In the 1650s “The Amphion of his Century” was an up-and-coming musician in Leipzig. He was poised to take over as the cantor of St. Thomas’ in 1653 (a position J.S. Bach would hold years later). Suddenly everything changed. A scandal forced Johann Rosenmüller to leave in haste. While it was a setback for his […]
CPO
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Louis Glass Complete Symphonies, Vol. 2 – Insightful Performances
Volume 2 of CPO’s series present two Louis Glass works with a common theme. Both the works have strong theosophist elements. Glass found inspiration in the movement’s mystical imagery. The 1912 Fantasia for Piano and Orchestra bears this motto: “From the spirit’s eternal canopy tones calling man sound down. And man turns away from the […]
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CPO Revives Brahms Contemporary, Anton Urspruch
Anton Urspruch (1850-1907) is hardly a household name — even among classical music aficionados. In the 1880s, though, he was a rising star. Urspruch studied composition with Joachim Raff and Ignaz Lachner. He was a star piano pupil of Franz Liszt. As a scholar, he’s credited with the revival of Gregorian Chant. Urspruch enjoyed an […]
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Anton Eberl Emerges from the Shadow of Mozart
Pianist/composer Anton Eberl was a contemporary of Beethoven and a student of Mozart. Some of Eberl’s works were misattributed to Mozart, and that’s not surprising. As this new release shows, Eberl’s style is quite similar to Mozart’s. But not quite identical (a lot of the misattribution was done by unscrupulous publishers). The two sonatas for […]
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Franz Krommer Symphonies Inspired by Beethoven
This is the second volume of Krommer symphonies from Griffiths and the Orchestra della Svizzera italiana. The first volume covered Krommer’s first three symphonies. This release features three symphonies; only two of which were published. Franz Krommer was based in Vienna, a younger contemporary of Ludwig van Beethoven. Krommer’s 1819 Symphony No. 4 in C […]
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CPE Bach: Grosse Festkantaten – Simply Grand
It seems appropriate that these festival cantatas would be revived (and recorded) for a festival. The 300th anniversary of Carl Philipp Emanual (CPE) Bach’s birth prompted a music festival in Leipzig. The two cantatas on this release had not been performed since the occasions they were written for. “Ich will dem Herrn lobsingen” was written […]
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Carl Abel Symphonies Op. 1 and Op. 4
Carl Abel was a student of Johann Sebastian Bach and a business partner with his son Johann Christian. His music shares some of the qualities of the “London” Bach. The works on this collection come from two publications. Abel’s Opus 1 was published in 1760, his Opus 4 two years later. Both sets feature short, […]
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Georg Schumann – a Post-Wagner composer?
This is the first time I’ve heard the music of Georg Schumann — but not the first time CPO’s released it. This recording is the fourth of G. Schumann’s music. Previously, CPO’s released his first symphony, a disc of lieder, and one of chamber music. Georg Schumann (no relation to Robert), was the longtime […]
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Christian Westerhoff Concertos – Great Music from the Hinterlands
Sometimes location matters. Based on the quality of his music, I think Christian Wilhelm Westerhoff (1763-1806) might have had a notable career in Vienna. Instead, he served at the court of Count Ludwig Wilhelm of Bentheim, one of the minor Hanoverian nobility. Because he remained in the hinterlands, his music remained relatively unknown. Until now. […]