Albinoni: 12 Concertos, Op. 9 (CD review)

Andrew Manze, violin; Frank de Bruine and Alfredo Bernardini, oboes; Christopher Hogwood, The Academy of Ancient Music. Decca 289 458 129-2 (2-disc set).

At last count the number of classical works I had never heard before stood at approximately 932, 876,562.3. After listening to this two-disc set of Albinoni concertos from Christopher Hogwood and the Academy of Ancient Music, that number is effectively reduced by twelve. I can sleep easier.

For those of you who, like me, recognize Albinoni's name largely from the Adagio in G-minor for organ and strings, famously reconstructed by Remo Giazotto but bearing little relationship to Albinoni's actual hand, these concertos from Hogwood may come as a surprise. Albinoni was a contemporary of Vivaldi, but while the latter is a household name, people play and recognize rather little of Albinoni's output nowadays. More's the pity; Albinoni's work shows sparkle and invention.

Christopher Hogwood

Hearing these concertos for the first time, I cannot pretend to be able to identify them in the future. As a whole, though, they would seem to epitomize the "Age of Reason," the first half of the eighteenth century in which Albinoni wrote them. There is an order and precision about them that is at once calculated and scintillating.

Even more so than Vivaldi, who was much more the showman, Albinoni's concertos appear more subdued, more distanced, yet still glistening with vitality. At least that's how Christopher Hogwood, his soloists, and the Academy players present them on period instruments and using historically informed performance practices. Most important, Hogwood takes them at relatively lively but modest tempos, never hurrying the music as so many period groups do. I was most taken by Nos. 2, 7, and 12 for their vivacious spirit, and Nos. 2 and 7 in particular for their lovely slow movements.

Decca's sound has its merits, as well. The engineers recorded it at a reasonably moderate distance for a realistic home-listening experience, offering an image that is set back from the speakers and not spread too far across them. Nevertheless, the timbre seems slightly bright and hard to me and somewhat lacking at the bottom end. I would have preferred to hear a more resonant mid bass to justify the ensemble's perceived location in my living room. Still, the performances and sound are of good quality, and for anyone even remotely curious about Baroque music the set makes an intelligent purchase decision.

JJP

To listen to a brief excerpt from this album, click below:

Serenata: A Bouquet of Favorites for Strings (CD review)

Antonio Janigro, I Solisti di Zagreb. Vanguard Classics SVC-142.

If you laid all the albums of string music in the world end to end, some hot new group would try to rerecord all of them. No need to rerecord this collection, though. It contains some splendid music, almost every short favorite for strings you can name. The amazing thing is that Vanguard Classics recorded them so long ago, 1957 and 1962. The recordings were good in their day and they're good now, even if some listeners may not appreciate all of the interpretations.

Every performance is as lively and energetic as you'd expect from this conductor and ensemble, Antonio Janigro and I Solisti di Zagreb, and from the repertoire represented. The program starts with a zesty rendition of Albinoni's Concerto a cinque in B-flat Major, with sonics of startling presence. The Super Bit Map remastering has not only clarified the sound, it has eliminated most of the background noise between the notes. However, it has not removed all of the noise accompanying the notes, so what we get can sound slightly rough or fuzzy at times.

Antonio Janigro

The recordings themselves are a bit forward and bright, anyway, and the result is a little disconcerting at first. But one soon adjusts. The first nine tracks come from 1957 and actually sound the best of the lot; the later 1962 tracks display a fraction more static and low-end rumble.

Following Albinoni, there are Boccherini's familiar Minuet and Haydn's equally famous Serenade, requisite numbers in these kind of collections and pieces I continually mistake for one another. Janigro and his group do up both of them lovingly. The centerpiece of the album is Mozart's Eine kleine Nachtmusik, performed with as much verve as one could want. If it doesn't come across quite as smoothly Marriner's or as effortlessly as Boskovsky's, it's close.

Also on hand are Respighi's Ancient Airs and Dances Suite No. 3; Paradis's Sicilienne; Vaughan Williams's Fantasia on "Greensleeves," especially moving; Pergolesi's Concertino in G; Sibelius's Valse Triste; and, finally, a rather quick-paced version of Barber's Adagio for Strings that I had heard before from Janigro on an all-Barber anthology. This last one may be a matter of taste; Stokowski and Toscanini took it at about seven minutes; Janigro does it in six, although it doesn't sound particularly hurried, just a little too straightforward for my taste. I think, perhaps, the conductor was better in early music.

Overall, though, this is a fine collection of music, very well played. The audio, if not turned up too loudly, can sound superb as well. The collector will have most of these pieces already in his or her music library, but still a warmly recommended disc.

JJP

To listen to a brief excerpt from this album, click below:

The Italian Job (CD review)

Music of the Italian baroque. Gail Hennessy and Rachel Chaplin, solo oboes; Peter Whelan, solo bassoon; Adrian Chandler, La Serenissima. Avie AV2371.

If the idea of listening to well-recorded Italian music of the seventeenth and eighteenth-century Baroque period played on period instruments in historically informed performances appeals to you, you might enjoy this album, The Italian Job. Conductor Adrian Chandler and his British early-music ensemble La Serenissima (the "serene city" of Venice) play a variety of tunes from some of Italy's top composers of the day: the somewhat forgotten Caldara and more-famous Corelli, Tartini, Vivaldi, Albinoni, and Torelli.

What's more, if you're worried that all Baroque music sounds pretty much alike, you're in for a treat. Chandler has chosen a program that varies the selections considerably, and the music represents four Italian cities known for their distinctive musical styles: Venice, Bologna, Padua, and Rome. The disc provides over seventy-six minutes of well-played music. You can hardly go wrong.

First up is the Sinfonia in C by Antonio Caldara (c. 1671-1736). It is rather extravagant in its use of trumpets, bassoons, oboes, solo violin, and strings, with La Serenissima and company giving it a rousingly good turn. The ensemble plays comfortably, and Chandler never leads them on any helter-skelter barnstorming. That is, the tempos are lively but never rushed. There is also a prominent role for timpani that is most entertaining.

Next is the Sinfonia to S. Beatrice d'Este in D minor by Arcangelo Corelli (1653-1713). This is largely a string work placed at the end of a much-longer oratorio (1689) by Giovanni Lulier. Supposedly, performances of the Corelli piece alone came later. Written in five movements, it begins very seriously and hardly lets up. There is a central Adagio, too, that while also solemn sounds quite lovely. I like the way Chandler keeps everything in an appropriately somber vein yet with enough energy and enthusiasm as to never let the music sound depressing.

Adrian Chandler

After that comes the Concerto in E by Giuseppe Tartini (1692-1770). Apparently, Tartini much admired Corelli and wrote several works that use variations of the older man's music. Tartini's violin compositions, however, seem more complex than Corelli's, this one featuring some charming solo violin work, Chandler and company playing it with a consummate grace.

Then, there's the tiny Concerto Alla rustica in G and the longer Concerto in C by Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741), proving he was good for a lot more than The Four Seasons. However, fans of Vivaldi will probably agree there is no mistaking Vivaldi's work for anybody else's. La Serenissima perform both works with an animated vigor, and the music highlights some delightful bassoon playing.

Following the Vivaldi concerto comes the Concerto in F by Tomaso Albinoni (1671-1751). Despite his writing some fifty operas, listeners today probably think of Albinoni mainly for his instrumental music. He wrote this one for two oboes, strings, and continuo, and it includes a particularly affecting Adagio.

The program ends with the Sinfonia in C by Giuseppe Torelli (1658-1709). Like the opening Caldara piece, Torelli's work contains a multitude of instruments, scored elaborately for four trumpets, trombone, timpani, two oboes, two bassoons, two violins, two cellos, strings, and continuo. The timpani again make a statement. La Serenissima perform the piece in a grand and stately manner, bringing the album to a splendid conclusion.

Simon Fox-Gal produced, engineered, and edited the album, recorded at St. John's Smith Square, London, England in August 2016. The sound has a nice, ambient bloom to it, making the relatively small number of players appear bigger and the whole sonic range realistic. There is also a lifelike depth of field to the music, and good clarity and detail without any accompanying brightness or forwardness. It makes for a pleasant listening experience.

JJP

To listen to a brief excerpt from this album, click on the forward arrow:

Trumpet Concertos (CD review)

Music of Haydn, Handel, Hummel, Albinoni, Hertel, and Telemann. Maurice Andre, trumpet. Riccardo Muti, Philharmonia Orchestra; Sir Charles Mackerras, English Chamber Orchestra; Herbert von Karajan, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. EMI Classics 7243-5-62947-2-1.

Maurice Andre has been playing and recording the trumpet for about as long as anybody, and his many recordings point up one thing in common: the man's unflagging refinement. The various concertos on this "Great Artists of the Century" CD from EMI confirm the notion.

The star of the show is the Haydn Trumpet Concerto, which Andre has recorded perhaps a half a dozen times. The performance in this collection dates from 1984, with Riccardo Muti and the Philharmonia Orchestra. I'm not sure why EMI chose the Muti when there was an even newer one available, but it suffices. Andre seems poised and relaxed, presenting the music in a most temperate manner, and the result appears the utmost in polish and repose. Not that it doesn't show its high spirits in the final movement, Vivace, but it basically maintains its grace under fire.

Maurice Andre

I would personally not buy Andre's performance of the Haydn as a first choice in this repertory, mind you, but in this collection it does nicely. For stronger recommendations in the Haydn alone, I would go with Hardenberger, Marriner, and the Academy (Philips); Schwarz and the Y CO (Delos); Marsalis, Leppard, and the National Philharmonic (Sony); or, maybe best of all, Berinbaum, Somary, and the English Chamber Orchestra (Vanguard).

The other works on Andre's album are similarly elegant: Trumpet concertos from Albinoni, Handel, and Hertal (with Mackerras and the ECO); and Telemann and Hummel (with Karajan and the BPO). I have to admit that I find some of the material here a little mundane, a little less than scintillating, but there is no questioning the vitality of the Haydn and Hummel, which open and close the collection. Nor is there any question about Andre's dignified way of handling all of it with equal aplomb.

EMI released the present collection in 2005, with most of the recordings remastered in 1999. The overall tonal balance is remarkably similar in the six different recordings, warm and clear, with a touch of reverberation to lend a semblance of reality to the occasion. I did, however, find the position of Andre's trumpet varying a bit, from well left of center to center. I enjoyed the sound of the Berlin Philharmonic best of all for its integration of soloist and orchestra, but one should find pleasure throughout the disc.

JJP

To listen to a brief excerpt from this album, click here:

Royal Strings (UltraHD CD review)

Charles Rosekrans, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. LIM UHD 076 LE.

Back in 2001 when I reviewed the original Telarc recording of this remastered LIM (Lasting Impression Music from FIM, First Impression Music) disc, I said of it: "If this recording were any smoother, the listener would be in danger of slipping on the polished surface and breaking a leg." The late Charles Rosekrans, former director of the Westchester Hudson Opera, leads London's Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in a collection of works arranged for string orchestra, the culmative effect of which is balmy in the extreme. The music includes familiar works like Vaughan Williams' "Fantasia" on Greensleeves, Dvorak's Moderato from the Serenade in E major, Albinoni's Adagio for Strings, Tchaikovsky's Waltz from the Serenade in C major, and several movements from quartets, quintets, and octets by Mendelssohn, Brahms, and Beethoven, all additionally arranged for string orchestra.

Maestro Rosekrans takes no chances and presents each piece in fairly straight-arrow fashion. Under Rosekrans, the music sounds laid back, relaxing, predictable, and often routine, yet Maestro Rosekrans offers it up in just the manner I would guess a majority of listeners prefer. This is an assembly of works for lovers of lush string sound, mainly, and cushy, comforting sonics. Devoted classical music fans and dedicated audiophiles may object; others undoubtedly won't, now that LIM have remastered it in even better sound. In other words, it sounds really nice, but Rosekrans may not present it as thoughtful or persuasively as some rival conductors have on other recordings.

Things begin with the Waltz from the Serenade in C major by Russian composer Peter Tchaikovsky. Under Rosekrans the Waltz flows along in a gentle, consistent manner, yet with little individual character. In other words, there is absolutely nothing wrong with it except that it sounds like every other interpretation of the music.

Next is the Fantasia on Greensleeves by English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, a performance that contains some beautiful violin work by Cleo Gould. I liked Rosekrans's rendering of this one a little more than his performance of the opening Tchaikovsky piece because he seems to invest it with greater feeling, and Gould's violin part soars wonderfully.

After that is the Moderato from the Serenade in D major by Czech composer Antonin Dvorak. Rosekrans takes it at a fairly perfunctory tempo, with little change-up in contrast levels or nuances in phrasing. I can only describe the result as pleasingly routine.

Charles Rosekrans

Then, it's the Adagio for Strings, often attributed to the eighteenth-century Italian composer Tomaso Albinoni, but probably composed by the twentieth-century Italian musicologist Remo Giazotto, who said he merely arranged Albinoni's work. Whatever, here we find the familiar orchestration for strings and organ, with violinist Cleo Gould again taking the lead. The organ is the real star of the show here, however, and audiophiles with really big subwoofers will doubtless take delight in it. Otherwise, Gould's violin stands out in an otherwise acceptable but hardly noteworthy rendition of the work.

In addition, we get Mendelssohn's Allegro moderato from the Octet in E-flat major, Beethoven's Presto from the Quartet in C-sharp minor, Schubert's Standchen from Schwanengesang, Brahms's Un poco Allegretto from the Quintet in G major, Purcell's Dido's Lament from Dido and Aeneas, and Beethoven's Lento assai from his Quartet in F major. Of these other pieces, I'd single out the Beethoven Presto for its energy and verve; the Schubert for its sweet spirit, conveyed nicely by Rosekrans; and the concluding Beethoven Lento for its graceful solemnity.

Telarc producer Andre Gauthier and recording engineer Robert Friedrich provided, as I said earlier, an ultrasmooth sound for the disc back in 2001, the kind that might lull one into submission but that one cannot really fault in any particular way. Now, LIM have remastered it, and it sounds better than ever. It sounds, in fact, like real music. What more could you want? (I hear some audiophile types now saying "I want more detail, more transparency, more energy, more dynamics, more "hi-fi"; but it's all a matter of degree; this is good couch-potato sound that will offend no one. Actually, it impressed me, and I thought it quite natural, especially now that LIM have gotten hold of it.)

LIM remastered the Telarc recording using their 32-bit Ultra HD processing, which is about the most-exacting method anyone has yet found to transfer the contents of a master tape to a standard Red Book CD. The new mastering adds a touch more clarity and impact to the sound, while making it appear even smoother than before. Note, however, that although I count this a blessing, other listeners may not appreciate yet more smoothness. There is also a wide stereo spread involved and a pleasant hall ambiance that further enhances the sound's lifelike qualities.

To sum up, as much as I enjoyed the sound, I can't say the overall character of the music impressed me as much. It was, as I say, a mite undernourished for my taste. I suppose if you already own the Telarc version of this recording and like it, the LIM remastering does improve upon its sonic qualities. Whether the improvement is worth the additional cost is another question that only the listener can answer.

JJP

To listen to a brief excerpt from this album, click here: