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   Overtures

John Gardner
(b. 1917)

Overture: Midsummer Ale, Op. 73 (1965)
Piano Concerto #1 in B Flat, Op. 34 (1956-7) ¹
Symphony #1 in D Minor, Op. 2 (1946-7)

¹ Peter Donohoe, piano
Royal Scottish National Orchestra/David Lloyd-Jones
Naxos 8.570406 71:54

Gardner is yet another composer to have emerged from relative obscurity in recent years and this CD was a 90^th birthday tribute in 2007. The compositions presented here, which work quite well as a concert, are in different styles. The breezy overture is succeeded by the piano concerto which has stylistic affinity with Britten's concerto. Although the CD is titled as one of Naxos' British Piano Concerto series, the main work is the symphony which runs about 41 minutes. Conceived during World War II, it is a dark work in the manner of Bax as in, for example, the slow movement of the first symphony or November Woods. There is much further information at the composer's website.

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[ Sheet music by this composer: Sheet Music Plus - Musicnotes.com ]

George Whitefield Chadwick
(1854-1931)

Euterpe (1903)
Angel of Death (1918)
Aphrodite (1911)
Melpomene (1887)
Thalia (1883)

Nashville Symphony Orchestra/Kenneth Schermerhorn
Naxos 8.559117 79:26

My first encounter with Chadwick's music was his Symphonic Sketches which for years was about the only work available on record. Although things have improved considerably, much of this program is not otherwise available. The titles show Chadwick's interest in antiquity and although the music shows the influence of his studies in Germany, there are elements of later American music showing through. The major piece is Aphrodite running about half an hour: it has an exquisite earworm tune that foreshadows the slow movement of Barber's first symphony.

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[ Sheet music by this composer: Sheet Music Plus - Musicnotes.com ]

Vasily Kalinnikov
(1866-1901)

Suite (1891-2)
The Cedar and the Palm (1897-8)
Bylina Overture (1892)

USSR Symphony Orchestra/Yevgeny Svetlanov
Melodiya MELCD1000169 63:28

The most substantial work here is the 39-minute Suite. About half an hour of that is taken up with an andante and an adagio, but with tempo fluctuations within. The atmosphere of Borodin's In the Steppes of Central Asia is prominent. The other two works are also immediately appealing. Those who have already been seduced by Kalinnikov's two symphonies will need no further recommendation.

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[ Sheet music by this composer: Sheet Music Plus - Musicnotes.com ]

Johan Wagenaar
(1862-1941)

Sinfonietta, Op. 32
Aveux de Phèdre, Op. 41 ¹
Symphonic Poem "Levenszomer", Op. 21
Symphonic Poem "Elverhöi", Op. 48
Overture "De Philosophische Prinses", Op. 39
Larghetto for Oboe & Orchestra, Op. 40 ²

¹ Janny Zommer, soprano
² Ingrid Nissen, oboe
Netherlands Radio Symphony Orchestra/Eri Klas
Etcetera KTC1326 74:32

A varied program of music by a Dutch composer who wrote in many forms in loosely late Romantic style. Some may know Elverhöi (Elf Hill) from music by several other composers, notably Gade. All the music, written 1903-1939, is played with considerable panache. A byway well worth exploring.

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[ Sheet music by this composer: Sheet Music Plus - Musicnotes.com ]

Johann Wenzel Kalliwoda
(1801-1866)

Symphony #5 in B minor, Op 106 (1840)
Symphony#7 in F Major (1843)
Overture #16

Das Neue Orchester/Christoph Spering
CPO 777139-2 68:29

The Bohemian Kalliwoda (aka Kalivoda) spent most of his career in Germany, especially at Donaueschingen. His music shows the influence of Beethoven, Weber and Mendelssohn. Das Neue Orchester is an historically-informed practice band which plays these works with great spirit, and makes much of the occasional unusual percussion writing. Such performances are not to all tastes, but I think Spering's musicians make the best case for unfamiliar music.

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[ Sheet music by this composer: Sheet Music Plus - Musicnotes.com ]

Artur Kapp
(1878-1952)
Don Carlos Overture (1899)

Eugen Kapp
(1908-1996)
Kalevipoeg Ballet Suite (1947)

Villem Kapp
(1913-1964)
Symphony #2 in C Minor (1955)

BBC Symphony Orchestra/Neeme Järvi
Chandos CHAN10441 63:34

This Estonian family is made up of Artur, his son, Eugen and nephew, Villem. Much of Artur's training was in Russia, and he taught both the younger men. The overture sounds thematically rather like Schumann. Kalevipoeg has echoes of Sibelius and Nielsen, and parts of it even suggest an English influence. The symphony has clear Russian antecedents and a blindfold test would probably guess a Soviet composer. Järvi seems to do some of his best work when presenting the compositions of his countrymen, as we've seen with such CDs as his two Chandos albums of music by various Estonian composers, Tobias' Jonah's Mission and his Tubin cycle.

See also http://kappidemuuseum.suure-jaani.ee/ingl.html

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Wilhelm Stenhammar
(1871-1927)

Serenade in F Major for Orchestra, Op. 31 (1911-13)
Symphony #1 in F Major
Symphony #2 in G minor, Op. 34
Concert Overture "Excelsior!", Op. 13

Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra/Neeme Järvi
Deutsche Grammophon 445857-2 2CDs 74:54

Listening to the Serenade, a jewel of a work in five movements, one can imagine that Stenhammar held an artist's palette, but instead of pigments, he held all the colors and sounds of his favorite composers. There is the orchestrational skill of Tchaikovsky, the richness of Bruckner and Sibelius, the space of Nielsen, the drama of Wagner and Richard Strauss, and the interest in national and ancient music, all transformed into the language of the Late Romantic. This is a great "guessing game" piece to stump music lovers who don't yet know Stenhammar.

[ Available on CD: Amazon - UK - Germany - Canada - France - Japan - ArkivMusic ]

[ Sheet music by this composer: Sheet Music Plus - Musicnotes.com ]

[ The Serenade is also available on BIS CD-310: Amazon - UK - Germany - Canada - France - Japan - ArkivMusic - CD Universe ]