Ernst Krenek - Music for Chamber Orchestra - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Krenek / Ens Xx.Jahrhundert - Exxj [COMPACT DISCS] date 09/09/2014

Since the 1960s the Polish accordion concerto has enjoyed increasing popularity and in recent years no one has inspired more composers to write for the instrument than Klaudiusz Baran. The three most important Polish concertos are showcased in this album. Marcin Blazewicz's concerto possesses a fascinating wealth of colors with spectacular passages and melodic arabesques cast in a richly communicative language. Mikolaj Majkusiak's youthful Concerto Classico is a virtuosic synthesis of old and contemporary forms, while in 1973 Bronislaw Przybylski wrote a swashbuckling concerto full of the folkloric influence of Polish dances.

This recording of music by Ernest Krenek follows on from Toccata Classics' wildly successful recording, in two albums, of his complete piano concertos. It covers almost half a century of his compositions, and shows the sheer range of his creativity. There are early piano fugues written for his teacher, Franz Schreker, via elegant fin de siècle Viennese lyricism to a relaxed application of Schoenberg's dodecaphonic technique- often enlivened with a surprising degree of charm and a knowing sense of humor. The Ernst Krenek Ensemble is joined here by three of the finest lieder singers currently active, Laura Aikin, Bernarda Fink, and Florian Boesch. The Ernst Krenek Ensemble has set itself the task of introducing Ernst Krenek's important and extensive chamber music oeuvre to the programmes of international concert halls, although it's repertoire also includes works by composers such as Schubert and Beethoven, who provided Krenek with important stimulus. It's musicians delve with special curiosity into Krenek's less familiar works and reveal the many colorful facets of his substantial output. Concerts have taken the ensemble throughout Europe and the USA.