Veljo Tormis - Litany to Thunder

"This startling record begins with two sopranos and a gentle piano sounding for all the world like Enya singing Satie; two tracks later we have a hair-raising chorus and drum hurling curses upon iron (which makes the tools of work and war). It's all the work of Estonian composer Veljo Tormis, who uses simple, even primitive melodies and ancient folk poetry (perhaps too simple for some listeners, especially those who understand no Finnish or Estonian) with exciting, sometimes atonal but always accessible accompaniment for chorus and/or instruments. The results can be plaintive and calm or vigorous, even feral. The effect is rather like Orff's 'Carmina Burana' with less symphonic glamour but more musical substance. The most entertaining piece on the disc is 'The Bishop and the Pagan', which retells (in a way) the story of St. Henry, who was martyred on a frozen lake in 1158 by an angry peasant with an ax. An alto and two tenors sing a medieval Latin poem in praise of Henry to a very chantlike melody in parallel fifths; meanwhile, baritones and basses pound out (softly at first) an ancient Finnish lyric told from the peasant's point of view. (You can guess how things end up.) The highlight is when the Henry trio is reduced to a wordless on-pitch howling while the peasant's chant is at its strongest - followed by a surprisingly witty ending. Not coincidentally, the next piece on the record, 'Litany to Thunder', depicts the sacrifice of an ox to the god of thunder and rain. Frankly, it's terrifying." (Review by Matthew Westphal via Amazon. See here.)

"Ultimate recording. Deep concern for the fate of my tiny homeland, my people and our culture have keyed my creative work. I hope this CD succeeds in expressing those feelings." (Veljo Tormis. From his website.)

Performers: Eesti Filharmoonia Kammerkoor, Tõnu Kaljuste

1. How Can I Recognize My Home

2. Singing Aboard Ship

3. Curse Upon Iron

4. The Singer's Childhood

5. Songs Of The Ancient Sea

6. The Bishop And The Pagan

7. Litany To Thunder

8. The Lost Geese

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Lera Auerbach / Dmitri Shostakovich - Arcanum

"Lera Auerbach’s involvement with Shostakovich's piano 'Preludes op. 34' began at the turn of the present century, when she transcribed five of them that the composer’s friend Dmitri Tsyganov (leader of the Beethoven Quartet) had left out of his own arrangement for violin and piano. A few years later she redid the lot for cello and piano, and in 2010 she completed a viola arrangement for the present soloist. It should be noted that these versions are not adjustments of each other: each is a freshly thought out and highly idiomatic transcription.

"As opposed to Shostakovich’s violist friend Evgeny Strakhov, whose arrangement of seven preludes is transposed to keys that allow for maximum instrumental effect, Auerbach keeps to the original keys throughout, with no loss of brilliance either. While Strakhov spotlit the viola unashamedly, Auerbach integrates it into the texture in an inconspicuous, perfectly natural way. Kashkashian’s playing is characterised by a bel canto quality that suits Shostakovich’s tongue-in-cheek trifles to a T. If once or twice (or thrice) an exaggerated glissando seems to go way over the top, one can well imagine the composer laughing approvingly!

"Following their Shostakovich collaboration, Auerbach wrote 'Arcanum', a piece of a completely different hue, for Kashkashian. The four movements’ Latin titles suggest a valedictory atmosphere that is reinforced by funeral march rhythms, tolling sounds and an ending similar to Shostakovich’s valedictory Viola Sonata in its otherworldliness. Kashkashian and the composer achieve a definitive reading that is captured in ECM’s eminently listenable house sound." (Carlos María Solare. From The Strad website. See here.)

 

Performers: Kim Kashkashian, Lera Auerbach

1. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 1 In C Major. Moderato

2. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 2 In A Minor. Allegretto

3. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 3 In G Major. Andante

4. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 4 In E Minor. Moderato

5. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 5 In D Major. Allegro Vivace

6. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 6 In B Minor. Allegretto

7. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 7 In A Major. Andante

8. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 8 In F-Sharp Minor. Allegretto

9. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 9 In E Major. Presto

10. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 10 In C-Sharp Minor. Moderato Non Troppo

11. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 11 In B Major. Allegretto

12. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 12 In G-Sharp Minor. Allegro Non Troppo

13. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 13 In F-Sharp Major. Moderato

14. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 14 In E-Flat Minor. Adagio

15. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 15 In D-Flat Major. Allegretto

16. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 16 In B-Flat Minor. Andantino

17. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 17 In A-Flat Major. Largo

18. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 18 In F Minor. Allegretto

19. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 19 In E-Flat Major. Andantino

20. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 20 In C Minor. Allegretto Furioso

21. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 21 In F-Flat Major. Allegretto Poco Moderato

22. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 22 In G Minor. Adagio

23. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 23 In F Major. Moderato

24. Dmitri Shostakovich - 24 Preludes, Op. 34: No. 24 In D Minor. Allegretto

25. Lera Auerbach - Arcanum: I. Advenio

26. Lera Auerbach - Arcanum: II. Cinis

27. Lera Auerbach - Arcanum: III. Postremo

28. Lera Auerbach - Arcanum: IV. Adempte

 

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Othmar Schoeck - Notturno

"Othmar Schoeck (1886-1957) was one of a troika of Swiss composers (the others being Frank Martin and Arthur Honegger) who were instrumental in establishing Switzerland as a force to be reckoned with on the European music scene. He was born in Brunnen on the banks of Lake Lucerne, a stunning spot that in fact out-idylls just about anywhere else in the land. He studied first at the Zurich Conservatory, went to Leipzig in 1907 to spend a year writing reams of counterpoint exercises under Max Reger, then returned to Zurich, never to leave again except for concert engagements and holidays. Schoeck made his living primarily as an orchestral conductor and as a piano accompanist, but it was as a composer that he attained real significance. His oeuvre comprises eight operas, some four hundred songs, and just a few minor instrumental works. The dominance of the word in his oeuvre has not made it easy for his music to gain recognition beyond the linguistic boundaries. Even his Expressionist operatic masterpiece 'Penthesilea' (1923-5), which has enjoyed two recordings and over a dozen productions in the past quarter-century, has only once been performed outside the German-speaking world. 

"Nor is Schoeck's music always immediately easy on the ear—the idyllic was not a register he employed often. Ironically, his essentially late-Romantic style was after the Second World War nevertheless considered 'too accessible' at a time when the avant-garde was noisily sweeping all before it. Schoeck was simply a composer who managed to fall between all possible stools. But in his day, his music was admired by Alban Berg, Wilhelm Furtwängler, Paul Hindemith and many others, while his staunchest champion among performers was Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. And if there is one work of Schoeck's to prove how well-founded was their admiration, it is surely the 'Notturno for string quartet and voice' of 1931-3. It was by no means the first-ever vocal work with string quartet accompaniment, though it is particularly remarkable for the virtuosity with which it merges vocal and instrumental forms (and is in this reminiscent of Alban Berg's opera Wozzeck, which Schoeck knew well). It was first performed on 18 May 1933 in Zurich by Felix Loeffel and the Zürcher Streichquartett. Despite its immense technical difficulties, it has proven one of Schoeck's more often-performed works — not least thanks to the persistence of Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, who recorded it and kept it in his repertoire for over a decade. 

"The Notturno sets ten poems in five movements. The inner movements have one poem each, while the first has four, the last three. All the poems except the tenth are by the German Romantic poet Nikolaus Lenau (1802-50), one of Schoeck's favourite authors. There is no 'story' in this cycle, which is unified instead by its overall tenor of darkness (hence the title). While there is no doubt that Schoeck was troubled by the political developments to the north of the Swiss borders in the early 1930s, the dark night of the soul depicted in the 'Notturno' is in fact of purely personal origin. This is reflected in the music fabric itself by the use of a specific, recurring musical theme. It first appears in the opening movement, at the line 'Der immer naht, ihr immer doch zu fehlen' ('He approaches but never does he reach her'), then forms the basis of a subsequent sonata-form interlude for quartet alone, and returns later to dominate the final movement of the work." (Chris Walton. From the liner notes.)

Performers: Rosamunde Quartett, Christian Gerhaher

1. Notturno, Op. 47: I. Ruhig
2. Notturno, Op. 47: II. Presto
3. Notturno, Op. 47: III. Unruhig Bewegt
4. Notturno, Op. 47: IV. Ruhig Und Leise
5. Notturno, Op. 47: V. Rasch Und Kräftig (Quasi Recit.)

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