Classical

Johann Baptist Vanhal - 3 Late String Quartets (2012)

2018-07-03T15:06:08Z

Johann Baptist Vanhal - 3 Late String Quartets (2012)


1.String quartet in E flat	12:20
2.String quartet in E flat	05:59
3.String quartet in E flat	05:25
4.String quartet in F op. 33 No. 3:Allegro moderato	07:39
5.String quartet in F op. 33 No. 3:Arietta I - Arietta II: Tempo Moderato	04:38
6.String quartet in F op. 33 No. 3:Adagio	04:38
7.String quartet in F op. 33 No. 3:Allegro con fuoco	05:01
8.String quartet in a op,. 33 No. 2:Allegro moderato	07:21
9.String quartet in a op. 33 No. 2:Arietta I - Arietta II	05:47
10.String quartet in a op. 33 No. 2:Adagio Sostenuto	05:28

Camesina String Quartet:
Johannes Gebauer, Katja Gruttner - violin
Irina Alexandrowna - viola 
Martin Burkhardt - cello

This is some of the most entertaining and ear-pleasing music you could ever want to hear. It’s performed with infectious fun and delight by the still young (founded in 2007) Camesina Quartet, named for the Camesina House in Vienna where Mozart resided from 1784 until 1787, and where he played the six string quartets dedicated to Haydn for the first time in the presence of his elder friend. If you didn’t know who wrote the three quartets on this disc or when they were written, you wouldn’t be far off base if you guessed Haydn, and relatively early Haydn at that. In fact, according to the uncredited program note, the composer of these works, Johann Baptist Vanhal, born Jan K?titel Va?hal (1739–1813)—purposely chose to assign the opus number 33 to a set of quartets he wrote sometime in the 1780s so that they would be associated with Haydn’s op. 33 quartets of 1781.

No date is provided for the second of two or more so-called “Hoffmeister” quartets given here, though it’s said to be later than the op. 33 quartets. The association now is obviously to the composer and music publisher, Franz Anton Hoffmeister, whose publishing firm issued Mozart’s isolated String Quartet in D Major, K 499, nicknamed “Hoffmeister,” shortly after it was composed in 1786.

A catalog of Vanhal’s works published by Duke University cites 53 string quartets, yet Vanhal today is remembered almost exclusively for his large output of symphonies and concertos. Shockingly, in fact, this new Musikmanufaktur Berlin (MMB) release is the only recording of the composer’s string quartets currently listed by ArkivMusic.

Only in hindsight do we know what was about to happen in the medium of the string quartet thanks to that upstart from Bonn, Ludwig van Beethoven. Haydn’s two “Lobkowitz” Quartets of 1799 would be followed just two years later by Beethoven’s op. 18 set, which was unleashed on an unsuspecting Viennese public in 1801. In fact, Beethoven had begun work on the set in 1798, a year before Haydn even began to compose his two op. 77 quartets. For Haydn and Vanhal, where the string quartet was concerned, most of the 1770s through the first half of the 1780s was still an age of relative innocence. And that is very much reflected in these works. Like the parallel quartets of this period by Haydn—opus numbers 20 and 33—Vanhal’s quartets are filled with high spirits, good-natured fun, and an irrepressible joie-de-vivre.

This is an immensely enjoyable CD, and the Camesina Quartet, an ensemble I’ve not previously encountered—the group’s only other offering is an import disc of quartets by Dussek—is simply amazing. The musicians seem to be as overtaken by joy in playing this music as I was in listening to it. Possible Want List stuff. Very, very strongly recommended. ---FANFARE: Jerry Dubins, arkivmusic.com

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Johann Baptist Vanhal - Selected Symphonies Vol.1 (1999)

2011-08-25T08:36:56Z

Johann Baptist Vanhal - Selected Symphonies Vol.1 (1999)

Sinfonia in A major, Bryan A9 
1.  I. Allegro moderato - 4:34
2.  II. Andante molto - 3:58
3.  III. Tempo di primo - 4:31

Sinfonia in C major, Bryan C3
4.  I. Allegro con spirito - 5:09
5.  II. Andante - 3:01
6.  III. Presto - 2:37				play

Sinfonia in D major, Bryan D17 
7.  I. Andante molto - Allegro moderato - 7:45
8.  II. Adagio molto - 4:31			play
9.  III. Finale: Allegro - 5:54

Symphony in C major, Bryan C11, "Il comista" 
10.  I. Allegro con brio - 4:14
11.  II. Andante cantabile - 6:44
12.  III. Finale: Adagio piu andante - Allegro - 3:04

Budapest Nicolaus Esterhazy Sinfonia
Uwe Grodd - conductor

Johann Baptist Vaňhal was one of the most popular Viennese composers during his lifetime. History has, however, been unkind to his reputation, the result of irresponsible statements that were made by imaginative authors who were not acquainted with him or his circumstances. The general impression is that he was melancholy and depressed when, in truth, he appears to have been basically happy and personable. Wild claims have also been made that early in his career he was so overcome by madness caused by religious fervour that he burned some of his music. After that, the story goes, the quality of compositions deteriorated so much that he never realised the promise of his early works. The lie to this assertion is given by the splendid symphonies included on this CD. It contains the Sinfonia in C major, C3, one of his earliest works, along with three of his later ones, including the Sinfonia in D major, D17, which I believe to be one of his last. His vitality and inventiveness are evident in all of them.

One part of Vaňhal's reputation is, however, true. He was the first major composer of the time who was strong enough to renounce the offer of a 'good' - and terribly demanding position - and to live comfortably until he died in Vienna at the age of seventy-four. His success was possible because of his other personal characteristics. He was humble and deeply religious - not ambitious for fame, high position, or fortune. He was also shrewd, hard-working and sensitive to changing economic and social conditions. As a result he decided to cease composing symphonies and chamber music when the market in Vienna was drying up in about 1780, and began to explore other possibilities.

The results were spectacular. He composed, for example, more than 247 works (mostly unpublished), large and small, for the church. He also wrote a huge number of pieces all of which centred around the keyboard. His compositions included serious works, such as the keyboard Capriccios, and songs and cantatas for voice with keyboard accompaniment. He also published many pieces for instruction and entertainment which became very popular, including imaginative pieces with descriptive titles such as The Battle of Trafalgar. In all he produced more than 1300 compositions in a wide variety of genres. To the present, only the symphonies and string quartets have been sufficiently studied to ascertain his complete contribution.

The four symphonies included here provide a good introduction to Vaňhal's symphonic style and illustrate why he was considered such an important exponent of the genre. The Sinfonia in A major, A9, was probably composed ca 1775-78, at about the same time as the Sinfonia in C major, C11. That it was written by Vaňhal is not confirmed by any of the usual eighteenth-century catalogues or references; however, there are no contra-attributions. Its claim for legitimacy is confirmed by its stylistic factors, especially by similarities with other accepted works of the same period. The clearly established authenticity of the Sinfonia, C11, which in some respects it resembles, therefore serves as a touchstone for the A major work, especially in view of Vaňhal's long-demonstrated creativity, innovative ability and interest in experimenting with approaches to composing symphonies.

The most striking feature of the Sinfonia is its overall construction as a multi-tempo one-movement symphony. The outer movements, brilliantly scored with oboes and clarini (in D), enclose a captivating central 'movement' in which Vaňhal makes magical use of a solo cello doubled at the upper octave by the first violins. This exuberant and powerful symphony has one further surprise to spring: the Finale concludes with a hushed quotation of the opening measures of the symphony thus emphasizing its unique structure in the most dramatic way possible.

I believe that the Sinfonia in C major, C3 was one of the earliest of Vaňhal's symphonies and that it was probably composed in 1760-62. The "No.1" inscribed on the title-page of the copy from the Doksy collection, now preserved in the Narodni Museum in Prague, helps to confirm that it is one of Vaňhal's earliest symphonies and that he might even have written it before he came to Vienna. The Sinfonia is in three-movement Overture style with segue indicated between the movements in several versions. The basic instrumentation probably called for strings with a wind choir of two oboes, two horns, two trumpets (clarini) and timpani.

However, some versions call only for clarini and others for horns only; some call for both and omit the timpani, as is the case in this recording. Regardless, it is a brilliant and exciting symphony which must have caught the attention of soiree audiences during Vaňhal's first years in Vienna. The Finale (Presto) opens with a 'stomping' rhythm which permeates the entire movement; one wonders if the movement was ever danced to. The Sinfonia in D major, D17 is one of three symphonies published in 1780 as Op.10 by J.J. Hummel in Berlin. They were the last of Vaňhal's symphonies to be newly published and I estimate that they were composed ca 1779.

All the evidence suggests that these symphonies were commissioned by Hummel and that the extant manuscript sets of parts in various archives were copied direct from Op.10 rather than from an earlier source. The Sinfonia is a fine work; I believe that it is one of Vaňhal's best. From the haunting D minor introduction scored for strings (with muted violins) to the dashing and brilliantly composed finale, the work is uniformly strong and quite the equal of any of Haydn's symphonies of the period. At first glance it appears to be in three movements, but the Andante molto opening has a life of its own - much the same as the Adagio openings to Mozart's 'Linz' Symphony No.

36 in C major, K. 425, composed in 1783 and to Symphony No. 38 in D, K. 504, composed in 1786. Mozart's prominent use of the chromatic rising figure in the introductions to both symphonies is similar to that found in bars 33-35 of Vaňhal's introductory movement. Further, his use of Vaňhal's opening motif from the introductory movement as the basic ingredient for the Poco Adagio second movement of K. 425 suggests that Mozart may have been impressed with Vaňhal's Sinfonia at some point before he composed K. 425. Certainly the critic C.F. Cramer was impressed. Writing in the Magazin der Musik in Hamburg in 1783 he said: "may Herr Vaňhal not be prevented ... from giving us more such symphonies".

One of Vaňhal's late symphonies, the Sinfonia in C major, C11, was most likely composed during the period 1775-78. One contemporary copy of the work is styled Sinfonia comista / con per la sorte diversa on the title-page. The headings for the individual movements are marked, I. Sinfonia la Speranza / Allegro con Brio, II. Andante cantabile / il sospirare e Languire, and III. at the beginning: Finale: la Lamentazione / Adagio piu Andante and after 17 bars L'Allegrezza / Allegro. The symphony is, therefore, a programmatic work, whose individual movements are supposed to portray varied moods: I. 'Hope', II. 'Sighingly and Languidly' and III.

'Lamentation', followed by 'Gaiety, Cheerfully and Festive'. It must have been composed for an imaginative patron who would have appreciated being informed by the titles and intent of each movement. The upbeat mood (hope) established by the busy and active opening movement in C major sets up expectations that the happy tone will continue. The expectation is, however, dashed by the lengthy slow movement in C minor and the dark mood created by its scoring with parts for divided violas, horns in E-flat and, in some sources, two bassoons. The solo introduction (also in C minor) to the Finale movement would also have surprised contemporary listeners and the musically astute among them would have been pleased to recognise that the Adagio introduction contains a figure that foreshadows both of the main motifs from which the following Allegro is constructed. The final outcome caused by the triumphant C major finale must surely have delighted audiences of the time. ---Paul Bryan, naxosdirect.com

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Johann Baptist Vanhal – Missa pastoralis in G; Missa solemnis in C (2000)

2011-06-30T18:41:52Z

Johann Baptist Vanhal – Missa pastoralis in G; Missa solemnis in C (2000)


1. Missa Pastoralis – Kyrie		play
2. Gloria
3. Credo
4. Sanctus
5. Benedictus
6. Agnus Dei
7. Missa Solemnis – Kyrie
8. Gloria
9. Credo				play
10. Sanctus
11.Benedictus
12. Agnus Dei

Mary Enid Haines (soprano);
Nina Scott Stoddart (alto);
Colin Ainsworth (tenor);
Steven Pitkainen (baritone)

Arcadia Ensemble
Tower Voices New Zealand
Uwe Grodd - conductor

Johann Vanhal's life (1739-1813) mirrored Haydn's in its longevity, but none of his music enjoys comparable popularity. New exhumations like these fine masses could change all that. This disc, produced in August, 2000 at Napier, New Zealand's St. John's Cathedral, combines world-premiere recordings of two Vanhal masses in capable, attentive, fresh-sounding performances by Uwe Grodd, who directs the Canadian period-instrument orchestra Arcadia and Tower Voices of New Zealand, joined by four able Canadian vocal soloists.

Vanhal wrote a huge corpus of choral music (approximately 50 mass settings), which seems surprising given that at no stage of his career was he employed as a church musician. Nor was there much financial gain to be had from writing independent liturgical settings, so Vanhal's masses came from direct personal impulse, not workaday commissions, which probably accounts in some way for their high quality. This CD includes the Missa pastoralis in G and the C major Missa solemnis. The former (c. 1782) contains a remarkable setting of the Gloria, in which a through-composed soprano/alto duet ("Domine Jesu") leads directly to a thrillingly dramatic "Qui tollis". The near-symphonic grandeur of the "Credo" also is noteworthy, and as you listen to the work you'll be impressed by Vanhal's skill in balancing the simple imagery of a pastoral mass setting with orchestral episodes of great power and forcefulness.

The Missa solemnis in C (c. 1778) must have enjoyed some initial success since a dozen or so copies exist in monastery collections. Interestingly, the score dispenses with the obligatory trombones of the solemn mass. The level of craftsmanship here is again extremely high; the final fugue ("Dona nobis pacem") is just one instance of Vanhal's contrapuntal mastery. In general these performances are excellent, and the recording is amply detailed if sometimes slightly too resonant. Unhelpfully, the booklet omits all tracklistings. [7/24/2001] --- Michael Jameson

The Missa Solemnis is the earlier of the settings on this disc. The date of composition is uncertain but the work had been written by 1778. The orchestral scoring is for pairs of oboes and trumpets, timpani, organ and strings. At various points both the first violinist and the organist enjoy important obbligato roles. In terms of style and form the mass is pretty typical of its period and I do not mean that in a pejorative sense. To be sure, Vanhal works within the conventions of the time but he does so to good effect. His setting is not only fresh; it is properly joyful or reflective at the appropriate moments. I should think it is most enjoyable to perform. That is certainly the impression conveyed by the artists here.

The Missa Pastoralis is probably a slightly later work. It had been composed by 1782 and it is scored for similar forces. Like its companion it receives a thoroughly well prepared and convincing performance.

This admirable CD represents an interesting international collaboration. The Aradia Ensemble, who play on period instruments, are based in Toronto. The ensemble was formed in 1995. Three years later TOWER Voices, a 32-strong choir came into being. This evidently expert group draws singers from all over New Zealand. To judge by their performances here the choir is bright toned and flexible and their Canadian colleagues provide stylish and alert accompaniments. All four soloists are Canadian. They do not have tremendously big roles to sing here but they are effective: I particularly enjoyed the singing of the two ladies. The conductor, Uwe Grodd, is German born but he is now based in New Zealand. His direction is lively and clear.

A thoroughly enjoyable disc, with good quality sound. I have one small quibble: it is a pity that there is no separate track listing. Otherwise the documentation is good and informative (the author of the notes also prepared the performing editions of the works used in this recording). ---John Quinn

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