All but one of the
pieces on this release follow a more
or less classical form of sonata allegro
in the first and last movements, separated
by a slow and a scherzo-like movement.
First on offer here is the Szeligowski,
about whom there is very little biographical
information in the liner notes. From
the research I’ve made, he is one of
the legion who studied with Boulanger.
Stravinsky is counted as a decided influence
on his music, as can be evidenced here.
Aside from a good number of chamber
pieces, his works include a clarinet
concerto, a piano concerto, choral and
piano works. The quintet here begins
as a rather innocent-sounding march
which gets slightly more agitated before
moving into more interesting emotional
territory with a darker, more brooding
second statement. The second movement,
Andante cantabile, leaves the
narrative line to the oboe, before trading
it off to the flute. The timbres of
the instruments here keep the mood from
becoming too sombre. This movement is
lovely, but like the rest of the piece,
offers few surprises. The scherzo movement
that follows has a slightly melodramatic
feel — one could easily imagine a chase
scene in a silent comedy film where,
though the situation is dire, the context
lets you know to expect a laugh when
the villains eventually meet up with
the business end of a swinging board
or a floor-full of ball bearings. The
finale keeps things animated, with all
of the instrumentalists fully involved,
then a fugal treatment of fragments
of the original first theme before the
flute and oboe announce the end of the
piece.
Following, we have
Bacewicz’s wind quintet of 1932, composed
while she was in Paris. She, too, studied
with Boulanger. Bacewicz, whose name
is gradually becoming better known in
countries outside of Poland, composed
quite a wide range of chamber music,
from her string quartets - for which
she is best known - to piano quintets,
to works for various instruments with
piano. The opening statement is definitely
reminiscent of Prokofiev. It is a bit
more jocularly offhand with regard to
dissonance than Szeligowski’s quintet;
it flirts with the idea of being a suite,
which, as the liner notes mention, the
designation of Air to the second movement
indicates. This slow movement has the
feel of suspension about it, with the
parts all hovering, creating expectancy
before the third movement, which is
not much more scherzo-like in character
than the first movement — that is, until
the brief comedic statement by the clarinet.
Of the works by Bacewicz I’ve heard,
this one, while pleasant, seems less
a statement of substance and more a
simple aim at entertainment.
Kilar, who I was introduced
to through his enjoyable film music,
is next on the programme, with his quintet,
written twenty years after the Bacewicz
and almost simultaneously with the Szeligowski.
Kilar, of the composers here, seems
to have the most persistent attraction
to wind instruments, with all of his
chamber compositions involving winds.
The opening movement, entitled Sinfonia,
retains a filmic character and could
almost be heard as an "opening
credits" piece, with the theme
sternly and emphatically stated in unison
at the end. The scherzo plummets through
the ranks of the quintet in series.
There is a section of folk-inflected
music before the downward run ripples
through the ensemble again, bringing
us back to the first theme. Of the works
heard on this disc so far, this is the
one that has the ability to surprise,
as in the delightfully amusing and busy
finale, which, after a brief quiet interlude
and wound-up glissando from the clarinet,
suddenly goes clattering off like a
collection of spring-powered toys in
all directions. An amusing delight that
the Cracow Philharmonic Wind Quintet
performs wonderfully.
The disc is closed
by Incrustations, a late piece
by Bacewicz. Acte Préalable has
championed this composer, releasing
no fewer than seven discs that feature
her work. Word is getting out, with
other artists and labels releasing performances,
such as the extremely interesting 4th
string quartet, recently featured on
a disc by the Szymanowski Quartet on
Avie ( review
). Incrustations, here, is a
bit of an enigma on its own, and an
enigma also when compared with the other
pieces on this disc. It is scored "for
horn and chamber ensemble," a septet,
rather than a traditional wind quintet.
Bacewicz’s trio for oboe harp and percussion,
reviewed here (review)
was written at the same time and has
similarities in sound and structure.
Both also quote an earlier work; a 1955
Partita. The oboe acts as the
main voice of the ensemble. The tried-and-true
structures such as sonata-form found
in the other works are not made use
of. The composer appears to be focusing
mainly on tonal coloration and exploration
of timbre possibilities of the instruments
used. This makes for a sometimes difficult
listening experience, but the piece
holds interest, more so than the first
two works, pleasant though they are.
Overall, this disc
comes recommended for those who love
new repertoire and who have affinity
for wind instruments. The Kilar is a
delight, and I’ve found myself coming
back again and again to puzzle over
Incrustations, though I am not
the wiser. The ensemble is very well
recorded and extremely well balanced
in sound and recording aesthetic. An
enjoyable and occasionally challenging
release.
David Blomenberg
see also
review by Gwyn Parry Jones
ACTE
PRÉALABLE
Catalogue
for
details
Cracow Philharmonic Wind Quintet: (Krysztof
Kawula (flute); Mariusz Pędziałek
(oboe); Jan Cielecki (clarinet); Mirosław
Płoski (horn); Zdisław Bogacz (bassoon));
Instrumental Ensemble (for Incrustations): (Mirosław
Płoski (horn); nna Sikorzak-Olek (harp);
Jan Pilch (percussion); Bogusława Ziegelheim
(violin); Agata Zając (cello); Marek Kalinowski
(contrabass)) 
