Dan Locklair is best known as an organist and a composer of works for his instrument. But there’s a strong correlation between writing for organ and writing for orchestra — just ask Anton Bruckner. Many contemporary choral and organ composers write tonal music, free from academic fussiness. Locklair certainly falls into that group. And while […]
Concerto
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Johann Matthias Sperger bass concertos more than novelties
So who was Johannes Matthis Sperger? He was an Austrian contrabassist and a contemporary of Haydn and Beethoven. And he was also a composer. It’s important to make that distinction. At the time, many virtuoso musicians wrote concertos for themselves — some are little more than a series of technical feats strung together. Sperger wrote […]
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David Monrad Johansen – Norwegian treasure
As I continue to explore the highways and the byways of the classical repertoire, I find that every country has its national treasure. Sometimes, as with Antonin Dvorak, that treasure is shared with the world. Norway’s treasure, David Monrad Johanson hasn’t been — so far. Johansen is Norwegian, but his taste is cosmopolitan. Mixed in […]
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Myroslav Skoryk concertos continue to entertain
The final volume of Andrej Bielow’s traversal of Myroslav Skoryk violin concertos doesn’t disappoint. Ukrainian composer Myroslav wrote nine concerti, each with a different character, and yet all with a consistently high level of quality. This volume covers his last five concertos, written between 2004 and 2014. When I play the 5th and the 9th […]
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Breuninger plays Kreutzer; one violinist/composer to another
Rodolphe Kreutzer was renowned both as a violinist and a composer. As the former, he was famous for his technical skills and his musicality in executing them. As the latter, he was known for his 19 concertos and 40 operas. Laurent Albrecht Breuninger is renowned as both a violinist and a composer. As the former, […]
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Krisztián Kováts solves “The Mystery of the Natural Trumpet”
The limitations of the natural trumpet come down to physics. A metal tube vibrates at certain frequencies, and those frequencies have fixed mathematical relationships. When the tube (or trumpet) vibrates at a frequency in its harmonic series of overtones, a note sounds. The notes of the harmonic series are far apart at the bottom but […]
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Spirited performances of Giuseppe Tartini Violin Concertos and Sonatas
Violinist Laura Marzadori knows Italian music. Her previous releases feature works by Ottorino Respighi, Ernnano Wolf-Ferrari, and Leone Sinigaglia. This album focuses on Giuseppe Tartini, one of the most important figures in the development of violin technique. The four works Marzadori perform are all demanding. What makes this program refreshingly different is that they’re unusual […]
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Trio of Mikolaj Gorecki works present balanced portrait
The three works in this release each present a different facet of Mikolaj Gorecki’s style. There are similarities: two are for orchestra; two feature a clarinet, horn, and piano trio. But each has its own character. Gorecki’s orchestral work Zan Tontemiquico was inspired by the pre-Columbian poem of Tochihuitzin. It begins “We only come to […]
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Calin Huma Symphony-Concerto a true original
Sometimes being an amateur — rather than a professional — has its advantages. I’m referring to the original meaning of ” amateur” — one who loves the subject. If you’re an amateur composer, you’re free from the constraints of professional composers. You don’t have to compose a certain way to gain commissions, or recognition, or […]