It's not British, but...Franz Schubert Piano Music on Danacord

This CD was a bit of an adventure to me. I have probably heard all the pieces on this disc over the past half-century, but never listened to them systematically. Confession. I do enjoy the music of Franz Schubert but know an extremely limited range of his catalogue. I have appreciated the Trio in B flat since being introduced to it in the mid-1970s by a former girlfriend. It was used in the film score for Barry Lyndon, (1975) hence its popularity at that time. Winterreise is a perennial favourite with me, as well as the ballet music to Rosamunde, which was rediscovered by Arthur Sullivan and George Grove (of Dictionary fame) in a bookshop in Vienna. Then there are the Impromptus - and that is about it.

First up on this disc are the Six Moments Musicaux, D 780. It is impossible to know if these were meant as a cycle or if they were a collection of individual pieces. Certainly, Nos. 3 and 6 were published separately in 1823 and 1824, respectively. The complete set was issued in 1828, the year of Schubert’s death. It has been suggested that some of these Moments reflect nature. The liner notes explain that Schubert put “anything he experienced into music – water flowing, hunting scenes, galloping horses, thunder…and walking.” One of his most significant compositions was the Wanderer Fantasy D 760 (1822) for piano. So, “wandering” was one of his greatest pleasures, especially in the Austrian Alps. The first of these Moments Musicaux opens with a “hunting horn” and the second is a kind of lullaby. The third, which is the best-known, is a vibrant dance, which contrasts major and minor keys, whilst No. 4 seems to nod to the Baroque era. No.5, the most complex, moves from a fiendish opening to a cheery conclusion. Finally, No.6 has all the appeal and refinement of a Viennese drawing room soiree.

The Two Scherzos, D 593 were composed during 1817. The liner notes explain that at this time Schubert was working with “sonata form” and suggests that these two “charming movements” could well have originally designed for a Sonata. The first, in B flat major is a waltz/landler and progresses in a disarming manner. The second, in D flat major is much more extrovert. It opens with a peasant’s dance. Both Scherzos have contrasting, quieter trio sections. They are played here with seductiveness and stylishness.

Schubert’s Three Piano Pieces, D 946 date from 1828, the final year of his life. Once again, it is not known exactly what the context is. It can be construed as three individual numbers, or as a group, designed to be played in sequence, in its entirety. Another suggestion is that they may have been intended as another set of Impromptus. John Damgaard takes the opinion that they are nowadays viewed as a unit, “a sonata…and not a sonata.” They are long, altogether lasting just shy of half an hour.

The opening Allegro assai is dynamic, but with a thoughtful middle section. The Allegretto used a tune from Schubert’s opera Fierrabras D 796 (1823). There are two contrasting episodes, one of which is lively, the other more restrained. The last, in C major, is the briefest of the set, but has the most virtuosity, with a bracing pace and off-beat rhythms in the outer sections and a quiet trio.

Danish pianist John Damgaard studied at the Eastman School of Music in New York and at the Royal Danish Conservatory of Music in Copenhagen. His teachers included Georg Vásárhelyi, Ilona Kabos, and Wilhelm Kempff. He has held several teaching positions in Denmark, including, from 1984-2007, as Professor of Music at the Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus. Dangaard has performed throughout the world. His repertoire is oriented towards the classical and romantic periods. He is also an enthusiastic promoter of Danish music. Recordings include the complete piano works of Maurice Ravel, and all the finished sonatas by Schubert.

I enjoyed this CD. To be sure there are dozens of competitors for this repertoire. I would not know where to begin in any further exploration of this music. From my point of view, I enjoyed John Damgaard’s performance of all these works. I found them both absorbing and moving. It has been a fascinating learning curve for me, both in listening and in researching each piece.

Track Listing
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Six Moments Musicaux, D 780 (1823-28)
Two Scherzi, D 593 (1817)
Three Piano Pieces, D 946 (1828)
John Damgaard (piano)
rec. February 2024, Concert Hall, Danish National Academy of Music, Odense.
Danacord DACOCD 980

Introducing Ignaz Moscheles

Since first learning that Ignaz Moscheles spent much of his career in the United Kingdom, I have regarded him as an ‘honorary’ British composer. Other contenders for this title are Felix Mendelssohn, J.C. Bach, Muzio Clementi, Johann Baptist Cramer and George Frideric Handel. This is not to deny their respective nationalities: only to point out the major contribution these men made to the musical life of this nation.

Ignaz Moscheles (1794-1870) was a Bohemian pianist and composer, renowned as one of the leading virtuosos of his time. Moscheles was a close associate of Beethoven, who entrusted him with the piano arrangement of his opera Fidelio. He gained international acclaim for his virtuosic performances and compositions, including eight piano concertos and numerous studies and chamber works. In 1821, Moscheles settled in London, where he later became a prominent figure in the musical scene. He later joined the Leipzig Conservatory as a professor of piano, working alongside his friend and former pupil, Felix Mendelssohn. Moscheles’ influence extended to composers like Chopin and Schumann, and his innovative approach to piano technique and pedagogy left a lasting impact on the music world.

Brief Biography

• Ignaz Moscheles was born in Prague, on 23 May 1794.
• Studied at the Prague Conservatory between 1804 and 1806 with the composer and musicologist Bedřich Diviš Weber (1766-1842).
• Moved to Vienna in 1808 for study with Albrechtsberger (counterpoint) and Salieri (composition).
• Became acquainted with Beethoven during 1810.
• Extensively performed in Europe between 1815 and 1825
• First appeared in London during 11 June 1821.
• Gave piano lessons to Felix Mendelssohn in 1824
• Married Charlotte Emden at Hamburg on 1 March 1825
• Settled in London between 1825 and 1846.
• Was director of the Philharmonic Society, 1832, then conductor there from 1845.
• Directed the first London performance of Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis on 24 December 1832.
• Professor of Pianoforte at the newly founded Leipzig Conservatory 1846 to 1870
• Pupils included Thalberg, Litolff, Sullivan, and Grieg.
• Died in Leipzig on 10 March 1870.

Twelve Selected Works

Beethoven had a tremendous influence on Moscheles. Mozart was also another key influence. However, Moscheles is on the cusp between classical and romantic aesthetic: Liszt, Chopin and Robert Schumann were still to compose their great masterpieces. So, he is more associated with such half-forgotten masters as Clementi, Kalkbrenner, Field and Hummel.

Moscheles catalogues includes 142 works with opus number and several dozen without. He typically concentrated on writing music for the piano, with or without the orchestra. There are, however, several pieces for chamber ensemble, including a cello sonata, and music for the flute and several songs.

All the pieces listed below are available on CD, download or streaming. 

1. Variations on a Russian Theme, op.23
2. Les Charmes de Paris, op.54
3. Piano Concerto No.4, op.64
4. Recollections of Ireland, op.69
5. Les Charmes de Londres, op.74
6. Anticipations of Scotland, op.75
7. Symphony No.1 in C major, op.81
8. Piano Concerto No.5, op.87
9. Jeanne d'Arc Overture, op. 91
10. 12 Charakteristische Studien, op. 95
11. Cello Sonata in E Major, op. 121
12. Grande Étude de Concert, op. 126

Further Reading

There were three books published in the Victorian period which still provide the ‘primary’ source material for Ignaz Moscheles studies. Charlotte Moscheles’ Recent Music and Musicians as Described in the Diaries and Correspondence of Ignaz Moscheles, edited by his Wife: Adapted from the Original German by A.D. Coleridge (1873) was the first book to examine the composer’s life and times. During 1888 the Letters of Felix Mendelssohn to Ignaz and Charlotte Moscheles were published in London by the composer’s son, Felix Moscheles (1833-1917). Felix also published Fragments of an Autobiography (1899) which provided some material about the composer.

Aside from these early volumes, listeners had to rely on articles in Grove’s Dictionary of Music, the standard histories of the period and contemporary biographies and memoires of some of the key players in his story. To be sure, copious reviews of Moscheles’ concerts are found in contemporary newspapers and journals.

In 1989 Emil F. Smidak issued Isaak-Ignaz Moscheles: The Life of the Composer and His Encounters with Beethoven, Liszt, Chopin, and Mendelssohn. This important volume consisted of extracts from the diaries and letters and included a catalogue of works.

Twenty-five years later, the Boydell Press published Ignaz Moscheles and the Changing World of Musical Europe by Mark Kroll (2014). It was and remains the first full-length examination of the composer. It is essential reading for all enthusiasts of Moscheles music.

There are also a few theses such as John Michael Beck’s Moscheles Re-examined (1986) and Carolyn Denton Gresham’s Ignaz Moscheles: An Illustrious Musician in the Nineteenth Century (1980).

One extremely important website is ‘Ignaz Moscheles Concert Life.’ This is a spin off from Dr Sevastiana Nourou thesis, Ignaz Moscheles’ reception in the nineteenth century and his influence on concert life, published in 2022. She writes: “In each section [of the webpage] you will find the advertisements and reviews of each concert I was able to locate. All of these have been typed down by myself and thus, I am not using any original images from letters, playbills, and newspapers that I do not have the right to.”

If you can only hear one CD…

I would recommend the Hyperion (CDA67430) recording of Moscheles Piano Concerto No.4 in E major, op.64 and the Piano Concerto No.5 in C major, op.87. These are coupled with the delightful Recollections of Ireland, op.69. The Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra is directed by the piano soloist, Howard Shelley. All three works on this disc are full of melody, piano technique that defies the fingers’ agility, and satisfying formal constructs. With Moscheles there is never a bar too many or a note out of place.

Finally, if you can only listen to one work…

Ignaz Moscheles’ Recollections of Ireland, op. 69 is a grand fantasia for piano and orchestra, completed in 1826. This piece reflects Moscheles’ experiences and impressions during his travels in Ireland. It includes popular Irish melodies such as The Groves of Blarney (now, The Last Rose of Summer), Garry Owen, and St. Patrick’s Day, combining them with his virtuosic piano style.

This composition is notable for its stunning orchestration and the seamless integration of traditional Irish tunes with classical forms. Moscheles’ ability to evoke the spirit and atmosphere of Ireland through music is evident in the lively and expressive passages that characterize the work. Recollections of Ireland not only highlights Moscheles’ technical prowess but also his sensitivity to cultural influences and his talent for creating evocative musical narratives.

Finger Prints: British Light Music for Piano

The ethos of this pot-pourri is predicated on an old Viennese adage of “taking serous music lightly and light music seriously.” Here the listener will find an “eclectic” selection from a wide cross section of composers. These include pieces by so-called “classical” masters such as Frank Bridge, John Ireland, Roger Quilter, and Lennox Berkeley. These men were able to cross the boundaries between art music and a more “popular” touch. The recital gets off to a great start with Harry Engleman’s Finger Prints. This is the epitome of the novelty piano solo made so popular by Billy Mayerl (more of him later in the review) and the American Zez Confrey. Later in the programme we hear Engleman’s Golden Chain, another challenging piece for “dizzy fingers.”

Haydn Wood is usually remembered for his First World War hit, Roses of Picardy. Capable of working in both light and classical genres, he wrote accomplished piano and violin concertos, as well as attractively evocative orchestral suites. Longing is delightfully sentimental, poignant, at times passionate and always engaging. Written in 1917, it well reflects the emotions of wartime lovers.

I enjoyed Cecil Macklin’s The Cockney Crawl, which was originally danced at the Alhambra Theatre, London by Phyllis Monkman and Clyde Cook. Basically, a one or two-step with knobs on!

All enthusiasts of so-called light music will know Jack Strachey’s In Party Mood, used for many years as the theme tune for the radio programme Housewife’s Choice. Equally popular is his Theatreland, so reminiscent of London’s West End. Anna’s Polka is a lovely little number that combines the Bohemian dance of the title with a beguine. Paul Guinery adds a little “quirky” magic of his own in the concluding bars.

When I inherited my late grandparents’ upright, there was a copy of Amy Woodforde-Finden’s Indian Love Lyrics in the piano stool. I struggled to battle my way through the Kashmiri Love Song from an early age, never quite getting it right. The mood is of lost love, nostalgia, and despair, as seen through the eyes of an Edwardian lady’s enthusiasm for things ‘Oriental.’ It is heard here in Stephen Hough’s transcription.

Billy Mayerl was an English pianist and composer, popular in the 1930s. He is best remembered for his syncopated novelty piano solos like Marigold and Bats in the Belfry. His music was “highly crafted,” often cunningly difficult to play and always entertaining. He is represented on this disc by four arrangements of songs written for Hollywood by the British born songwriter, Harry Revel. Most popular is the jazzed-up version of Did You Ever See a Dream Walking? Equally attractive is I Feel Like a Feather in The Breeze with its lush opening and bouncy middle sections. With My Eyes Wide Open I’m Dreaming appeared in film about a successful nightclub singer and radio star. Once again Mayerl creates a balance between a slow foxtrot and an up-tempo section marked “with much rhythm.” The final transcription is the well-crafted You Hit the Spot from the film Collegiate (1936). The one original composition is The Shy Ballerina, which is a wistful celebration of a bashful girl who was asked to dance for Mayerl, but “nothing would persuade her to pirouette for him.” All are marked by rhythmic dash, memorable melodies, abundant caprice, and a touch of sheer sentimentality.

Edward German was an English composer of Welsh descent. He is known for his extensive output of incidental music for the stage. His light operas, including Merrie England, hold a place still in the repertoire. German also wrote symphonies, orchestral suites, and some piano pieces. The Polish Dance nods to the Chopin’s Mazurkas and is none the worse for that. It balances high spirits with more reflective moments.

Frank Bridge’s Berceuse was dished up in several editions, including for small orchestra, violin or cello and piano, violin and strings, and a late addition in 1929, as a piano solo. This exquisite lullaby features a delicate, calming tune that perfectly lives up to its title. In true Frank Bridge fashion, it transcends the boundaries of mere salon music, revealing layers of subtlety and elegant craftsmanship.

Two works are heard by cinema pianist and broadcaster Jack Wilson. Phantom Fingers ticks all the boxes of “novelty, syncopated or rhythmic piano solos.” It is his only published piece. The second, still in manuscript, is the undated Shadows on the Moon. It fairly swings along, with little gloom in these pages.

Cavatina by John Ireland has had numerous incarnations. Originally produced in 1904 for organ, and violin and piano, it “shows that Ireland had a gift for melody in the style of say Elgar’s Salut d’amour or Chanson de Matin”.

Transitioning from violinist to rhythm pianist, Peggy Cochrane, wrote Busy Day in 1941. This lively item highlights a jazzy left hand and a delightful, almost mischievous, flurry of notes in the right hand.

Roger Quilter is recalled for his incomparable songs. There are a few pieces for piano, including Three Studies and Three English Dances. The present Country Dance is from incidental music for the 1921-22 Old Vic production of Shakespeare’s As You Like It. Grainger-esque, it uses “off beat rhythms” and “teasing counter melodies.”

Arthur Sullivan is usually paired with W.S. Gilbert in peoples’ minds. Yet in recent years, his non-Savoy-Opera music has gained a hearing, especially in the recording studio. He did not produce many piano works: the liner notes state that there are only nine original pieces published in his lifetime. The two Thoughts here date from 1862 and clearly have a debt to Felix Mendelssohn. They are full of melodic charm and pianistic delight.

One work that may surprise the listener is Lennox Berkeley’s Java. This parody was written in 1932 and was originally part of an unrealised ballet score. Lots of wrong notes and chords here (think Les Dawson!) and a good impression of the “salacious” dance that was the rage in post war Paris in 1919. The arrangement here was made by composer, historian, and pianist, the late Peter Dickinson.

The final track on this charming CD is Richard Addinsell’s Blithe Spirit Waltz, taken from the eponymous 1945 film starring Rex Harrison, Kay Hammond, and Constance Cummings. This was a supernatural, black comedy derived from Noel Coward’s stage play. The Waltz is a wonderful evocation of Elvira (Hammond), Charles’s (Harrison) first wife, who is summoned at a seance.

The CD booklet is a model in design. Beginning with a brief outline of each composer, in alphabetical order, this is followed by succinct comments on each work in batting order. They are clear to read. Illustrations of sheet music covers enhance the impact of this insert. A note on the soloist is included.

This is the third CD in Paul Guinery’s exploration of light music classics. In 2020 he released Dicky Bird Hop (reviewed, here, and here) and two years later Chasing Moonbeams. (Sadly, not yet assessed for MusicWeb International).

Tremendous playing by Paul Guinery, an outstanding recording, and splendid packaging contribute to the success of this CD. Each piece is played with love and enthusiasm, and is never condescending, which is the way that light music ought to be performed.

Track Listing:
Harry Engleman (1912–2002)
Finger Prints (1936)
Haydn Wood (1882–1959)
Longing (1917)
Cecil Macklin (1883–1944)
The Cockney Crawl (1914)
Jack Strachey (1894–1972)
Anna’s Polka (date unknown)
Amy Woodforde-Finden (1860–1919)
Kashmiri Song (1902) (Trans. Stephen Hough, b.1962)
Harry Revel (1905–1958)
Did You Ever See a Dream Walking? (1933) (Trans. Billy Mayerl)
I Feel Like a Feather in The Breeze (1936) (Trans. Billy Mayerl)
Edward German (1862–1936)
Polish Dance (1891)
Harry Engleman
Golden Chain (1937)
Frank Bridge (1879–1941)
Berceuse (1901)
Jack Wilson (1907–2006)
Phantom Fingers (1934)
John Ireland (1879–1962)
Cavatina (1904)
Peggy Cochrane (1902–1988)
Busy Day (1941)
Harry Revel
With My Eyes Wide Open I’m Dreaming (1934) (Trans. Billy Mayerl)
You Hit the Spot (1936) (Trans. Billy Mayerl)
Roger Quilter (1877–1953)
Country Dance (1920)
Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900)
Thoughts, op. 2 No. 1 (1862)
Thoughts, op. 2 No. 2 (1862)
Jack Wilson
Shadows On the Moon (date unknown)
Billy Mayerl (1902–1959)
Shy Ballerina (1948)
Lennox Berkeley (1903–1989)
Java (1932) (Trans. Peter Dickinson, 1934-2023)
Richard Addinsell (1904–1977)
Blithe Spirit Waltz (1945)
Paul Guinery (piano)
rec. 4-5 January 2024, St John the Evangelist Church, Oxford
EM Records EMR CD088

Gordon Cameron: Organist and Composer (1900-89)

The Priory CD Organs of the Lake District (PRCD1177) has enabled listeners to discover the music of an organist and composer who had an important association with Glasgow and Scotland. His most prestigious appointment was between1944 and 1952 when he was Director of Music at St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral in the Great Western Road, Glasgow.

I asked Frikki Walker, current Director of Music at St Mary’s for some information about Cameron’s tenure at the Cathedral. He kindly passed on my request to the Choir Historian, Pam Barrowman.

The wartime situation at the Cathedral between the years 1939-45 has been described as ‘in the doldrums.’ The Vestry, at a meeting held on 4 December 1944, was therefore delighted to engage the highly-regarded and well-qualified Gordon Cameron to the post of ‘choirmaster’. The appointment was taken up on 28 January 1945. Cameron first appears in the ‘officials’ section of the Cathedral Magazine during March 1945. He made huge improvements to the choir and general music making at the Cathedral. Pam Barrowman told me that the vestry ‘was pleased to order and pay for 16 royal purple boys' cassocks to replace the old ones, and St Mary's was invited to send representatives to sing at the Albert Hall Service, celebrating the 1951 Festival of Britain. They were able to send their best eight boys, and to pay their expenses.’

In June 1952, St Mary’s Vestry received Gordon Cameron’s resignation, on personal and health grounds. Three months later he left to take up the post of organist at Town Kirk (Holy Trinity), in St Andrews. Between 1946 and 1969, Cameron was lecturer of Harmony, Counterpoint and Composition at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (now The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland).

There is no ‘formal’ biography of [John] Gordon Cameron (1900-89) except for a few fugitive references here and there. Despite his Scottish-sounding name, Cameron was born in Cardiff in 1900. He studied at Ellesmere College, Christ’s College Cambridge and Edinburgh University. Whilst at Cambridge, he was one of Sir Charles Villiers Stanford’s last pupils. Before his appointment to St Mary’s, he was organist at St John’s Episcopal Church in Dumfries (1937-44).  Gordon Cameron died in 1989.

Gordon Cameron published two sets of hymn-tune preludes. The first was Six Preludes on hymn-tunes for organ (Novello, 1942) including ‘Rockingham’, ‘Tune by Orlando Gibbons’ [Song 13], ‘Windsor’, ‘Martyrdom’, ‘Cape Town’ and ‘Bristol’, followed by Four Preludes on Hymn Tunes (Novello, 1948): ‘St Columba’, ‘Strathcaro’, ‘Franconia’ and ‘Quam dilecta.’

Ian Hare has performed Gordon Cameron’s Fantasia on St Denis (‘Immortal, Invisible’) which was published by Novello in 1945. The CD liner notes point out that this Fantasia was dedicated to Lieut. Colonel George Dixon (1870-1950) – possibly of the Border Regiment (1914) - who had considerable influence on the design of the organ at St Bees Priory and several other Cumberland instruments. 

The Fantasia is an accomplished work that explores the tune of ‘St Deniol’, with considerable subtlety. The tune, somewhat varied, is usually heard on a reed stop although it is often subsumed by the complex figuration of the accompaniment. This is a piece that would make an ideal recessional at a wedding or ‘big service.’ 

The Fantasia is played on the fine three-manual organ in St Peter’s (Roman Catholic) Cathedral in Lancaster. This instrument, commissioned in 1889, was originally by Henry Ainscough of Preston. After additional work by Ainscough in 1956 and some modernisation and a new console by Pendelbury of Cleveleys in 1976, it was rebuilt by Willis during 2008-9.

Other instruments used on this CD include St. Patrick’s Patterdale, Crosthwaite Church, Keswick and St. Oswald's Church, Grasmere as well as Lancaster Cathedral. Music includes works by Handel, J H Reginald Dixon, Dr F W Wadely, Adrian Self, Arthur Somervell, Ian Hare and the complete Six Sketches by Cecil Armstrong Gibbs.

With grateful thanks to Frikki Walker and Pam Barrowman at St Mary’s Cathedral and Stuart A. Harris-Logan, Archives Officer at the The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland for their valuable assistance.  

With thanks to the Glasgow Society of Organists Journal where this essay was first published in 2017.

It's not British, but...Pelléas and Mélisande: Schoenberg and Fauré

The listener needs to know that both these great works are predicated on Belgian playwright Maurice Maeterlinck’s (1862-1949) five act play, Pelléas et Mélisande. This was completed in 1892 and was premiered the following year. I understand that it is regarded as a highlight of French Symbolist drama. This genre became popular in the late 19th century. It put an emphasis on atmosphere, feeling, and the numinous, using poetic language and abstract settings to explore themes of spirituality, dreams, and the subconscious.

The “plot” involves a love triangle between the three main characters: Pelléas, Mélisande, and a certain Golaud, who is Mélisande’s husband and Pelléas’s half-brother. The backdrop to the action is an imaginary country, during medieval times. Reviewers of the play have explained that Maeterlinck emphasises atmosphere over plot, by creating a “dreamlike fairy tale about the terrifying power of love.”

Over the years, composers have been inspired by the play, including incidental music by Jean Sibelius and the operatic masterpiece by Claude Debussy.

The two works on this disc are hugely different. Gabriel Fauré’s op.80 was originally incidental music for a London performance of the play in 1898 whilst Schoeneberg’s op.5 was a tone-poem written in a full-blown late-Romantic style.

Originally, there were twenty separate numbers of stage music, which Fauré had devised in under a month. His pupil Charles Koechlin produced the orchestral score in time for the play’s London premiere. Three years later, Fauré gathered up various fragments to create the Suite. There were originally three movements: Prélude, Fileuse, and La mort de Mélisande, with the famous Sicilienne being added some years later. This latter piece was originally part of an “uncompleted stage music project.”

The Prélude sets a serious tone, while Fileuse portrays Mélisande’s spinning wheel, creating a filigree of movement. The Sicilienne depicts the lovers’ short-lived happiness: it has a charming melody which is justifiably popular. Finally, La mort de Mélisande leaves the listener in a sad, but thoughtful mood. Overall, Fauré has captured the story’s “mysterious, enchanted, cryptic” tempers. This is aided by sophisticated orchestration and a rich harmonic palette.

I discovered Arnold Schoenberg’s Pelleas und Melisande, op.5 (1902) several years after having been introduced to his atonal and dodecaphonic music. And it came as a major surprise. Here was a strong, romantic sounding tone poem that sounded more Wagnerian or Straussian than the expressionist sound world of Pierrot Lunaire, the string quartets, or piano pieces with which I was familiar.

Richard Strauss had suggested to the 27-year-old Schoenberg that he should write a work based on Maeterlinck’s play. This was to have been an opera, but finally he decided to craft a tone poem.

The critic Harry Neville summed up the creative process (Sleeve Note Angel 36509): “Unlike the incidental music of Fauré and Sibelius, Schoenberg’s Pelleas is no mere delineation of character and atmosphere; in it the composer attempts not only to narrate musically the action of the drama, but to depict the psychological implications as well – all within the confines of a vast sonata form.”

Pelleas und Melisande is long, lasting for more than forty minutes. It is conceived as a single movement divided up into eleven interrelated sections. Schoenberg wrote that “Aside from a few omissions and minor alterations in the sequence of scenes…I tried to reflect every detail…”  In fact, it is customary to analyse it as a “symphony” rather than a “symphonic poem.” Alban Berg has suggested that “in the four principal sections of this work we can even identify clearly the four movements of a symphony.” The initial sonata form is followed by a scherzo, a slow movement, and a rondo-like finale, that recaps much that has gone before.

The progress of the tone poem is constructed from leitmotifs and themes associated with the individual characters in the play. Also represented by musical tropes are the various external forces at play: jealousy, fate, death, and love. These are often superimposed on each other, with deft contrapuntal skill. Berg categorized twenty themes. Also, instrumental colouring is used to identify the characters – Pelleas, trumpet; Golaud, horn; and Melisande, cor anglais.

The work was completed in 1903 and was premiered at the Musikverein in Vienna on 26 January 1905. This caused great consternation amongst the audience and the critics.

For the listener unacquainted with Schoenberg’s Pelleas und Melisande, the stylistic markers are Wagner and Strauss, with hints of Mahler and Brahms. Yet, this is not a pastiche, but a glorious synthesis of the received musical language of the late nineteenth century.

The playing by the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra under Paavo Järvi is faultless, the recording is ideal. The booklet with notes by Adam Gellen is essential reading: it is printed in German, English and French.

This CD presents two wonderfully contrasting explorations of Maurice Maeterlinck’s Pelléas et Mélisande. Both are a pleasure to listen to.

Track Listing

Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951)
Pelleas und Melisande, op.5 (1902)
Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924)
Pelléas et Mélisande, op.80 (1898/1901)
Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra/Paavo Järvi
rec. October 2012, Alte Oper, Frankfurt (Schoenberg), January 2016 HR Sendesaal, Frankfurt (Fauré)
Alpha Classics Alpha 1058

 

 

Frank Bridge: Cherry Ripe for orchestra (1916)

Frank Bridge’s Cherry Ripe is a delightful piece that forms the second of his Two Old English Songs for string quartet, completed on 30 May 1916. This work, alongside Sally in Our Alley, displays his ability to blend traditional folk melodies with his own unique compositional style. Cherry Ripe is based on a popular English folk tune, and Bridge’s arrangement captures its pastoral and nostalgic qualities. Interestingly, he did not use folksong very often. The only other obvious example apart from these is Roger de Coverley.

Cherry Ripe is characterized by its lyrical melodies and rich harmonies, which evoke a sense of simplicity and elegance. Bridge’s use of the string quartet format allows for intricate interplay between the instruments, creating a delicate and intimate soundscape. This has been replicated in the orchestral transcription.

Paul Hindmarsh (2016, p.141) explains that “Cherry Ripe is a miniature technical tour-de-force. The bustling opening gives no hint of the tune, and this eventually eases in unannounced, emerging out of the contrapuntal texture as the second subject. There is a touch of class in the way Bridge towards the end combines his own energetic subject with the more sustained phrases of the traditional melody.”

On the afternoon of 17 June 1916, the London String Quartet premiered the chamber version of the Two Old English Songs at the Aeolian Hall. The orchestral transcription, enhanced with an added bass part, had its debut at a Queen’s Hall Promenade Concert on 26 September 1916, conducted by Henry Wood.

Leonard Rees (The Sunday Times, 1 October 1916, p.4) noted “that [there] was a quasi-novelty on Tuesday night when Mr Frank Bridge’s skilful and genial arrangement of Sally in our alley and Cherry Ripe for string orchestra was given for the first time under the composer’s direction.”

Sadly, the critic of the Westminster Gazette, (27 September 1916, p.9) was unimpressed – “If, therefore, there was not an overflowing audience last night, it was really not very surprising—for it is to be feared that the "first performance "of Mr. Frank Bridge's perversions of Sally in Our Alley and Cherry Ripe were hardly compensation, in the opinion of most, for the absence of works more famous.”

For me, Cherry Ripe remains a good example of early 20th-century English music, highlighting Bridge’s talent for crafting beautiful and evocative arrangements.

Listen to the orchestral version of Frank Bridge’s Cherry Ripe on YouTube, here. The English Northern Philharmonia is conducted by David Lloyd-Jones.

Bibliography
Hindmarsh, Paul, Frank Bridge (1879-1941) The Complete Works, PHM Publishing, 2016. eBook.

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1. Bridge, Frank, Cherry Ripe, with Enter Spring, The Sea, Lament and Summer, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic/Sir Charles Groves EMI 566855-2 (1998) (original LP release: EMI ASD 3190) (1976)
2. Bridge, Frank, Cherry Ripe, with Threads: 2 Intermezzi, Suite for Strings, Sally in Our Alley, Rosemary, Canzonetta, Valse Intermezzo à Cordes, Sir Roger de Coverley, Todessehnsucht {after J.S. Bach}, The Hag and Two Songs of Robert Bridges), BBC National Orchestra of Wales/Richard Hickox, CHANDOS CHAN 10246 (2004)
3. Bridge, Frank, Cherry Ripe, with Sir Roger de Coverley, Sally in our Alley, Vaughan Williams: Charterhouse Suite, Haydn Wood: Fantasy-Concerto, Ireland: The Holy Boy, Delius: Air and Dance, Elgar: Sospiri, Warlock: Serenade, G. Bush: Consort Music), English Northern Philharmonia/David Lloyd-Jones NAXOS 8.555068 (2001) 

With thanks to Paul Hindmarsh for permission to use the musical example.