Youthful Take On Core Repertoire

The current monthly cover disk from BBC Music magazine features the young Czech players of the Pavel Haas Quartet, members of the BBC new Generation Artists scheme. They have already released commercial recordings of Czech repertoire which have been very well received and on this disk they play three Beethoven quartets, one each from his early, middle and late periods. The booklet notes make clear that in some ways these distinctions are arbitrary but the PHQ seem comfortable in each of them. These are not performances in aspic, they take some liberties with tempo and dynamics and these might not be "library" choices for the pieces performed ( Op 18 no 4, Op 135 and Op 95 Quartetto Serioso ) But since I already own a complete cycle of the quartets by the Takacs Quartet, I am happy to have these as an addition and look forward to hearing what repertoire they tackle next.

Enjoyed This More Than I Thought I Would

A complete opera offered as the BBC music magazine cover disk this month, albeit a one act opera that is part of a trilogy. The work in question is Il Tabarro by Puccini. The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and the BBC Singers are conducted by Gianandrea Noseda and the soloists are Barbara Frittoli, Miro Dvorsky, Lado Ataneli, Jane Henschel, Barry Banks, Alastair Miles, Allan Clayton, Katherine Broderick and Edgaras Montvidas. It is a live recording taken from a preformance at the 2008 Proms. Puccini's not really my thing but I find the three one act operas of Il Trittico, of which this is one, easier to take than the famous cornerstones of the repertoire that get staged so much more frequently. The plot of Il Tabarro is straightforward; love gone bad, sexual betrayal, vengeful murder. The music doesn't really involve seperate scenes and isn't an aria, recitative, aria type structure. Instead it is built on a single span rather like a tone poem or lyric symphony in many ways. This suits the concert presentation here at the Proms. There are city sounds and car horn effects in some of the orchestration to remind that Puccini is a 20th century composer not immune to influences from the early decades of that century. There are fine performances from the main protaganists and if it is a cliche to assume that being Italian Noseda has an ear for opera, it is nevertheless born out by the conducting here.

A Souvenir But No More

This month's BBC Music magazine cover disk features vintage performances by Clifford Curzon of Mozart Piano Concertos Nos 21 and 23. No 21 is from 1976 and the accompaniment is provided by the BBC Symphony Orchestra under Bernhard Klee, while No 23 is from 1963 with the BBC Northern Symphony Orchestra conducted by George Hurst. To be honest, this is not really a major rediscovery of long lost electrifying performances. Curzon's playing is fine enough without being at his very best and it would be a perfectly fine radio broadcast or evening in the concert hall but it is not an essential document for posterity. These are probably the two most familiar of Mozart's piano concertos and the slow movements still show their magic despite the somewhat routine run throughs from the BBC orchestras. And it is churlish to be too critical of these free cover disks, rather be grateful for the occasional gems they throw up.

A Fitting Tribute

This month sees an excellent BBC Music magazine cover disk of music by Janacek. I already have recordings of the pieces featured ( multiple recordings in the case of the Sinfonietta ) but this is still a worthwhile addition. The disk is otherwise notable for the two conductors featured. The Sinfonietta is conducted by Sir Charles Mackerras with the BBC Philharmonic. A renowned specialist in Czech repertoire, this is a full blooded and spirited performance despite a few split notes from the brass in the most exposed parts of the fanfare. Both pieces were recorded live and so it is possible to live with the odd imperfection. The second piece on the disk is the Glagolitic Mass, played by the BBC National Orchestra and Chorus of Wales with the Bristol Choral Society and conducted by the late Richard Hickox. The disk has the subtitle "a tribute to Richard Hickox" and it is a fine performance that is entirely fitting to be viewed in that light Following his unexpected and untimely death. It certainly outshines a recent Prom performance under Boulez, although the latter was undermined by one notably appalling solo contribution and Hickox is much better served by his soprano Susan Bullock, together with mezzo Ameral Gunson, tenor Kim Begley and bass Matthew Best. Not to forget the important organ part played here by Adrian Partington.

The Anniveraries Start Here

The BBC love anniversaries and in 2009 they are plugging four "composers of the year" who all have anniversaries of some sort. One of the composers is Handel and the latest BBC Music magazine was a Handel special, including the cover disk. The works featured are two Concerti Grossi ( Op 3 Nos 1 and 2 ) and two Chandos Anthems ( As Pants The Hart and The Lord Is My Light ). The Concerti Grossi are taken from a forthcoming Harmonia Mundi release I believe and are played by the Academy of Ancient Music directed by Richard Egarr. Handel was a great recycler of material and these pieces were cobbled together from existing orchestral movements from various operas, oratorios and anthems in order to suit a passing fashion for Concert Grossi. That doesn't make the music any the less engaging and it is repertoire which ideally suits the AAM. The choral Chandos Anthems are performed by the BBC Singers and the Orchestra of the Sixteen under the direction of Harry Christophers. They are so called because they were written for the Duke of Chandos at a time when Handel had a brief period under his patronage. They are typical Handelian oratorio syle woks on a smaller scale and there are notable solo contributions from sopranos Eleanor Meynell and Elizabeth Poole, tenors Daniel Auchincloss and Andrew Murgatroyd, Anthony Robson on oboe and organist Laurence Cummings.

Fantastical Tales

This month's BBC Music magazine cover disk goes under the title of An Enchanted Christmas with music by Ravel, Prokofiev and Suk. In truth, there isn't much that is inherantly Christmassy about the pieces, it is just that they are based on folk / fairy tales that for some reason are looked upon as being seasonal. The Ravel and Prokofiev pieces are familiar enough and I have both in other commercial recordings. They both get perfectly serviceable workouts; Ravel's Mother Goose Suite from the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra under Ilan Volkov and Prokofiev's The Love For Three Oranges ( Symphonic Suite )from the BBC Philharmonic under Sir Edward Downes. Incidentally, the accompanying notes claim that the march from the Three Oranges suite is Prokofiev's most famous melody. Really ? The troika from Lt Kije ? The Montagues and Capulets ? Peter and the Wolf ? Whatever, the work which I didn't know is the one by Suk, Pohadka - A Fairy Tale. This is championed here by the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Jakub Hrusa. It is a symphonic poem telling the tale of an ill starred love affair, powerful curses and unfortunate transformations and ultimate redemption and happy ending. Because of his family connection it is easy to think of Suk in terms of his father in law Dvorak but the melodic and folk influenced writing and orchestration prefigures Strauss and has more in common with the 19th century Russian school.

France and French Influence

The BBC Music Magazine offering this time around has a French theme with music by Poulenc, Messiaen and Stravinsky. Stravinsky ? Well, the excuse is that he was resident in Paris when the work concerned was composed. That work is the Symphony of Psalms performed here by the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus under Sir Andrew Davis. I already own two other recordings of this work but hearing it in the context here reveals certain connections with the sound world of Messiaen that had previously not occured to me. Stravinsky had magpie tendencies but which way any influence may have gone I am not expert enough to suggest. The Poulenc piece is his Gloria, also played by the BBCSO and Chorus under Davis and with soprano Christine Brewer taking the solo part. Poulenc had ambiguous relations with his religious beliefs and that is reflected by the less than reverent settings of some of the texts here. Not really my cup of tea but given a decent performance. The most compelling performance on the disk however is reserved for the instrumental piece by Messiaen, L'Ascension, performed by the BBC scottish Symphony Orchestra conducted by Vladimir Jurowski. Some of Messaien's indiosyncracies are evident, such as bird song interludes, but the piece has a sober relentless drive that is most impressive.