The World Of Compact Discs

Contemporary Review, Dec, 1999 by Anthony Paterson

This year marks the hundredth anniversary of the death of Johann Strauss Jnr. It is likely that every day during the turbulent century now ending someone somewhere has experienced the joy of a Strauss waltz. For many people recordings of Johann Strauss and his remarkable family -- his father, Johann Snr and his brothers, Josef and 'Handsome Edie,' all made notable contributions to the family business of music making -- summon up the image of a happier and seemingly care-free world. The problem with this is that the deep melancholy that is part of the genius of Johann Strauss is often obscured in the schmaltzy recordings of his waltzes.

In his biography of Herbert von Karajan, Richard Osborne quotes that greatest of record producers, Walter Legge, as saying that 'Great conductors of Johann Strauss are rarer than men who can squeeze out the face-flannels of Mahler's exhibitionistic self-pity.' Certainly Nikolaus Harnoncourt is already in that category, especially for his recording of 'Der Zigeunerbaron' where his edition restored much lost music to that masterly operetta.

There has long been a view that only a true Viennese can conduct Strauss properly, particularly in getting the right emphasis on the second beat. Harnoncourt is not strictly speaking Viennese, as he grew up in Graz, but much of his playing and conducting has been done in Vienna, notably with his Vienna Concentus Musicus. So the seductive spirit of that enchanting city has seeped into his soul and he can rightly claim to be as 'echt wienerisch' as Clemens Krauss or Willi Boskovsky.

Johann Strauss in Berlin is a marvellous new CD from TELDEC (9 3984-24489-2) with Harnoncourt conducting the Berlin Philharmonic in a carefully chosen selection of ten Strauss works, both familiar and unfamiliar. Some eyebrows may escalate at the idea of the Berlin Philharmonic invading the territory of its arch rival, the Vienna Philharmonic, but we must recall that von Karajan used that orchestra in many notable Strauss recordings. There is further justification as the works on this CD gained their popularity in Berlin rather than in Vienna.

This is particularly the case with the tuneful operetta, 'Eine Nacht in Venedig,' a work hampered by a dreadful libretto. In his incisive introductory essay -- a hallmark of Harnoncourt's recordings -- he says that Strauss is now played too quickly, contrary to the Waltz King's own practice. Also modem conductors have 'a tendency to ignore the element of melancholy.' Anyone listening to Harnoncourt's rendition of the Overture to 'Eine Nacht in Venedig' will hear exactly what he means, especially when he reaches the famed Gondolla waltz, an exquisite tune which is among the greatest outpourings of Strauss's fertile brain.

Harnoncourt's playing of the Die Fledermaus overture is certainly taken slowly, though with no sacrifice of gaiety or excitement. His performance is just under nine minutes while von Karajan's, in his celebrated 1955 recording, is more than a minute quicker. The disc closes with a spirited rendition of the 'Kaiser Franz Josef Rejoicing March' which incorporates the sonorous strains of the old Austrian Imperial anthem 'Gott Erhalte Franz den Kaiser' written by Haydn and since 'borrowed' by Germany for its anthem. The Harnoncourt CD will certainly be a prized possession for all who love the music of the Waltz King. Incidentally it is surely a disgrace -- attributable to the convoluted politics of Austrian music -- that Harnoncourt has not been asked to conduct the Vienna Philharmonic for a New Year's Day Concert.

One of the most admirable series of CD recordings has been HYPERION'S 'Romantic Piano Concerto' which has now reached its maturity with the twenty-first release. Several of its predecessors have been commended in this column. The current release features the first recording of two concertos, the Piano Concerto in C Minor, by Theodor Kullak and the Piano Concerto in D Minor by Alexander Dreyschock. (CDA 67086) Both composers were born in 1818 and both had distinguished careers as teachers and pianists at various royal courts. The Dreyschock piece is a perfectly pleasant and conventional Romantic work, but the Kullak is a real gem, a superb addition to our rich treasury of recorded music.

Hyperion are to be commended for bringing such a work back into the repertoire. Piers Lane is a spirited player of Romantic piano music and here he is joined by the BBC Scottish Symphony conducted by Niklas Willen. Mr Lane is also a scholar and teacher and he contributes an enjoyable, lengthy essay about these forgotten composers. Here is the perfect gift for musical friends as they could not possibly already have recordings of these works.

Following on with its success with the Romantic Piano series, HYPERION have embarked on a similar venture, 'The Romantic Violin Concerto.' The first recording is devoted to the three Violin Concertos of Camille Saint-Saens. (CDA 67074) These are, of course, moderately well known and have been previously recorded by such notable violinists as Isaac Stem and Kyung Wha Chung. However the great advantage of the Hyperion recording is that unlike previous ones, we are given all three concertos in a disc of almost 76 minutes. This allows us to follow the composer's development with its intriguing combination of tradition and innovation. He wrote the second concerto for the Spanish violinist, Sarasate, in 1859. (There is a faint recording made in 1904 of Sarasate playing the work.) On the Hyperion Disc the young French violinist, Philippe Graffin, performs with great elan and vituosity. Once again the orchestra is the BBC Scottish, this time under Martyn Brabbins. Again Hyperion has provided good notes to accompany this welcome release, which is sure to be a highlight in what promises to be a notable series.