Hans Gál was born to Jewish parents on the outskirts of Vienna
but it should be remembered that although he spent half of his
life in Scotland he is from the Schumann/Brahms/Reger tradition.
Of late, what with his four quartets and his concertos, he has
finally, now that fashion and style are not such a concern,
been receiving his due. At the start of the war he had to leave
behind all that he knew and flee to England. As an ‘alien’ he
was incarcerated near Liverpool, then was moved to the Isle
of Man and, eventually having been freed, lived in Edinburgh.
An internment camp does not sound especially appetizing yet
the Huyton Suite is a happy and charming
piece of light music which is the last work on this extraordinary
CD. It brings it to a close on a cheerful note.
Huyton was where Gál was interred when he first arrived in Britain.
The suite is scored for the unusual combination of flute and
two violins because those were the instruments to hand. Movement
one is an Alla Marcia, the second a scurrying Capriccio,
the third a delightful set of Variations on a folk-like
theme (in an Eastern European sense) which if someone had told
me that it was by Dvorák I wouldn’t have been shocked. Its finale
is full of bugle calls and is charmingly entitled Fanfaronata,
ending in a light and perfect cadence. Beautifully written,
it is obviously a joy to play.
In fairness the Three Sketches, played elegantly
by Russell Ryan, do exactly what they say on the packet. The
middle one, which is longer than the outer, faster movements
put together is more fully developed. It possesses several interesting
chord juxtapositions but on the whole is in the late Germanic
Romantic style. This is not surprising for a young man aged
just 20 and who had learned piano with Richard Robert in Vienna
- who had also taught Serkin and Clara Haskil. Nevertheless
it must be mentioned that it wasn’t long before Gál was to win
Austria’s inaugural state prize for his First Symphony - as
a musician he was developing quickly.
It seems extraordinary however that when Gál was young Johann
Strauss was at his height. When he died James MacMillan, also
a Scot, was putting the finishing touches on his ‘The Confession
of Isabel Gowdie’. This is intriguingly apposite because Gál
was responsible for critical editions of the works of Johann
Strauss father and son during the First World War. When you
hear the Three Intermezzos for flute and piano,
which opens the CD, a work dating from over 60 years after the
Sketches, you realize that Gál never really altered a jot of
his musical language to cater for contemporary taste. Alongside
the second Viennese school the first could still flourish happily
into the 1970s and beyond. The Intermezzi may also remind you
of the lighter Brahms. It should be remembered that Gál spent
much of his life whilst teaching at the University in Vienna
editing the complete Brahms edition. Indeed the scores are still
available as is his remarkable book on orchestral score reading
published by UE - sadly I have lost my copy. The emphasis in
these Intermezzos is on melody and sheer musical delight; forget
the style and language. And if any ‘big noise’ from one of the
examination boards is reading this then here is a work (published
by Schott) which would serve excellently for advanced flute
examination purposes. It would be hard to find it played any
better than by Ulrike Anton whose warm, rich tone, especially
in the lower register, is glorious and her sensitive accompanist,
Russell Ryan.
The Sonata for Two Violins is the most
substantial work here and an impressive piece. It seems to be
a little uncertain as to when and where it was first performed
but Michael Haas in his outstanding booklet essay (full of archival
photos of the composer) thinks that it was in Edinburgh in 1942.
You will notice that having been so prolific before this date,
Gal’s creative activities became substantially reduced by work
in the Edinburgh University Music Department but also by a general
realization that his style seemed to have little place in post-war
Britain. Indeed the third movement is a wistful, melancholic
Valse Elégiaque (remember the Strauss connection) and
the fourth, which he calls Ragtime, are movements of
sheer nostalgia; the 1920s, Gál’s happiest time - or even earlier
decades - are evoked. The opening movement is marked Tranquillo
although it has its passionate climaxes. The interweaving of
the Violins is wonderfully conceived with counterpoint twisting
and turning. The second movement is a very brief and light Scherzino,
which plays incessantly with a single rhythm.
Hans Gál has been regarded as a dinosaur and one who lived somewhat
out of his time. He was a composer of considerable interest
in pre-War Austria and a successful one. When the new Europe
took hold his music was regarded as an anachronism. If you know
some of the other, large-scale works then you will need no persuasion
to buy this beautifully documented, superbly played and sympathetically
recorded disc. If you are new to this composer then you might
prefer to start with the Violin Concerto (Avie
2146 or Gramola 98921) which should give you a more rounded
idea of Gál’s individuality and considerable flair.
Gary Higginson
Ulrike Anton (flute), Russell Ryan (piano), Cornelia Löscher (violin), Wolfhart Schuster (violin)
