Chopin / Mendelssohn / Bso / Graffman - Piano Cto 1 - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Unfortunately, there is no real Norwegian language equivalent to the expression Inchunsung hero,Inch but one can immediately place Franz Danzi in that category. His upbringing in Mannheim in the 1770s and 80s provided him with the perfect backdrop to experience the most important musical currents of the time, where people puttered around with such things as synchronized bowings and soloistic wind parts in the orchestra - elements commonplace to us today, but considered quite groundbreaking then. The young Danzi also met Mozart, who showed a great interest in the pioneering work in Mannheim, and Danzi expressed boundless admiration for the old master throughout his entire life. Danzi's big dream was to further develop the German Singspiel genre, where Mozart, with the operas The Abduction from the Seraglio and The Magic Flute, had laid a golden foundation. Danzi's wife, Margarethe Marchand, was an outstanding soprano and an enthusiastic promoter of her husband's works, but when she died at the young age of 32, Danzi seemed to lose interest in the genre. However, he was an avid supporter and inspiration to his younger colleague, Carl Maria von Weber. Weber's Singspiel Der Freischutz (The Marksman) took the genre to new heights, with the manifestation of nature as a singing creature. For this we must thank Danzi! This features works by Danzi, as well as Mozart and Beethoven, beautifully performed by Christian Ihle Hadland and the Oslo Kammerakademi.

Chopin's four Ballades are among the greatest of his works, as is the Fantasia in F minor also included on this disk. The Ballades were composed between 1835 and 1843 and are generally believed to be based upon works by the Polish poet Adam Mickiewicz. This is music in the style of the medieval troubador, with singing lyrical sections alternating with music of wild passions, big chords, chromatic passages, and virtuosic runs. The first and fourth ballades, in G minor and F minor, tend to be more stormy and passionate while the second and third, in F major and A flat major are more reflective and lyrical. Biret gives a beautiful rendition of this music with beautiful, free rhythm, attention to dynamics and phrasing, and a full use of the resources of the piano. She captures magnificently the wild, virtuosic concluding passages in the first and fourth ballades.

Chopin / Benedetti / Angeli - Pno Con [COMPACT DISCS] date 03/15/2000