The Chopin Concertos with Branka Musulin

A surprise of sorts with this record on the Period label. Both of the Chopin concertos are played by the now forgotten Croat pianist, Branka Musulin. Acompanying Ms Musulin is conductor Hans Muller-Kray leading the SWR Stuttgart Orchestra, of which he was the director during the period of the late 40's through the 50's.  My guess is this record dates from around 1955, give or take a year or so.

I had never heard of Musulin before making this purchase. I was a bit dubious of the contents since Period had a reputation of creating pseudonyms for many of the artists in its "purchased" catalog. The record was in terrific shape and I said, "what the hell, its only a buck." Well, a dollar well spent!

In fact, Branka Musulin was a real person who concertized, primarily in Central Europe, after studies with Cortot and Casella. From 1958, she was a professor of piano at the famed Hochschule in Frankfurt. She is somewhat of a mysterious person in that her birth date is under dispute, was it 1917 or 20, and she apparently stepped over the boundary of a professional relationship, having a child with her patron and sponsor, Friedrich Biernert.  Her recordings are few, although she did cut a Beethoven 4th concerto with Hermann Abendroth. I'll be on the lookout for that...maybe on teh old Urania label?

These Chopin performances are big boned and strong, hardly the more delicate offerings like a Chopin waltz or polonaise. In fact, listening to Musulin, for some reason I'm reminded of Argerich for the sense of purpose in the playing This is keyboard artistry that is lights years away from a Rubenstein or Arrau, heck even her teacher Cortot for that matter! Engaging, athletic, quite fascinating to say the least. The "gentle touches" are quite sparing but altogether not damaging to the spirit of the performance. This record makes me wish that Musulin had recorded the Brahms 1st and even the Schumann concerto.

So, a pleasant surprise indeed from Branka Musulin.

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Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt conducts Berwald

Some more music from the Northern countries on this lp conducted by German conductor Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt. Featured are the first and third symphonies of the rather enigmatic Franz Berwald. These recordings date from the mid 60's, I think, and were probably the earliest recordings of these symphonies by this pretty much overlooked composer.

Berwald's symphonies are among the most unusual works that I know. When you place them alongside contemporary works of Schumann and Mendelssohn, they stand out in a stunning way for their abrupt time changes and striking harmonies. I can imagine contemporaries of Berwald were probably left perplexed and shocked by what they heard since these works do not bear a logical progression from the models of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven, at least that I can hear. It takes some getting used to but beauty can be found among the quirkiness and Berwald's talent was such that these are important documents on the musical highway.

The conductor Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt is little known in the US as he apparently enjoyed his work in Germany and conducted rather infrequently beyond the West German and Austrian borders. He's an important figure in German orchestral traditions since he was one of the conductors who was picked out to rebuild orchestral life in Germany after the second world war. In Schmidt-Isserstedt's case, his contribution was the North German Radio Symphony Orchestra (NDR) in Hamburg, which along with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra in Munich, was considered as the finest of the radio orchestras in West Germany. Among Schmidt-Isserstedt's recorded achievements is a Beethoven 9th from Vienna, which many collectors consider one of the very best ever.

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A Norwegian Pop Concert

An interesting find on the Mercury label, a concert of Norwegian "popular" pieces conducted by Odd Gruner-Hegge and Oivin Fjeldstad. This lp features a favorite march of mine, the Valdres March of  Johannes Hanssen, wonderfully idiomatic as you might expect.

Here's what Billboard said in 1954 about this issue:

This fine recording of light selections by some of Norway's top composers could interest those collectors who are perhaps a little tired of Strauss and Tchaikovsky. Some of the compositions are well known such as the "Entrance March of the Boyars" and "The Herd Girl's Sunday." But the rest by Hanssen, Halvorsen and Svendson, are not as familiar. All are played skillfully.

It's a delightful three quarters of an hour of your listening time.

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Friedrich Wuhrer plays Schubert

A request for more from Friedrich Wuhrer and he we have it. Wuhrer performs sonatas in C minor and B Major, originally issued on Vox and here on Dover. I would say these mono recordings date from the mid 50's since Wuhrer made a lot of records during this time frame, right into the 60's.

Unfortunately for Friedrich Wuhrer, he has been overshadowed by many geniuses of the keyboard and a few overtly strange and overbearing ones at that! Wuhrer himself was a consumate, quiet artist who possessed great technique, terrific and tasteful musicianship and a firm grasp of the keyboard works of the great German and Austrian masters. In short, he was a man that could go about his business in well, a businesslike manner, though producing a product that was not at all businesslike sounding. Good music, without extremism, consistent, and faithfully rendered, that's Wuhrer.

I have grown to love, and appreciate, these Schubert sonatas because they are so beautiful and bear the stamp of the master lieder writer that this composer was. Unlike the drama and angst of late Beethoven, the exhaustion of it you might say, Schubert's music unfolds naturally and gradually. Given Wuhrer's strength's, he is indeed a superb advocate for Schubert.

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The symphonies of Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach

A delightful two record set, from Nonesuch, that I loved some 25 years ago but had somehow lost, in between moves, is my offering today. Rediscovered at the Goodwill a few months back, here are seven symphonies by the second youngest of the great J S Bach's sons, Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach. These works are played with great elan by the Cologne Chamber Orchestra under its conductor of some forty years, Helmut Muller-Bruhl. The recordings date from 1973-4.

J C F Bach is overshadowed by his more illustrious brothers C P E Bach, J C Bach and W F Bach. Perhaps much of this has to do with the fact that  J C F spent the bulk of his creative life, out of the limelight, at the minor princely court of Buckeburg. Unlike, the internationally recognized, and well traveled, J C Bach, for example, J C F  Bach was content to perform his functions as Konzertmeister and sometime composer in relative obscurity albeit with the occasional trip to Hamburg to visit with his older brother C P E, the successor to Telemann in that great Hanseatic city. C P E, of course, was considered one of the very greatest composers of the day.

The seven symphonies here date mainly from the late 1760's with the exception of number 20 which is from a couple decades later at the end of Bach's life. Comparing them to say, Haydn at that period, I would find them no less mature or inspired and representative of the best musical trends of that day. The symphonies are engaging and entertaining as that would be the expectation of courtly patrons and distinguished guests. These symphonies are worthy of the Bach name, less quirky then C P E's ouerve but not as cosmopolitan as the ones by younger brother J C, a musician who was heavily influenced by Haydn and Mozart and, recognized as their equal.

All in all, these lps make for delightful listening because the music is solid, well crafted and the performances are fresh.

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Izler Solomon conducts Bloch, Antheil and Richter

Izler Solomon c.1948

While I mourn the loss by the Patriots in the Super Bowl, there is some consolation in this fine recording (1956 mono) by American conductor Izler Solomon. Featuring the MGM String Orchestra and the Guilet Quartet, Maestro Solomon offers up a concerto grosso of Bloch, a serenade by George Antheil and the Lament of Marga Richter.

Izler Solomon was a very visible presence in the American midwest for over 30 years and a strong advocate of new music, premiering over 150 works during his lifetime. In this recording he displays both ingenuity and great flexibility which make the listening here more then just satisfactory. MGM released a good size number of these lps dedicated to modern music and I have yet to encounter a lemon. A very nice testimony to a fine musician and three different but equally talented composers.

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Coronation and Banquet Music with the Boston Baroque Ensemble

I love picking up forgotten lps featuring Boston based musicians and here's a neat little one featuring the Boston Baroque Ensemble of Daniel Pinkham. No, this is NOT the Boston Baroque of Telarc recordings fame but rather a chamber group of associates of Pinkham's, most of them teachers from NEC and Harvard. If I were to guess, I'd place this mono Cambridge recording about 1967 or so.

Daniel Pinkham is little known beyond Boston but for those in early music, he was one of the big time pioneers. He was a performer (a terrific organist and harpsichordist), editor, musicologist and composer, in fact his own compositions were heavily influenced by the music of the baroque era. Everything that I have heard by Pinkham is tasteful, well thought out and crafted. This lp of music by Telemann, Zelenka and Boismortier is no exception. My only wish is that Cambridge had thought better to have included another composition to bring this over the 40 minute mark.

Well worth your listening...

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