Customer Reviews

Korngold/ Schmidt: Music for Strings & Piano Left Hand

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Here's a fine coupling of two rather rare chamber works, tailored by two rather curious late-Romantic composers for the rather iconoclastic and fascinating left-handed pianist, Paul Wittgenstein. (1882-1961).

Erich Wolfgang Korngold (1897-1957) wrote three works for Wittgenstein: the present Suite, Op. 23, the youthful Piano Quintet, Op. 15 and the uncanny Piano Concerto, Op. 17. They are all quite good.

The Suite, Op. 23 is a brilliantly-conceived "amalgam" of five movements, held together by the centrally-located "Groteske," aptly-named. Not one movement flags, or fails to hold our interest. Korngold consistently touches or amuses or bedazzles. He has a naturally tuneful bent and a mischievous quirkiness that are memorable, indeed. His penchant for invention, as well, is truly admirable.

Franz Schmidt (1874-1939), in his Piano Quintet, is equally intriguing and melodious. Most noteworthy is the particularly gorgeous Adagio. Schmidt, on the surface, may appear to be the more "conventional" composer (afterall, he is Korngold's senior by twenty years), but appearances are deceiving; his music is just as forward-looking and memorably-cast as his youthful contemporary.

Kudos to the stellar ensemble involved--- and especially to pianist Fleisher, whose playing is exceptional. The sound picture is warm and intimate; every trill, every low cello note, every piano cascade is captured realistically intact.

These may be arcane compositions for most, but they are most certainly attractive and accessible.

[Running time: 75:10]

Comparatively rarely heard, beautiful chamber works, an array of great artists, probably definitive interpretations and one of Sony's best-sounding modern recordings. Quite honestly, I'd ordered this for two reasons only: I'm becoming (or already have been?) a Leon Fleisher completist, plus could not believe Sony (not always my favourite classical record company and/or licence owner when it comes to their policy regarding all the hidden treasures in their back catalogue - not least Fleisher's!) would even have bothered recording and marketing this repertoire unless these were real gems - which is precisely what they are!

Greetings from Switzerland, David.

I bought this and another Korngold chamber music disc (at full price) when in New York recently. Needless to say this bargain priced disc is the clear winner! Why? well the music is different, quirky almost but then much of Korngold is, which is why he so easily crosses the line from serious music to apparently less serious music (though his film scores are arguably equally serious it's just the films that weren't always very serious!) but in fact he was always a master! The Schmidt is equally pleasant and the playing is delightful in both, for some reason my CD stops in track 9 in a few places, I suspect its the pressing or the transfer but when you realize it does it on 2 different players and you can't see a scratch on the disc etc you sort of live with it!!! I can hardly return it to NYC from Australia for the price I paid and wouldn't part with it anyway! Read the other guys reviews for more details - I just love it and recognize it as very special music and matching performances!

Greetings from Sydney, Australia, David

Now that he has recovered the use of his right hand, it can be said that there was at least one positive side to the illness ("focal dystonia" it is called) that afflicted Leon Fleisher in 1965 (he was 37 then) and cut short the fantastic career that should have been opened to him: to have enabled him to explore rare repertoire for the left-hand alone, and especially all those compositions initiated by the famous Paul Wittgenstein, the commissioner of, among others, Ravel's left-hand PC, Prokofiev's (his 4th), Britten's Diversions. Or I should rather say: there might have been a positive side. Because, at least on record, Fleisher didn't nearly offer as much of those discoveries as he might have. The liner notes mention that Franz Schmidt wrote 5 compositions for Wittgenstein other than this Quintet for Piano Left-Hand and String Quartet: a solo Toccata, two concertante works (both have just been recorded by Carlo Grante, Schmidt: Concertane Variations/Concerto for The Left Hand) and two other Piano Quintets. With all due respect (admiration even), what has Fleisher been doing all these years?

There must be a story to the present recordings as well, and I'd love to know it: both compositions were recorded in 1991 and 1993, but released by Sony only in 1998. Why? Anyway, let's welcome what we do get, rather than lament what we don't and might have.

Korngold's Suite op 23 is a superb composition, one of the best I've heard of this composer whose music I often find too late-romantically over-bloated and sentimentally lyrical. It starts with an impressively powerful statement played by solo piano, a kind of angry Rachmaninoff-like Bach choral-prelude and is followed by what is said to be a fugue but sounds much more like a series of variations (and wonderfully imaginative ones too) on, if my ears are right (the notes, very scanty on this piece, don't mention it), the B-A-C-H theme. The third movement is an equally impressive scherzo of bartokian vigor - not what I expected from Korngold, whose music I've known to be more swooning and fussy, a style well illustrated by the second movement Waltz, which sounds like an arrangement straight out of Rosenkavalier. But the 4th (and second slow) movement avoids that kind of sentimentality: it is a kind of "time-at-a-standstill" movement, with some daring harmonies, evocative of some Mahler "adagio" finale (think of the 3rd Symphony, the 9th or Das Lied) for Piano Quartet. The finale is (another?) series of variations, starting like merry Brahms, but soon moving in more unexpected and modern stylistic areas, muscular and vigorous and similar to the scherzo (around the 3-minute mark), then into regions of burning Brahmsian lyricism, and later still of wonderful coloristic subtlety and evocative power (try the mysterious trills at 5:30). This must be one of the great masterpieces of Late-Romantic chamber music.

The Franz Schmidt G. major Quintet is recorded more often, but it is usually played in Friedrich Wührer's arrangement for two hands, so it is good to have it in its original form. That said, I am not as taken with the piece as with Korngold's Suite. It has much of the post-Brahms, Rosenkavalier-evocative languidness of Korngold but little of the latter's muscle. The first movement ("lively, but not fast") is playful and easy-going rather than animated, and the third movement scherzo begins with a "ruhig" indication (calm), with its development returning regularly to that mood after going through more animated (and, here, definitely fugal!) sections. Only is the finale animated and playful, and again quite Brahmsian in character I find, but without Brahms' unique textures. As a result the Quintet feels as a continuously slow-moving or at least relaxed piece, and, at respectively 11:26 and 10:25, I find that the two first movements outstay their welcome (and the 8 minutes of the scherzo aren't far behind). At 4:05 in the slow movement (2nd movement) comes a nice passage in stubborn, dotted rhythms, evocative of a despaired funeral march It lasts less than two minutes.

Fleisher is joined by a stellar cast of stringers and they play with unfailing beauty of tone. TT 75 minutes. Liner notes not very informative on the Korngold piece.I'll file this CD under Korngold, but it is, first and foremost, a fine tribute to the artistry of Leon Fleisher.

Both of these charming works were commissioned by and for Paul Wittgenstein, who lost his right arm during World War I. Korngold and Franz Schmidt were very capable late-Romantic Austrian composers, and if these works are obscure it's not because the quality is poor so much as that chamber works of this style have a harder time getting noticed when their orchestral siblings captivate audiences' attention so strongly.

WW1. Front of war. The famous Austrian pianist Paul Wittgenstein is severely wounded in his right arm. When he is resued, the veredict is implaccable as well as necessary. This arm must be removed. So, when the doctors proceed to undertake the mournful decision, are well aware they have cut the notable career of this artist. Therefter Wittgenstein visits Ravel in order to propse him to compose a Concert only for the left arm. And Ravel will materialize that expected project. After him, Prokoviev will do the same with the Piano Concerto No. 4 and Kongold will compose three pages specially for him, the Op. 23 (presented gere), the Op. 15 and the Op. 17.

The great legend of the piano, Leon Fleisher recorded an absorbing and unusual recording with these admirable but still forgotten chamber works.

The greatness of Korngold as composer has been eclipsed by his contributions as composer of soundtracks. As you and me are well aware this is a simple label, a mischievous prejudice that pretends minimize the merits of this talented composer.

Fortunately, Fleisher decided to undertake the risk and challenge critics and audience with this notable program.

Acquire as soon as possible this emblematic and original issue. You will be more than rewarded.

A good registration for good music...If you like classical music, but not so classical and also not so modern, this is good for you

The gem of this recording is Korngold's Cello Concerto, given a serious and exciting rendition by soloist Peter Dixon and the BBC Philharmonic. Korngold's "Deception" concerto is arguably the greatest work composed for film ever. The concerto is hauntingly beautiful, and deserves its place in the classical music reportoire in its own right. Unfortunately, the "Deception" concerto has remained little known, perhaps because of its unusual length and the fact that is film music, and film music for an unfairly neglected film at that! This wonderful recording of Korngold's concerto should bring it to an overdue prominence. The other works on this recording are equally well performed. However, I suspect that they will appeal mainly to those who have a special interest in Korngold's music, as do I. These other orchestral works will prove especially interesting for those who love Korngold's film scores and who will be able to trace roots of these film scores in works like the Piano Concerto in C sharp. However, the work that will have broadest appeal will be the "Deception" concerto. This recording alone is well worth the price of this CD.