Brilliant Classics
have triumphed again with a super release
of eighteenth century cello concertos
from C.P.E. Bach; Luigi Boccherini;
Leonardo Leo and Joseph Haydn. Entitled
‘Classic Cello Concertos’ this super-budget
priced seven CD box set lasts almost
seven hours. As usual Brilliant Classics
use previously released material and
these concertos first appeared on the
Hungaroton and EBS labels.
Only a few eighteenth
century cello concertos are played regularly
today mainly Haydn’s two concertos,
a handful of Boccherini’s and more recently
some of Vivaldi’s cello concertos which
are becoming increasingly popular.
From the early to mid
seventeen-hundreds the cello had progressed
from an accompanying basso continuo
instrument to a melody instrument
more than capable of considerable virtuoso
display.
The first CD of this
release contains the three cello concertos
of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach,
the eldest surviving son of the great
Johann Sebastian Bach and the best known
of all the sons for his musical prowess.
Privileged to receive lessons from his
distinguished father and from many of
the visiting musicians C.P.E. Bach was
a most creative composer who wrote in
an original and personal style. The
three cello concertos are thought to
have been composed around 1750 which
was the time of his father’s death,
a period which really marked the end
of the late-baroque era and the start
of the classical period in music.
C.P.E. Bach’s predominately
forward-looking music provides a marvellous
link between the late-baroque and the
classical; often sounding romantic at
times and even occasionally quirky.
It is both galant and elegant
yet expressive and emotional. The exciting
headlong rush downwards, the abrupt
change of tempo, the unusual use of
pauses, surprising dissonances and modulation
can be successfully heard in the Allegro
assai (CD 1, track 1, point 0:00-3:19)
of the A minor cello concerto Wq. 170.
C.P.E. composed the concertos in the
standard Vivaldi-like fast-slow-fast
form. The movements are generally based
on the conventional Ritornello form
of the baroque, contrasting tutti
and solo sections in between. It is
interesting how the material that C.P.E.
Bach introduces at the beginning of
the concertos is used and transformed
by the composer in the later sections.
This super-budget box
set is worth buying for these C.P.E.
Bach versions of the cello concertos
alone; the interpretations are really
exceptional. Baroque cellist Balázs
Máté was born in Budapest
and studied at the Franz Liszt Music
Academy and the Royal Conservatory in
The Hague. A founding member of the
Concerto Armonico, Máté
is well-respected performer on the European
period instrument scene and this must
be one of his finest recordings. In
the first movement Allegro assai
of the concerto in A minor Wq. 170
we can hear the soloist make light work
of the considerable virtuoso demands
(CD 1, track 1, point 6:18-9:36). His
bold tone and expressive poetry throughout
the concertos are exceedingly appealing.
I have no hesitation
in stating that the interpretations
on this Brilliant Classic release played
by soloist Balázs Máté
with the Concerto Armonico under the
direction of Péter Szüts
are by any standards the equal of, if
not an improvement on, the feted Suzuki
version on BIS. The distinguished recording
on period instruments from Hidemi Suzuki
who directs the Bach Collegium Japan
on BIS CD-807 has been given special
commendations by eminent music journalists.
Soloist Suzuki gives a strikingly glorious
performance and the ensemble play with
enthusiasm and commitment in an interpretation
that I have long admired. However when
compared to the Suzuki set on BIS, Máté’s
sovereign interpretation gives increased
passion and refinement together with
an improved tone and the original Hungaroton
sound quality is more detailed.
The booklet notes give
the incorrect Wotquenne (Wq.) catalogue
numbers for two of the three concertos
which I have corrected in the header
to this review. Curiously the narrative
in the booklet notes refer not to these
concertos but to C.P.E.’s symphonies.
Italian-born Luigi
Boccherini was one of the most prolific
composers of his time, a cosmopolitan
having lived in Europe’s major Cities:
Milan, London, Berlin and Amsterdam.
Boccherini was a contemporary of the
great composers Haydn and Mozart and
was undoubtedly overshadowed. Unfortunately
his creativity and pioneering talent
are often overlooked. Acclaimed as a
cello virtuoso Boccherini was one of
the first composers to develop the cello
as a separate personality in the medium
of the string quartet. Using the traditional
three movement Allegro-Adagio-Allegro
form which was handed down from the
Vivaldi, Tartini school, Boccherini
was able to blend virtuoso technique
and cantabile harmony.
This Brilliant Classics
release contains three CDs of Boccherini’s
twelve authentic cello concertos. Not
included here is the unauthentic ‘Boccherini
Cello Concerto’ as arranged by Friedrich
Grützmacher from the concertos
G. 481 and G. 482 (publ. 1895) which
has been very popular in recordings
over the years most notably in versions
from Jacqueline du Pré and Yo-Yo
Ma. With the exception of the famous
Minuet taken from the string
quintet in E, Op.13/5 the cello concerto
arranged by Grützmacher has been
Boccherini’s most popular work. However
there are several other real gems of
the cello repertoire to be discovered
here.
Boccherini often looks
forward to the romantic style of composition
which can be heard in the extended cello
solo part of the Allegro moderato
from the concerto No.9 (G. 482) (CD3,
track 4, points 5:06-8:39). Boccherini’s
gift for lyricism so reminiscent of
his contemporaries Mozart and Haydn
can be heard to great advantage throughout
the final movement Rondo, allegro
(CD 3, track 6, point 0:00-1:17).
German soloist, Julius
Berger, Music Professor at Mainz University,
has recorded all the works that Boccherini
composed for cello and clearly has a
special affinity with this music, showing
a real sense of engagement which is
most impressive throughout. Berger’s
sensitivity of phrasing and beauty of
tone is striking. His control of Boccherini’s
main melodies and embellishments is
impressive. A really fine example of
Berger’s superb solo playing and Boccherini’s
almost symphonic writing can be heard
in the Finale of the concerto
No.3 in D major (G.476) (CD 2, track
12, points 3:55-4:10). Berger is ably
assisted in this concerto with sensitive
and polished accompaniments from the
South-West German Chamber Orchestra
using modern instruments under Maestro
Vladislav Czarnecki. The EBS engineers
have done a marvellous job with a beautiful
sound which is both clear and well-balanced.
The fifth and sixth
discs on this Brilliant Classics box
set are works by the late-baroque composer
Leonardo Leo. Leo was one of
the leading Neapolitan composers of
his day mainly composing prolifically
in the genres of opera, dramatic works
and sacred music. The melody of Leo’s
music is fluid, refined and dignified,
with clear and coherent harmony. However
Leo makes little attempt at romantic
expression and his music is rarely passionate.
There is a considerable amount of serenity
in the slow movements which give this
listener a sense of watching clouds
floating by on a calm and balmy day.
Leo’s instrumental
works form only an extremely small proportion
of his total output although the concerto
for four violins and basso continuo,
in D major is becoming increasingly
better known. The six cello concertos
were composed in 1738-39 in response
to an assignment from the Duke of Maddaloni.
If the Duke commissioned the six concertos
for himself to perform he must have
been a most able cellist as the cello
part is relatively demanding. Although
not varying in form, the third concerto
(L.30) unlike the five others is curiously
titled a ‘Sinfonia Concertata’ not cello
concerto. Five of the cello concertos
have four movements in the Andante-Allegro-Largo-Allegro
form with the exception of the D major
concerto (L.10) which has an additional
penultimate Fuga movement.
As with the Boccherini
concertos, the performers on the Leo
cello concertos are the outstanding
partnership of cellist Julius Berger
and the South-West German Chamber Orchestra,
under Maestro Vladislav Czarnecki. Berger
proves to be a most effective and sensitive
soloist in these warm and sweet concertos
that overflow with beautifully turned
and extensive lines. He allows the cello
to soar beautifully upwards to the heavens
as demonstrated in the wonderful Larghetto
of the D major concerto (L. 10)
(CD 5, track 3, point 0:43-2:40). Berger
certainly does justice to Leo’s lyrical
passages, playing with expression and
nobility; displaying an opulent tone,
a fine example of which can be heard
in the Largo e grazioso of the
F minor concerto (L. 40) (CD6, track
3, points 0:44-3:54).
The sound quality from
the EBS sound engineers on the recording
is ideal, complementing the soloist,
the accompaniment and Leo’s music. However
the timings are not over-generous at
thirty-seven minutes for CD 5 and forty-four
minutes for CD 6.
A high proportion of
the prodigious compositional output
of Joseph Haydn remains unfamiliar
to the vast majority of classical music
lovers. Many dozens of his operas, concertos,
symphonies, sonatas, songs and works
for now obsolete instruments remain
unheard as their worth has not transcended
their time and context. Perhaps the
two cello concertos on this Brilliant
Classics release are the exception to
the rule in Haydn’s output as they remain
popular both on the concert platform
and in the recording studios.
My latest thematic
catalogue of Haydn’s works contain six
cello concertos, two are authenticated,
two are lost and the credentials of
another two are spurious. Both the two
authenticated cello concertos on this
release have chequered histories.
The ’Great’ D major
cello concerto No. 2 was often played
as a work of Haydn but many people considered
it to be a composition by Anton Kraft
who was the principal cellist from 1778
in Prince Esterhazy’s court orchestra.
Finally the concerto was authenticated
when Haydn’s autographed score dated
1782 was discovered in the cellars of
the Austrian National Library in 1953.
The concerto has been said to be the
most symphonic of all Haydn’s concertos
and makes tremendous technical demands
of the soloist.
Haydn’s C major cello
concerto was composed between 1761-65
predating the D major concerto by twenty
or so years. It seems likely that the
concerto was intended for Joseph Franz
Weigl the principal cellist in the early
years of the Esterhazy court orchestra.
It is listed in Haydn’s own thematic
catalogue but was lost for many years
until the manuscript parts were discovered
in the Prague National Museum in 1962.
The first modern performance of the
C major concerto was given in 1962 and
is now considered part of the core cello
repertoire. Both Rostropovich in 1964
and Jacqueline du Pré three years
later recorded famous and very warmly
romantic versions.
Budapest-born cello
soloist Miklós Perényi
is a Professor at the Ferenc Liszt Music
Academy and has a close working partnership
with eminent pianist Andras Schiff.
Perényi has collaborated on many
occasions with the Liszt Ferenc Chamber
Orchestra under their director and founding
member János Rolla. Perényi
is a fine cellist eminently suited to
this classical repertoire whilst Maestro
Rolla’s accompaniments are stylish and
most sympathetic. In the closing movement
Allegro of the D major concerto
I particularly like how expertly and
endearingly the soloist interprets the
lyrical episodes that follow the folk-song-like
introduction and the refined control
of the virtuoso passages (CD 7, track
3, point 0:21-5:11). Perényi’s
smoothness of tone and phrasing is impressive,
especially throughout the long lines
of the serenade-like melodies of the
central movement Adagio of the
C major concerto which he plays with
poetry and sensitivity.
This recording of the
two Haydn cello concertos was made in
1979. It is the only CD in this Brilliant
Classic boxed set that is not a digital
recording and the sound quality from
the Hungaroton engineers is not in the
same league as the other six. Although
acceptable, the sound is not as detailed
as the digital recordings. By comparison
the soloist seems to be placed further
back into the body of the orchestra
and is more difficult to hear.
Excellently performed
works with many gems waiting to be discovered.
I have commented on one or two small
deficiencies but there is nothing here
to deter even the most discerning buyer.
The slim and compact packaging is simple,
yet attractive, utilising card slip-cases.
This seven CD box set at super-budget
price from Brilliant Classics is an
absolute steal. Highly recommended.
Michael Cookson
BRILLIANT CLASSICS 92198 [7 CDs: CD1 68:57;
CD2 63:26; CD3 72:37; CD4 74:42; CD5 37:21;
CD6 44:03; CD7 50:38]