MusicWeb International One of the most grown-up review sites around 2023
Approaching 60,000 reviews
and more.. and still writing ...

Search MusicWeb Here Acte Prealable Polish CDs
 

Presto Music CD retailer
 
Founder: Len Mullenger                                    Editor in Chief:John Quinn             


CD REVIEW

Some items
to consider

new MWI
Current reviews

old MWI
pre-2023 reviews

paid for
advertisements

Acte Prealable Polish recordings

Forgotten Recordings
Forgotten Recordings
All Forgotten Records Reviews

TROUBADISC
Troubadisc Weinberg- TROCD01450

All Troubadisc reviews


FOGHORN Classics

Alexandra-Quartet
Brahms String Quartets

All Foghorn Reviews


All HDTT reviews


Songs to Harp from
the Old and New World


all Nimbus reviews



all tudor reviews


Follow us on Twitter


Editorial Board
MusicWeb International
Founding Editor
   
Rob Barnett
Editor in Chief
John Quinn
Contributing Editor
Ralph Moore
Webmaster
   David Barker
Postmaster
Jonathan Woolf
MusicWeb Founder
   Len Mullenger

alternatively
CD: Crotchet

Trumpet and organ
Olivier MESSIAEN (1908-1992)
Fauvette des jardins (1980)** [1:08]
Julien-François ZBINDEN (b. 1917)
Dialogue, Op. 50 (1973)*** [13:08]
Dmitri SHOSTAKOVICH (1906-1975)
Passacaglia, Op.29 (from Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk) (1932)* [7:17]
Petr EBEN (1929-2007)
Okna (Windows) (1976)***
I. Blue window [4:08]
II. Green window [5:39]
III. Red window [5:39]
IV. Golden window [6:44]
André JOLIVET (1905-1974)
Arioso barocco (1968)*** [9:16]
Thierry ESCAICH (b. 1965)
Evocation II (1996)* [5:40]
Henri TOMASI (1901-1971)
Semaine Sainte à Cuzco (1962)*** [6:08]
Henri SAUGUET (1901-1989)
Non morietur in aeternam *** [5:20]
Toru TAKEMITSU (1930-1996)
Paths, Op. 50 (In memoriam Witold Lutoslawski) (1994)* [5:31]
Reinhold Friedrich (trumpet); Iveta Apkalna (organ)
*organ solo; **trumpet solo; ***organ and trumpet
rec. 2007, Essen Philharmonie, Alfried Krupp Saal, Essen, Germany
PHOENIX EDITION 143 [72:00]
Experience Classicsonline

I must confess to ulterior motives in requesting this CD for review. First, I thoroughly enjoyed a similar collection from BIS, Prières sans paroles, played by Simon Preston and Håkan Hardenberger (see Christopher Thomas’s review). It’s usually a thrilling combination, especially if the organ is up to scratch. Second, I have my eye on an SACD of Messiaen’s La Nativeté du Seigneur, played on this Essen instrument. That apart, the programme here looks very enterprising indeed – the Tomasi, Jolivet and Sauguet items also appear on the BIS recording – so I popped in the disc and prepared for an aural workout.
 
The German-born trumpeter Reinhold Friedrich has a number of premieres to his name and has played under Claudio Abbado in Lucerne. Organist Iveta Apkalna, who hails from Latvia, is much in demand across Europe; in 2007 she made her Berlin Philharmonic debut with Berlioz’s mighty Te Deum, also under Abbado’s direction. She is a regular at continental music festivals and, on the basis of this disc at least, I look forward to hearing her in the UK.
 
Of the works for solo trumpet Messiaen’s Fauvette des jardins may be a wisp of a piece – it was composed on a scrap of paper and presented to Rolf Liebermann, who commissioned Messiaen’s opera St François d’Assise – but the imitation of a garden warbler requires remarkable agility. The composer never specified what instrument it should be played on but Friedrich’s bright, clear trumpet sounds very persuasive. That’s also true of his other solo, Paths, by the Japanese composer Toru Takemitsu. Here the music – played with and without mute – comes across as a series of striking contrasts. No shimmering Orientalism here but a bracing display of bold instrumental colours, not to mention the extraordinary evocation of birdsong at the close.
 
The organ solos are just as varied and rewarding, ranging from Shostakovich’s own arrangement of the Passacaglia from his opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk to Thierry Escaich’s pulsating, highly mobile Evocation II. Be warned, though, the blaze of sound at the beginning of the Passacaglia will have you leaping for the volume control. It’s a powerful, surging work and a good demonstration of the Kuhn organ’s heft. I imagine Dieu parmi nous would sound rather grand on this instrument. As for Evocation II it’s both original and irresistible. I was particularly impressed with Apkalna’s control of dynamics and rhythm here. This is a genuine showpiece that would be most welcome at any recital.
 
The Swiss composer Julien-François Zbinden is new to me. As the work’s title implies there is something of a dialogue between the two protagonists. Friedrich’s trumpet sounds wonderfully transported above the dark-hued harmonies of the organ. The two soloists are also well blended when they play together, the trumpet sounding remarkably like just another stop on the organ. The acoustic of the Alfried Krupp Saal seems fine, with just enough reverberation to add warmth and depth but not enough to obscure detail. Friedrich may not have quite the panache of Hardenberger but he strikes me as every bit as accomplished technically, especially in those difficult upper registers,
 
The longest work on this disc is Okna (Windows), by the Bohemian-born composer Petr Eben. Inspired by Marc Chagall’s painted windows in the Hadassah Synagogue in Jerusalem, Okna depicts four of the 12 sons of the Patriarch Jacob. The first, ‘Reuben, the blue window’, is rich and resonant, with trumpet filigrees above a rolling bass. There is real vigour to the writing here, matched by Friedrich’s superbly projected playing. The second, ’Isachar, the green window’, opens with a pulsing pedal over which the trumpet gently rises. Even in the more spirited passages there is a sense of repose, of spiritual calm, that is very moving indeed.
 
The third movement, ‘Zebulon, the blood-red window’, is perhaps more strident, passionate even, with crisp playing from Friedrich, not to mention some thrilling cadences for trumpet and organ. The solemn, hymn-like ‘Levi, the golden window’ is also splendid, the wide soundstage adding to the sense of occasion. Surprisingly it all ends with some jaunty themes that broaden into a glorious climax. An approachable work and one that has certainly piqued my interest in Eben’s music.
 
The Jolivet, Tomasi and Sauguet pieces are very well played and recorded on Prières sans paroles – the cavernous acoustic of Denmark’s Aarhus cathedral as much a player in these works as the soloists – but even in this august company Friedrich and Apkalna can hold their own. The Arioso barocco blends trumpet and organ in music of Messiaenic awe and splendour. The trumpet weaves around the firmly anchored organ and, as befits a composer who learned to play at Notre-Dame, there are moments of genuine weight and power; sample the great swell of sound that begins at 5:29, for instance. It’s committed playing, but for added presence and a bit more frisson Preston and Hardenberger are hard to beat.
 
Henri Tomasi’s Peruvian-inspired Semaine Sainte à Cuzco demands some virtuosos playing from the trumpeter, which Friedrich easily provides. Not quite as atmospheric as the Preston/Hardenberger account, but Friedrich’s final note silences all criticism, as does his spirited flourishes at the start of Sauguet’s Non morietur in aeternam. Although the composer was one of Satie’s pupils there is a distinct devotional air to this music, albeit with some quirky harmonies thrown in for good measure.
 
As much as I admire the Preston/Hardenberger partnership Friedrich and Apkalna run them a very close second. If anything their choice of repertoire is more adventurous and the engineering is pretty good too. What a pity, then, that Phoenix’s presentation and packaging leave so much to be desired. Apart from the mangled English translations and spelling errors the timings on the back of the jewel case are wildly inaccurate. Also, biographical details – so useful in contemporary or unfamiliar works – are in short supply.
 
Those caveats aside, this a resplendent achievement and should be sought out by all organ and trumpet aficionados.
 
Dan Morgan
 

 


Advertising on
Musicweb


Donate and keep us afloat

 

New Releases

Naxos Classical
All Naxos reviews

Hyperion recordings
All Hyperion reviews

Foghorn recordings
All Foghorn reviews

Troubadisc recordings
All Troubadisc reviews



all Bridge reviews


all cpo reviews

Divine Art recordings
Click to see New Releases
Get 10% off using code musicweb10
All Divine Art reviews


All Eloquence reviews

Lyrita recordings
All Lyrita Reviews

 

Wyastone New Releases
Obtain 10% discount

Subscribe to our free weekly review listing

 

 


EXPLORE MUSICWEB INTERNATIONAL

Making a Donation to MusicWeb

Writing CD reviews for MWI

About MWI
Who we are, where we have come from and how we do it.

Site Map

How to find a review

How to find articles on MusicWeb
Listed in date order

Review Indexes
   By Label
      Select a label and all reviews are listed in Catalogue order
   By Masterwork
            Links from composer names (eg Sibelius) are to resource pages with links to the review indexes for the individual works as well as other resources.

Themed Review pages

Jazz reviews

 

Discographies
   Composer
      Composer surveys
   National
      Unique to MusicWeb -
a comprehensive listing of all LP and CD recordings of given works
.
Prepared by Michael Herman

The Collector’s Guide to Gramophone Company Record Labels 1898 - 1925
Howard Friedman

Book Reviews

Complete Books
We have a number of out of print complete books on-line

Interviews
With Composers, Conductors, Singers, Instumentalists and others
Includes those on the Seen and Heard site

Nostalgia

Nostalgia CD reviews

Records Of The Year
Each reviewer is given the opportunity to select the best of the releases

Monthly Best Buys
Recordings of the Month and Bargains of the Month

Comment
Arthur Butterworth Writes

An occasional column

Phil Scowcroft's Garlands
British Light Music articles

Classical blogs
A listing of Classical Music Blogs external to MusicWeb International

Reviewers Logs
What they have been listening to for pleasure

Announcements

 

Community
Bulletin Board

Give your opinions or seek answers

Reviewers
Past and present

Helpers invited!

Resources
How Did I Miss That?

Currently suspended but there are a lot there with sound clips


Composer Resources

British Composers

British Light Music Composers

Other composers

Film Music (Archive)
Film Music on the Web (Closed in December 2006)

Programme Notes
For concert organizers

External sites
British Music Society
The BBC Proms
Orchestra Sites
Recording Companies & Retailers
Online Music
Agents & Marketing
Publishers
Other links
Newsgroups
Web News sites etc

PotPourri
A pot-pourri of articles

MW Listening Room
MW Office

Advice to Windows Vista users  
Questionnaire    
Site History  
What they say about us
What we say about us!
Where to get help on the Internet
CD orders By Special Request
Graphics archive
Currency Converter
Dictionary
Magazines
Newsfeed  
Web Ring
Translation Service

Rules for potential reviewers :-)
Do Not Go Here!
April Fools




Return to Review Index

Untitled Document


Reviews from previous months
Join the mailing list and receive a hyperlinked weekly update on the discs reviewed. details
We welcome feedback on our reviews. Please use the Bulletin Board
Please paste in the first line of your comments the URL of the review to which you refer.