RECORDING OF THE MONTH
Frédéric d'ERLANGER (1868-1943)
Violin Concerto in D minor, Op 17 (1902) [30:22]
Poëme in D major (1918) [7:34]
Frederic CLIFFE (1857-1931)
Violin Concerto in D minor (1897) [31:47]
Philippe Graffin (violin)
BBC National Orchestra of Wales/David Lloyd-Jones
rec. April 2010. BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff, Wales
The Romantic Violin Concerto, Vol. 10
HYPERION CDA67838 [69:45]
Hyperion do not shill-shally around. They could so easily have blanched at
the perceived risks of issuing a CD of two completely unknown half hour British
violin concertos. The alterative was to have harnessed one with a better known
or even famous concerto in the time-honoured fashion. Their resolve has not
failed them and so we have here three unknown works by two unknown composers
– allowing for the Cliffe CD of the First Symphony on Sterling.
The chosen soloist is Philippe Graffin who has already won his spurs with
the first recording issued of the Coleridge Taylor concerto (Avie)
not to mention fine projects with Hyperion: the three
Saint-Saens concertos, the Breville
and Canteloube collection and another disc including the Goldmark suite
and the sumptuous Bruno
Walter sonata.
The Paris-born D’Erlanger was a naturalised Brit with affluent banking connections
who wrote among much else operas (one of these is on Hardy’s Tess) and a range
of ambitious works including a Requiem Mass and a Concerto Symphonique for
piano and orchestra – perhaps influenced by Litolff’s two examples under the
same name. is Brahmsian in character. It’s first movement is from a composer
clearly impressed by Brahms’ First Symphony, Violin Concerto and especially
with the Tragic Overture. Although it has its delightfully sighing points
of contact with the Dvorák concerto it is no stranger to romantic storms.
Then again the Andante has a Balakirev-Oriental accent and a hint of birdsong.
Mendelssohn and Bruch play carefree throughout the whirlwind finale. D’Erlanger’s
Poëme is lushly romantic – tantamount to Korngold and not that far distant
from the Delius Violin Concerto. It’s very enjoyable. Cliffe was born at Lowmoor
near the city of Delius’s birth, Bradford. His Concerto with its first movement’s
unstemmable flow of lyrical release reminded me of the Delius concerto. Its
more Victorian accent makes a natural connection with the apollonian Beethoven
Violin Concerto. The Andante is very touching indeed and makes a good match
for the Andante of the D’Erlanger work. The finale begins in magisterial mystery
– quietly tense – and from this emerges a dancing showpiece of an Allegro
which recalls the great Spanish-inflected works of the age notably the Lalo
Symphonie Espagnole. Each of these pieces has a human face. They are
far from being vehicles for mere display. A real emotional narrative energises
the invention of these two composers.
Lewis Foreman’s essay about d’Erlanger and Cliffe is fascinating and whets
the appetite for more works from each of these two intriguing yet forgotten
figures. You can read an article about Cliffe
on this site.
Two delightful, exciting and often touching concertos presented with total
conviction and every appearance of unfaltering technique. If you are already
an adherent of the violin concertos by Bruch, Tchaikovsky and the others mentioned
above then don’t miss out on this. These two are every bit as good as the
de Boeck, the Karlowicz, the Garofalo and the Ivanovs.
Rob Barnett
HYPERION’S ROMANTIC VIOLIN CONCERTO SERIES:-
Volume 1: Saint-Saëns
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/oct99/ssvc.htm
Volume 2: Stanford
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2001/Feb01/stanford_vc1.htm
Volume 3: Hubay
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2004/May04/Hubay_concertos3_4.htm
Volume 4: Moszkowski Karlowicz
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2004/Apr04/KarlowiczVC.htm
Volume 5: CT somervell http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2005/jan05/Coleridge-Taylor_Somervell.htm
Volume 6: Hubay http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2006/may06/Hubay_CDA67498.htm
Volume 7: Arensky Taneyev
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2009/apr09/arensky_cda67642.htm
Volume 8: Vieuxtemps CDA67798 (not yet reviewed here)
Volume 9: David http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2010/Oct10/David_CDA67804.htm
D' ERLANGER, Baron Frédéric [Paris, 29.5.1868 - London, 23.4.1943]
From the prominent family of French bankers. Private music lessons otherwise self-taught. Composer and opera director. Adopted nom-de-plume in 1897. Made London his home. Became a director of Covent Garden.
Opera: Jehan de Saintre (2 acts, Aix-les-Bains 1.8.1893, Hamburg, 1894); Inez Mendo (appeared under pseudonym of Fred Regnal, 4 acts, Covent Garden, London, 10.7.1897); Tess (after Thomas Hardy, 4 acts, San Carlo Theatre, Naples, 10.4.1906, then Covent Garden, 14.7.1909); Noël (2 acts, Paris, Opéra Comique, 28.12.1910, Théatre Municipal, Nice, 1912, Chicago 1913);
Ballet: Les Cent Baisers (24.5.1936 BBCSO/Adrian Boult)
Choral: Requiem Mass (27.2.1931, BBCSO/Stanford Robinson).
Orchestra: Suite Symphonique Nos 1 and 2 (Proms 1895); Symphonic Prelude, Sursum Corda (Prom 1919); Prelude Lyrique (16. 1.1933 BBCSO/Anthony Lewis)
Concerto: Violin Concerto Op. 17 (London, 12.3.1903, RPS, Kreisler); Concerto Symphonique for piano and orch. (1921); Andante Symphonique for cello and orch. (Proms 1904)
Chamber: Piano Quintet; String Quartet; Violin Sonata.
CLIFFE, Frederick [Lowmoor, near Bradford, Yorkshire, 2.5.1857 - London,
19.11.1931]
Pianist and organist. In childhood received musical tuition from his father who was an amateur cellist. He was an accomplished pianist at the age of six. At nine he began to study the organ and went on at the age of eleven to an appointment as the organist at Wyke Parish Church. At the age of twelve he is reported to have been able to play Bach's forty-eight Preludes and Fugues. He was also gifted with a fine voice. Later appointed organist to a dissenting chapel. He was in great demand to inaugurate newly-installed organs. He was organist to the Bradford Festival Choral society from 1873 to 1876. Cliffe was elected to the Titus Salt Scholarship at the National Training School of Music in London and there studied with Franklin Taylor, Ebenezer Prout, John Stainer and Arthur Sullivan. Cliffe was appointed to the piano staff of the newly established RCM and remained with the College on the Board of Professors until his death. His distinguished pupils at the College included John Ireland and Arthur Benjamin. Cliffe's son Cedric Cliffe (1902-1969) provided the libretti for several of Arthur Benjamin's operas. Tours were undertaken both as accompanist and as solo pianist. He toured with Helen Lemmens Sherrington. Became organist at Curzon Chapel, then St Georges Albemarle Street. The Leeds Festival also retained him in this capacity where he acted as Arthur Sullivan's and Frederick Sparke's assistant. He played the organ at the Leeds performance of Sullivan's Golden Legend and arranged and played the organ part in the first performance there of Bach's B minor Mass. He retired from his church music appointments in 1889. He became organist for the Bach Choir 1888-1894. At the same time he held similar appointments at the Italian Opera, Drury Lane, Her Majesty's and Covent Garden Theatres. His Op. 1 a fine symphony in C minor was rejected by the Leeds selection committee but this notwithstanding it attracted a great deal of interest when premièred in London. He ceased composing after 1905. Writing in the mid-1920s Sir Dan Godfrey in his Music and Memories refers to his retirement from composition: "He was not cast in the mould of a fighter and as a result he has, I feel, unwisely, retired from the struggle". Aside from his longstanding connection with the RCM, he was also a Professor of Piano at the RAM. He was an Examiner on the Associated Board of the RAM and RCM. In this connection he toured overseas (1898, Australia; 1900 and 1903, South Africa). The South African tour was on behalf of the Cape of Good Hope University. He also travelled in the U.S.A.
Vocal: Ode to the North-East Wind for chorus and orchestra (1905, Sheffield Festival); Scena, The Triumph of Alkestis for contralto and orchestra (Norwich Festival, 1902, Clara Butt, RPS, composer, 14.5.1903);
Symphony: Symphony No. 1 in C minor (1889, Crystal Palace, August Manns, 6.6.1890, RPS cond Cliffe, and Bournemouth Nov 1916); Symphony No. 2 in E minor (1892, Leeds Festival, first London performance RPS, 23.3.1893 cond. composer and Bournemouth, Nov 1902);
Concerto: Violin Concerto in D minor (1896, Norwich Festival, first London Performance, RPS, Tivadar Nachez cond. composer, 7.4.1897);
Orchestra: Tone Poem, Cloud and Sunshine (1890, first performance, Royal Philharmonic Society, 22.5.1890 and 24.3.1892 also RPS); Coronation March (Westminster Abbey, Coronation George V);
Church: various;
Song: many;
Delightful, exciting and often touching concertos presented with total conviction and every appearance of unfaltering technique.