posting some recent experiences in the listening thread and hope that he might add some comments here?   :D

I need to re-listen to my previously posted discs and see 'what new' has been released by Audite!  Dave  :)

SonicMan46

Well, after a longer that expected hiatus from the Francks, i.e. the two composers in this thread, I finally decided to take another look at the recordings of this father-son team on the Audite label!  :D

Just added the 2 discs below of more Eduard Franck's orchestral and chamber works; he was greatly influenced and studied under Mendelssohn - Franck's Op. 1, published in 1837 were piano works dedicated to Felix M.  The Violin Concerto, Op.30 & Symphony, Op.47 complement another Audite disc w/ other similar works.  The two String Sextets were published in the latter part of the 19th century and have Brahms as a major influence.  Excellent reviews of both recordings from ClassicsToday HERE; also Scott Morrison's comments on the Sextets disc HERE on Amazon (check out his other reviews on this Franck Audite project!). :)

 

mc ukrneal

Quote from: SonicMan46 on January 25, 2012, 09:21:09 AM
Well, after a longer that expected hiatus from the Francks, i.e. the two composers in this thread, I finally decided to take another look at the recordings of this father-son team on the Audite label!  :D

Just added the 2 discs below of more Eduard Franck's orchestral and chamber works; he was greatly influenced and studied under Mendelssohn - Franck's Op. 1, published in 1837 were piano works dedicated to Felix M.  The Violin Concerto, Op.30 & Symphony, Op.47 complement another Audite disc w/ other similar works.  The two String Sextets were published in the latter part of the 19th century and have Brahms as a major influence.  Excellent reviews of both recordings from ClassicsToday HERE; also Scott Morrison's comments on the Sextets disc HERE on Amazon (check out his other reviews on this Franck Audite project!). :)

 
That first disc is great! I like the other with the Violin Concerto too. But the sextet is one I haven't gotten around to yet. What's your impression of that one so far?
Be kind to your fellow posters!!

SonicMan46

Quote from: mc ukrneal on January 25, 2012, 10:10:45 AM
That first disc is great! I like the other with the Violin Concerto too. But the sextet is one I haven't gotten around to yet. What's your impression of that one so far?

Hi Neal - appears that you & I are the few interested in this composing family -  ;D

Well, if you like the Brahms Sextets w/ influences from Mendelssohn & Bach (as you probably know Franck was a virtuoso pianist and studied w/ Mendelssohn for about 4 years; the latter apparently used a LOT of Bach in teaching his students according to the liner notes!).  The Edinger Quartett is supplemented w/ an extra viola & cello, which allows a much deeper and richer sound than from a string quartet alone - the instruments blend together beautifully w/ varied textures; the music is generally rather mellow but with different themes and combinations of instruments - I've listened to the disc this morning for the third time before writing these comments - enjoying more w/ each hearing; if you're a Romantic sextet fan, then this recording should not disappoint - :)  Dave

mc ukrneal

Quote from: SonicMan46 on January 26, 2012, 08:39:02 AM
Hi Neal - appears that you & I are the few interested in this composing family -  ;D

Well, if you like the Brahms Sextets w/ influences from Mendelssohn & Bach (as you probably know Franck was a virtuoso pianist and studied w/ Mendelssohn for about 4 years; the latter apparently used a LOT of Bach in teaching his students according to the liner notes!).  The Edinger Quartett is supplemented w/ an extra viola & cello, which allows a much deeper and richer sound than from a string quartet alone - the instruments blend together beautifully w/ varied textures; the music is generally rather mellow but with different themes and combinations of instruments - I've listened to the disc this morning for the third time before writing these comments - enjoying more w/ each hearing; if you're a Romantic sextet fan, then this recording should not disappoint - :)  Dave
Another must for me then! 
Be kind to your fellow posters!!

Leo K.

Quote from: SonicMan46 on June 23, 2008, 08:43:45 AM
Today, I posted in the 'listening thread' on a disc of Piano Trios by Richard Franck, which prompted me to explore this 'father-son' German romantic music team - my main attraction was the excellence of the chamber music on this sole CD that I own of the two, and their presumed excellence in this area of composition.

Eduard Franck (1817-1893) was born into a wealthy banker family in Breslau; he took lessons w/ Mendelssohn, and was a talented pianist.  In addition, he taught and composed; his chamber music is generally considered his finest output - checkout the listing and comments in the Wiki article.

Richard Franck (1858-1938), the son, was born in Cologne, and like his father was also a well-respected pianist, teacher, and composer; his works centered on the solo piano and chamber music, although he did write vocal and orchestral compositions.

Like many other 'lost & lesser known' composers that have appeared in this forum, this 'father-son team' needs to be re-discovered.  The Audite Label has taken on the project of publishing much of their music - checkout their website for listings, if interested.  In addition to the disc mentioned above, I just put in an order on the Amazon Marketplace for 4 other discs from this family duo:

Eduard Franck: String Quartets, Opp. 54 & 55

Eduard Franck: Violin Concerto, Op. 57/ Symphony in B flat Major, Op. 52

Richard Franck: Works for Violin and Piano

Richard Franck: Piano Quartets; Fantasies, Op. 28

Our own Scott Morrison has been giving many of these Audite recordings superb reviews on Amazon, and agrees that this music needs to be rediscovered; also, checkout the review of Richard's Piano Quartets on MusicWeb, and the links to his father's recordings at the bottom of the page.  If you like the chamber music of Schumann & Brahms, then the Francks may be another happy addition to your collection; BTW, they are not related to Cesar Franck -  :D

[asin]B00000IMIE[/asin]

How wonderful to find a thread on Eduard Franck! I just received the recording shown above, and I hearing the A Major Symphony for the first time, and I'm enthralled by it so far! Lovely and evocative!

mc ukrneal

Quote from: Leo K on March 17, 2012, 06:59:25 AM
[asin]B00000IMIE[/asin]

How wonderful to find a thread on Eduard Franck! I just received the recording shown above, and I hearing the A Major Symphony for the first time, and I'm enthralled by it so far! Lovely and evocative!

If you like that one, you'll be happy to know there is another concerto/symphony disc (not to mention all the chamber music and such):
[asin]B000056QGB[/asin]
Be kind to your fellow posters!!

Leo K.

Quote from: mc ukrneal on March 17, 2012, 07:08:07 AM
If you like that one, you'll be happy to know there is another concerto/symphony disc (not to mention all the chamber music and such):
[asin]B000056QGB[/asin]

Thanks! I'm almost finished with the A Major symphony, and now I'm interested enough to explore more, and the disk above looks like an excellant choice.

As for his chamber music, perhaps I'll begin with his string quartets.


mc ukrneal

Quote from: Leo K on March 17, 2012, 07:19:46 AM
Thanks! I'm almost finished with the A Major symphony, and now I'm interested enough to explore more, and the disk above looks like an excellant choice.

As for his chamber music, perhaps I'll begin with his string quartets.
The string quartet disc is the most recent (released just this year), and I have not heard that one. So if you do go for it, let us know what you think.
Be kind to your fellow posters!!

Willoughby earl of Itacarius

Interesting music, the samples are very good. But the prices are rather steep, so I wait for a possible sale.

mc ukrneal

Quote from: Harry on March 17, 2012, 07:39:41 AM
Interesting music, the samples are very good. But the prices are rather steep, so I wait for a possible sale.
Yes. Mdt had a sale a year or two ago, so it does periodically go on sale.
Be kind to your fellow posters!!