Haydn's Haus

[Gurn Blanston]

That's probably because there isn't much to choose from in many of Haydn's works in the first place!!

Poor Haydn.

Sad but true. During the course of doing this project, I have learned to be grateful for anything I could find. There are still several works I don't have, and that is because they haven't been recorded at all. I haven't hesitated to move out of my comfort zne and into modern instrument recordings if that's all that was available, or if the PI recordings were lame. But sometimes there hasn't even been that choice! Haydn is not only the least known major composer because there aren't books about him, but his other-than-mainstream music is the least known of any major because it hasn't been recorded ad infinitum like that of some other, lesser composers.

[Gurn Blanston]

It does! I'm really curious...who will it be? I wonder about your op.77 pick too. I prefer a very stately march rhythm in the first movement of op.77/1. Auryn is ideal to these ears.

Sarge

Well, I think they are some worthy players. Of course you know it won't be the Auryn's, since there is an abundance of choices on period instruments.   Still, I could always surprise you with the Carmina's, for example...

[Gurn Blanston]

True, in many works there isn't much choice. But I was thinking mostly about the symphonies and quartets, where choice isn't too shabby. Nothing like Beethoven...or Mahler, of course, but still pretty decent.

Sarge

True enough, for many of the major works anyway. But you know, even if I didn't stick to PI, for some works there just aren't that many choices (talking symphonies now). Works in the Hob 30's, 50's & 60's for example. In the PI world they are almost all solely represented by Hogwood only. Except for the putative Stürm und Dräng ones, like #59 "Fire" for example, or #39 in g minor. And then if you move into the MI realm, if you take away the three complete cycles by Dorati, Fischer & Davies, the same symphonies are even more underserved. Of course, you don't have to take those away (unless you don't like them) but still, that's not an abundance of options for the greatest symphony cycle in quality and quantity ever composed. Just sayin'.... 

[kishnevi]

Quick query: what is "The Battle of the Nile" featured on the Four Nations recording?

[Gurn Blanston]

Quick query: what is "The Battle of the Nile" featured on the Four Nations recording?

It is a song that he set in 1800 for Soprano & Keyboard on an English poem by Cornelia Knight. The whole tale is an interesting and amusing story, actually, but I want to save it for 1800.

[Gurn Blanston]

Part 46

1797

Even though Haydn is growing older than most other active composers ever had a chance to be, the flow of works, although smaller in volume perhaps, continued to pour out with the distilled beauty that only experience, imagination and genius can conjure.

The house in suburban Gumpendorf (it is now the Vienna Haydn Museum) that he had purchased earlier was now ready to move into. It was to be the site of the composition of all the late masterpieces. In his Biographical Notices of Haydn, A.C. Dies tells us this ironic story from his 15th visit (January 1806 - this is how the book is divided up, rather handily as it turns out);

"Haydn mentioned his wife today, in this way. He had received from her in London a letter in which she informed him that she had seen a pretty little one-story house together with a little garden in the suburb of Gumpendorf, No. 73 in the kleine Steingasse, which had pleased her very much since it could be had for a fair price. She wished therefore that he would do her the favor of sending her 2000 florins for which she would buy the house to occupy in the future when she was a widow". I had difficulty suppressing a smile at the naïve candor of the woman's expression. Whether Haydn noticed it, I don't know. He went on "I did not send her the requested money but waited till my return to Vienna. When this time came, I inspected the little house myself. Its still and solitary situation pleased me. I bought it, and during my second (London) journey I had a story added to it. My wife died about 7 or 8 years afterwards (1800, actually – GB), and I have been occupying it ever since as a widower."

I am sure that Haydn got a great deal of amusement from telling that tale. As I do from reading it. 

In 1797 also, the Tonkünstler-Societät finally made up for its earlier neglect: on January 20, a letter signed by Salieri and Paul Wranitzky granted Haydn free admission to all their concerts for life, and on 11 December he was elected a 'senior assessor' in perpetuity. Another case where foreign approbation finally opened an eye or two in Vienna, I would guess. It is hard to see why they were closed to start with, since the Tonkünstler-Societät in particular had been making money from Haydn's compositions since Il ritorno di Tobia way back in 1775. Surely jealousy didn't play a hand?   

In this year also, Count Joseph Franz Saurau, the president of Lower Austria and later Minister of the Interior writes:

"I have often regretted that unlike the English we had no national anthem suited to display before the entire world the devoted attachment of the people to their Landesvater ... This seemed especially necessary at a time when the Revolution in France was raging at its strongest ...

I had a text fashioned by the worthy poet [Lorenz Leopold] Haschka; and to have it set to music, I turned to our immortal compatriot Haydn, who, I felt, was the only man capable of creating something that could be placed at the side of ... 'God Save the King'."

Haydn identified thoroughly with the cultural politics of this project. In late January 1797 the hymn was hastily printed and disseminated, and performed in theaters throughout the Habsburg realm on the emperor's birthday, February 12th. This 'Volkslied', as he called it, combined hymn-like and popular elements so successfully that it became the anthem of both Austria and Germany. Later in 1797 he employed the melody as the basis for the variation movement in the String Quartet Op 76 #3, and in his last years he played it daily at the piano.

In this year also, the Op 76 'Erdödy' String Quartets were completed, while in the Autumn, the first working draft of 'The Creation' was also completed. We'll save that one for next year though, since it will take a year to talk about the pinnacle of his creative career.

The music of 1797;

Hob 03_75 Quartet in G for Strings Op 76 #1
Hob 03_76 Quartet in d for Strings Op 76 #2
Hob 03_77 Quartet in C for Strings Op 76 #3
   Kuijken Quartet
Hob 03_78 Quartet in Bb for Strings Op 76 #4   
Hob 03_79 Quartet in D for Strings Op 76 #5   
Hob 03_80 Quartet in Eb for Strings Op 76 #6
   Quatuor Mosaiques


Hob 09_16 24 Minuets for Orchestra (Piccolo, 2 Flutes, 2 Oboes, 2 Clarinets, 2 Bassoons, 2 Trumpets, Timpani, Percussion  & Strings)
   Philharmonia Hungarica / Dorati


Hob 17a_deest / 03_77 4 Variations for Keyboard on 'Gott Erhalte'
   Paul Badura-Skoda


Hob 23a_deest Motet 'Insanae et Vanae Curae'
   Tafelmusik / Weil


Hob 26a_43 Lied with Keyboard - 'Gott erhalte den Kaiser!'
   Elly Ameling / Jorg Demus


Opus 76. My very first Haydn chamber music. My very first string quartets by anybody. If it could have been done, I would have worn out those CD's by the Carmina Quartet on Denon. Especially disk 1 with #1, 2 & 3 on it. I still get a thrill when I pop that disk in the player. For those of you that prefer modern instrument performances, IMO those are still the best, despite that I've heard more different Op 76's than any other quartets. But now that I am into period pieces, I still don't feel at all slighted by the two sets that I recommend here. Not wanting to leave anyone out, I decided finally to use the Kuijken Quartet for #'s 1-3. I rarely recommend to you disks that are hard to obtain, what point could be made for that?  (Full disclosure; I tried to find these for 3 years, and finally found a set on eBay that the seller wanted $70 for. I negotiated with him via email for 2 days and ended up walking away with them for $40. The other set being sold at the time went for $95, so I felt pretty good, although I think this is way too much for any CD's). However, back to the music, it is really well played, a little looser than the Mosaiques but noticeably tighter than the Festetics (specially for Sarge - ). The Mosaiques style is especially well suited to my vision of the last three quartets of Op 76. They have a different attitude than the first three, and the Mosaiques fit them like a glove. I'm really pleased with this combination, it is just right for me.

Minuets for the Hofburg Redoutensaal.  Every composer who was anyone at all wrote them for the Carnival. Mozart's are famous, as are Beethoven's and Schubert's. And so Haydn's were. Back before Manfred Huss brought us unique, one-of-a-kind recordings of Haydn rarities, that chair was filled by Antal Dorati. Haydnistos have him to thank for the complete symphonies, the Esterházy operas, and the 24 Minuets for Orchestra, among other things. With Australian Eloquence releasing a flood of 1970's and 1980's recordings by such bands as the Academy of St Martin's etc, which do include other Haydn orchestral dances (but which I haven't got hands on yet), it is possible that we will have even more of these gems soon. However, for these works (the closest dating of which is 1797-98), Dorati is all you need. Very nicely done, minuets you can dance to (although Mrs. Gurn and I haven't had a go at it yet).

Insane & Idle Cares (Insanae et Vanae Curae) – When Haydn updated Il ritorno di Tobia for a new production in 1784, he added some new parts, among them a reworking of a sacred chorus. In 1797, for use at Eisenstadt, he extracted that part and had an unknown author set it as a sacred text in Latin. When reset, it became a motet suitable for use in church services. While it lacks the power of the oratorio, it is still a very interesting little piece. Tafelmusik / Bruno Weil have included it in their Complete Masses box. I do not know if it is available elsewhere, I would be disappointed if it wasn't.

For the rest of the year, 'Gott erhalte den Kaiser!' seems to have ruled the day. One thing not noted in the quote above from Count Saurau is that Haydn didn't take any convincing when it came to composing this work. He had been hugely impressed with the concept of a National Anthem ever since seeing/hearing the effect of "God Save the King" when he was in England. So he was actually already looking for an opportunity when Saurau came knocking on his door. Haydn's version is actually a Lied, performed here very capably by our old standby's, Ameling and Demus. I don't have a better version than this, and really don't feel the need for one. In addition, we have here the set of variations that Haydn wrote on the theme. He played this virtually every morning for the rest of his life as exercise and for musical sustenance. Although there are just four written variations, I would wager that over the years he played dozens or even hundreds that were never written down. Still, Badura-Skoda on his Schantz gives us a very nice taste of what this work can have been back in Gumpendorf.

So there is 1797. Within a year Haydn's fame, already widespread, will reach the zenith of European brilliance; Let there be Light!

[kishnevi]

It is a song that he set in 1800 for Soprano & Keyboard on an English poem by Cornelia Knight. The whole tale is an interesting and amusing story, actually, but I want to save it for 1800.

All in its proper time.
And it's not like 1796-97 are lacking in music!

[Gurn Blanston]

All in its proper time.
And it's not like 1796-97 are lacking in music!

  That's a fact! Just to pique your interest though, the story involves Haydn, Lord Nelson, Lady Hamilton, her husband and Cornelia Knight. A lot going on there for one little old cantata!   

[Leon]

I've had this book for a long time but only recently have I begun reading it.

[asin]0460861077[/asin]

The author, Hans Keller, is quite opinionated and this can be a source of distraction at times.  But one gets the sense that he knows something about string quartets in general and has something distinctive to say about them.   It also does not hurt that he considers Haydn the "papa" of the form.

Anyone else read it?  I'd like to discuss it once I've had a chance to read more into it.

[Gurn Blanston]

I have been seeing that book for a long while but never picked it up. I don't know how deep it is in theory jargon, but that's really where my choices are made, since I want to be able to understand at least half of the book. 

I got this one a couple of years ago;


It has a fair amount of jargon too, but also a pretty good chunk of it is more history than theory, and that suits me OK.

OTOH, Keller is a sort of institution in the business. I have seen him referred to in many articles and essays, usually positively. His being opinionated is, I guess, a well know thing. Apparently he leaves out a couple of quartets that he couldn't figure out, calling them "unworthy of Haydn".   Still, what he does cover is apparently good solid analysis and information, so you will probably come out the winner for having read it.



On another point altogether, how come you found an ASIA number for that book, when I, as always, was only able to find an ISBN number? I have never been able to post a book using ASIN...

[Leon]

I have been seeing that book for a long while but never picked it up. I don't know how deep it is in theory jargon, but that's really where my choices are made, since I want to be able to understand at least half of the book. 

I got this one a couple of years ago;


It has a fair amount of jargon too, but also a pretty good chunk of it is more history than theory, and that suits me OK.

OTOH, Keller is a sort of institution in the business. I have seen him referred to in many articles and essays, usually positively. His being opinionated is, I guess, a well know thing. Apparently he leaves out a couple of quartets that he couldn't figure out, calling them "unworthy of Haydn".   Still, what he does cover is apparently good solid analysis and information, so you will probably come out the winner for having read it.



On another point altogether, how come you found an ASIA number for that book, when I, as always, was only able to find an ISBN number? I have never been able to post a book using ASIN...

Yes, he ignored all of the quartets prior to Op. 20, except for Op. 9, No. 4 and of those after, one (#4, I think) from Op. 33 on the basis that they are not "great" in his opinion, which is writ large on every page.  But if one is only half convinced of Keller's own appraisal of his expertise, he has a broad and deep knowledge and understanding of the unique characteristics of the string quartet, how to combine homophony with polyphony (he uses the neologism homophonic polyphony) in a manner that exploits the unique possibilities and timbre and particular combined sonorities possible with these four instruments.   And how it is very different from symphonies or other chamber forms.   He claims that only a handful of composers understood this and wrote what Keller believes to be true string quartets (as opposed to merely using the string quartet for a composition that could just as easily been played for some other combination of instruments).

He considers 45 of Haydn's quartets about as perfect as a string quartet can be written; his style takes some getting used to, and I strongly suggest not to skip the Preface.

I tried using the ISBN number and, voila, it worked.

[Gurn Blanston]

Yes, he ignored all of the quartets prior to Op. 20, except for Op. 9, No. 4 and of those after, one (#4, I think) from Op. 33 on the basis that they are not "great" in his opinion, which is writ large on every page.  But if one is only half convinced of Keller's own appraisal of his expertise, he has a broad and deep knowledge and understanding of the unique characteristics of the string quartet, how to combine homophony with polyphony (he uses the neologism homophonic polyphony) as in a manner that exploits the unique possibilities and timbres and particular combined sonorities possible with these four instruments.   And how it is very different from symphonies or other chamber forms.   He claims that only a handful of composers understood this and wrote what Keller believes to be true string quartets (as opposed to merely using the string quartet for a composition that could just as easily been played for some other combination of instruments).

He considers 45 of Haydn's quartets as as perfect as a string quartet can be written; his style takes some getting used to, and I strongly suggest not to skip the Preface.

I tried using the ISBN number and, voila, it worked.

Well, he is opinionated but since I share his opinions I guess I can overlook that.   I reckon I will put this one on the list then.

[Gurn Blanston]

Part 47

1798

In his 66th year, Haydn was every bit as busy as he had been throughout his life. Last year he had completed drafts of the German version of Die Schöpfung, and early in this year, he and Swieten completed the final drafts and the English version of The Creation, and it was ready for its premiere by March. This work, an oratorio in the English Style of Handel, as opposed to the Italian or German styles in which he had worked previously, is considered now, and has been since its inception, as Haydn's greatest work, and indeed, as the greatest work in the Classical Style. Given the premium placed on vocal music in those times, that is a major laurel indeed! 

At first the work was only produced in private, at the Schwarzenberg Palace; the official première took place on the 30th of April. The effect was overwhelming;
Silverstolpe (a Swedish diplomat who was a friend of Haydn) reported:

No one, not even Baron van Swieten, had seen the page of the score wherein the Creation of Light is portrayed ... Haydn had the expression of someone who is thinking of biting his tongue, either to hide his embarrassment or to conceal a secret. And in that moment when Light broke forth for the first time, one would have said that light-rays darted from the composer's blazing eyes. The enchantment of the electrified Viennese was so profound that the performers could not proceed for some minutes.

In addition, a mass for Eisenstadt, the third in the series. This one was later called the Nelson Mass because it is believed to be the one that Nelson asked to have played when he went to Eisenstadt in 1800. Another wonderful and powerful work.

Haydn spent a considerable amount of time in Eisenstadt with the Esterházy family, and was particularly beloved by Princess Marie Hermenegild, wife of Nickolaus II. It was she who commanded that Haydn be addressed in such a manner as was due to a Doctor of Music from Oxford. Even her husband was no longer allowed to call him simply Haydn. This was the sort of gesture which, at this point in his life, meant much more than amassing more money (although he still liked that, too). It is hard to imagine in these days when 'class' is of little importance in much of the world, how far the peasant son of the village wheelwright had come, to now be part of the highest social circles in the country. This may be the greatest accomplishment of his life, and one which flies in the face of the 19th century dismissal of him as a lackey of the aristocracy.

The music of 1798;

Hob 21_02 Die Schöpfung
   Capella Augustina / Spering


Hob 21_02 Oratorio "The Creation"
Gabrieli Consort & Players / McCreesh



Hob 22_11 Nelsonmesse
Concentus Musicus Wien / Harnoncourt


Hob 24b_20 Concert aria for Soprano "Solo e pensoso"
   Manfred Huss / Haydn Sinfonietta Wien - Miah Persson


So, how does one choose a version of Die Schöpfung (or even The Creation?) which is undeniably superior to all the others? Personally, I doubt one can, so it comes down to which you like best. In addition to the Spering, I have these three German versions;



Each of which is undeniably a winner. The Spering is every bit as good as any of them, which is saying a lot. Of course, this doesn't even count the hundreds of MI versions stretching back into the distant past conducted by guys who actually knew Haydn! (OK, I kid... ). Anyway, I like the soloists on here, none of whom I was familiar with previously, a lot. And the playing and choral work are faultless too. Given the typically high price of many versions that I have seen, the Naxos price point (I paid $15US) on this set pushes it into first place on my list.

Despite the fact that the German version had been prepared in advance and was ready to go, Haydn refused to allow its release for performance until the English version was also ready. It was a gift to the country that had propelled him to stardom, that they should be able to hear his work in their own language. Surprisingly, there are not very many English versions available, one hardly hears of any MI versions (although I'm sure there are some), and even the PI guys, who should realize the historic aspects of the English version have scarcely touched it. So what I have are essentially just these two, but excellent versions they are!



I have had the Hogwood for a long time and always had the highest opinion of it. I recently purchased the McCreesh and now give it the nod for only two reasons; first, it is performed by the sorts of large forces that were very likely used originally, and the result is rousing! This is unfortunately augmented by the unusual fact (for L'Oiseau Lyre recordings) that the Hogwood has always seemed mysteriously muffled to me on the sound quality front. I even bought a second copy of it a few years ago in the even that it was my particular disk that had a problem, but it wasn't. I am supposing that the reason that I even hear this as a problem is because of how hard I tried to strain to hear the words of my first English oratorio!  Anyway, you don't need to strain to hear McCreesh! In addition, while many will find this sacrilegious, McCreesh also cleaned up the grammar and some stilted sentence construction in a few places. Knowing that the original English text was translated into German for that version, and then that German text was translated back into English by two non-English speakers (Haydn and von Swieten) for that version, this doesn't bother me nearly as much as I would have expected.

As a work of extraordinary power and beauty, the Nelsonmesse is also much recorded. Before I ever had the Hickox box set, I had the single disk of this mass and it got considerable playing time! But once again I am turning to Harnoncourt here, his take on this work is undeniably great at bringing out all the aspects that one looks for.

Finally, I was wrong when I discussed the Italian duets in 1796; there was yet another Italian song in Haydn's bag. In this Concert Aria for Soprano & Orchestra, Solo e pensoso, Miah Persson really lets us see what a lovely voice she has. This was another work composed for the Weiner Tönkunstlers Societat (Vienna Composers Society) for a benefit concert. It is on a lyric by Petrarch. Huss and the Haydn Sinfonietta are, as usual, ideal accompaniment in this lovely little work.

So, the nearly 40 years of preparation have finally come to a peak. The Creation will receive its public debut in the next year. There are yet a few tricks in the bag, but Haydn's career in his lifetime will never be at a higher point than it is right now!

[Leo K.]

Great stuff Gurn! Thanks!

There only version I now have of the Creation is the McCreesh, which I've been waiting to hear when the right mood hits. Some years ago I got to sit in for the rehearsals (and a concert) of the Creation at the Aspen Music Festival and it was glorious. How awesome it was to hear the Creation of Light during the researsals! It was like my brain was going to overload with energy!

[Gurn Blanston]

Great stuff Gurn! Thanks!

There only version I now have of the Creation is the McCreesh, which I've been waiting to hear when the right mood hits. Some years ago I got to sit in for the rehearsals (and a concert) of the Creation at the Aspen Music Festival and it was glorious. How awesome it was to hear the Creation of Light during the researsals! It was like my brain was going to overload with energy!

Thanks, Leo. Man, you need to spin that McCreesh! I really think you will be blown away by the power unleashed there. The right mood will come more often after that.    I have never seen a 'live' performance of this work, but it is second on my bucket list (after THE 9th). 

[Leo K.]

Thanks, Leo. Man, you need to spin that McCreesh! I really think you will be blown away by the power unleashed there. The right mood will come more often after that.    I have never seen a 'live' performance of this work, but it is second on my bucket list (after THE 9th). 

The 9th (Beethoven AND Mahler  ) is also on my bucket list! What a treat that would be!

I will get to the McCreesh soon then! Don't really know why I was waiting so long to hear it. Funny how that happens sometimes!

[Gurn Blanston]

The 9th (Beethoven AND Mahler  ) is also on my bucket list! What a treat that would be!

I will get to the McCreesh soon then! Don't really know why I was waiting so long to hear it. Funny how that happens sometimes!

Leo, you are such a liberal!   Of course, that's why I said THE 9th...

Yes, I agree, it is odd how those things happen sometimes. With me and Haydn, sometimes this project interferes in that now and again I get a disk from an era already covered and it is 6 months before I get a chance to go back in time. Or conversely, I got McCreesh way beck when I was doing the 1750's...

[SonicMan46]

Thanks, Leo. Man, you need to spin that McCreesh! I really think you will be blown away by the power unleashed there. The right mood will come more often after that.    I have never seen a 'live' performance of this work, but it is second on my bucket list (after THE 9th). 

Gurn - thanks for the ongoing and outstanding timeline on Papa Haydn, and glad that you liked the McCreesh - it is DAMN good (and in English -  ) - Dave

[Gurn Blanston]

Gurn - thanks for the ongoing and outstanding timeline on Papa Haydn, and glad that you liked the McCreesh - it is DAMN good (and in English -  ) - Dave

Thanks, Dave. IIRC, you were the one who pointed me at that. You were right, then and now!

[Gurn Blanston]

Part 48

1799

Word of the brilliance of The Creation leaked out to the public, probably from a variety of sources. So when the first public performance took place on March 19 at the Burgtheater, with a complement of about 180 performers (not the 400 that has been reported), it 'made history' immediately and on a pan-European scale in a way equaled by no other composition. This was due to a fortunate combination of sublime subject, cultural-historical 'moment' on the cusp between Enlightenment and Romanticism, its appeal to both high-minded and ordinary listeners and to Haydn's unrivalled stature and the originality and grandeur of his music.

His pride in and personal identification with the work, in addition to his usual concern for financial advantage, induced him to publish it himself, selling it 'by subscription' all over Europe, with the assistance of colleagues such as Dr Burney; his advertisement in the London press (June 1799) reads:

The success which my Oratorio The Creation has been fortunate enough to enjoy ... [has] induced me to arrange for its dissemination myself. Thus the work will appear ... neatly and correctly engraved and printed on good paper, with German and English texts; and in full score, so that [at least] one work of my composition will be available to the public in its entirety, and the connoisseur will be in a position to see it as a whole and to judge it.

The edition appeared at the end of February 1800 with a list of more than 400 subscribers!

By spring 1799 Haydn and Swieten were planning a second oratorio, The Seasons, with a libretto based on James Thomson's pastoral epic of 1726–8; Haydn composed the music apparently from autumn 1799 to the end of 1800.

However, all was not utter perfection at that time either. Age was taking its inevitable toll. Haydn began to complain of physical and mental weakness. He wrote to (Breitkopf &) Härtel in June of 1799:

Every day the world compliments me on the fire of my recent works, but no one will believe the strain and effort it costs me to produce them. Some days my enfeebled memory and the unstrung state of my nerves crush me to the earth to such an extent that I fall prey to the worst sort of depression, and am quite incapable of finding even a single idea for many days thereafter; until at last Providence revives me, and I can again sit down at the pianoforte and begin to scratch away.

And indeed, the end was in sight for the compositional aspect of his career. After The Seasons, there would only be a very few more works. However, they were brilliant, and probably no one would have guessed that their creator was nearly totally enfeebled by age.

In this year he also met Georg August Griesinger, who would be nearby until the end of Haydn's life, to handle business and correspondence and write his 'Biographical Notice'. Much of what we know about Haydn post-1800 is thanks to Griesinger. In what must be an oddity of the times, it is actually believed that his writings are mainly reliable for their accuracy. This is virtually unheard of, as anyone familiar with Anton Schindler's role in Beethoven's life and legacy can attest.

The music of 1799;

Hob 03_81 Quartet in G for Strings Op 77 #1
   Quatuors Mosaiques
Hob 03_82 Quartet in F for Strings Op 77 #2
   L' Archibudelli



Hob 22_12 Theresienmesse
   Rebel Baroque Orchestra \ Glover  Trinity Choir


Hob 23c_2 Te Deum in C
   Collegium musicum 90 / Richard Hickox


It seems like a year of choices doesn't pass by without at least one work or opus causing some angst for Gurn when it comes to choosing the version that is most recommendable. And so it is again, this year with Op 77, the last completed string quartets, indeed, the final complete instrumental works for our delectation. Every talented quartet in history has had a go at these. In the PI universe, there are probably a half dozen or so, and in the wide world of MI, there are many dozens indeed, with more being turned out every year. Here are what I had to choose from, and a tough choice it was! Along with the two final selections;
(#1 only).

The only major PI version not represented was the Salomon Quartet, which I was unable to find in a timely way. Ultimately, I chose the Mosaiques for #1 on the basis of their excellent sound, especially in the finale which was standout marvelous. Their tempo in the opening movement was unusually swift for them, and it helped the phrasing stay together better than is sometimes the case. In #2, there was no denying L'Archibudelli (who were also my original choice in #1). The music just flows so freely from their instruments that it seems entirely effortless, which is purely an illusion since it is far from simple music. I am very happy with these two choices, I think....    

The 'Theresienmesse' was first preformed at the traditional family gathering for the Princess's nameday, September 8, 1799 (the Feast of St. Mary). Since the Emperor's wife, Empress Maria Theresa, was also a great admirer of Haydn, she early times got a copy for her library, and soon the word got about that the mass was dedicated to her, thus the name it has had since nearly the beginning. Of course, it wouldn't have been prudent for Haydn to deny that sort of thing... In any case, this is the 4th of the Six Great Masses, and its particular distinguishing feature comes from the way that Haydn has interwoven the solo and choral lines so that the music goes between them equally. Also, this orchestra has clarinets which provide a rather different sonority than is usual. I think that Jane Glover has done an outstanding job here, stepping in for Owen Burdick so near the end of this project. This is an especially nice rendition.

The Te Deum in C major, the second one that Haydn wrote, but the first since 1763, was commissioned by Empress Maria Theresa, and not premiered until September 14, 1800, once again at the nameday celebration of Princess Maria Hermenegild. It is simply brilliant, perhaps the culmination of Haydn's experience in choral work, and also the height of the earlier mentioned "Viennese C major" tradition. The musicians consist of the chorus, 1 Flute, 2 Oboes, 2 Bassoons, 2 Horns, 3 Trumpets!, Timpani & Strings.  Splendid piece of work, I must say. I have two versions of this, one by CMW / Harnoncourt and the other by Hickox and Collegium Musicum 90.  Hickox and company do it up wonderfully! I think you will be pleased with this rendition, it really rocks!

By next time we will have come to the dawn of the new century. We've come a long way with Haydn, and still have but a short one left to go. Music worth hearing though...