This is the debut release from the Rautio Piano Trio, and it’s an assured debut indeed. They perform three of Mozart’s Piano Trios (he only managed to write six, more’s the pity), the Trio in B Flat K502, the Trio in E, K542, and the Trio in G, K564. Mozart wrote these trios over the course of several years, during which time he also wrote The Marriage of Figaro and Don Giovanni. It might be me being tempted to hear things Mozart never intended, but I feel as though the breezily conversational writing of these trios is indebted to his operatic writing. There’s plenty of cheerful Mozartian melodic lines passing around the ensemble that can’t help but bring a smile to one’s face. These trios were composed specifically for Mozart himself to perform in Viennese concerts. Being well aware of the monetary potential in creating music that could sell, you can almost imagine Mozart composing with one eye on the audience as the movements unfold. The trios are filled with an almost palpable sense of delight in the way the music twists and turns. Pianist Jan Rautio performs… Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already…

This disc brings together an unlikely but convincing combination of instruments in a trio consisting of the organ, baroque oboe and baroque trumpet. The reasoning that Austral Harmony gives for this is rather interesting. A contemporary of Bach’s named Georg Friedrich Kauffmann apparently suggested in some of his chorale preludes that an oboe or “other agreeable instrument” (trumpet, in this case) could play alongside the organ so as to give the impression that an organ stop was being used. I rather like his amiably cheerful descriptions of his own pieces given in the liner notes: “the oboes have been used in such a way here, which should be announced as good news”. Good news indeed for fans of Baroque wind and brass! What you get is a recital focusing on the oboe and organ (with appearances from trumpeter Simon Desbruslais on a respectable six tracks) with music from JS Bach and his contemporaries. There’s actually significantly more by the “other” composers than there is by Bach, but they’re in a similar style, so if you like Bach, you’ll like the other composers here, too. I particularly enjoyed… Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a…

This disc is, rather remarkably, volume 31 in Miklós Spányi’s complete keyboard works of CPE Bach, so it’s safe to say he knows what he’s doing! This disc includes several sonatas from Bach’s 1778 collection Six Sonatas for Connoisseurs and Amateurs. I have to admit a certain fondness for just how odd CPE Bach’s music is, with his sudden melodic shifts and startling key changes. Bach’s left-of-centre keyboard writing is best exemplified by the charmingly experimental Sonata No 5 in F, which begins by teasing the audience with two false starts (first in C Minor, then D Minor), before beginning properly in F Major. It begins with a noble phrase that sounds like a precursor to Haydn. Similarly, the sparse second movement and sprightly third bounce along with enthusiasm, walking the fine line of being appealing without being cloying. The clavichord is a surprisingly quiet instrument – I saw one played in a small hall once to no more than 20 people, and the instrument still required amplification. I think that the recording in this case is a little too detailed – although we get a wonderfully close-up sound of the instrument itself, most of the more expressive passages come…

A weighty Beethoven cycle lightened by the surprise appearance of an Australian composition.

I suspect for many guitarists it’s tempting to stay within well-known repertoire. What a good thing we have performers like Rupert Boyd to perform the less commonly heard works! Although Boyd’s liner notes suggest the album is built around several Fantasias, it feels to me more like an album of whatever he wanted to record. I think this is a good thing – it’s all clearly repertoire that he’s passionate about. There’s plenty to delight listeners. An early highlight is Australian composer Phillip Houghton’s titanic God of the Northern Forest and evocative (but oddly titled) Kinkachoo, I Love You, where Boyd proves a fine match for the meticulously detailed colourings and shadings of Houghton’s dreamlike music. Other unusual pieces include Byron Yasui’s charming Fantasy on a Hawaiian Lullabye, as well as rare sightings like Luigi Legnani, represented by the flashy Fantasia, Op. 19. It’s terrific to see such a varied recital, though it’s sometimes a little jarring switching from one piece to the next. Moving from a John Dowland Renaissance Fantasia of 1610 to Leo Brouwer’s Bartók-esque Tres Apuntes (Three Sketches) was a head-scratcher, though both were performed with verve. A fine, well-recorded disc overall, with music to delight… Continue reading…

I have to admit that I’ve got a soft spot for the bassoon. It’s not the most sensual of instruments, but it’s more than capable of stirring the listener’s emotions, or astonishing with flights of virtuosity. Although the cover of the disc oddly doesn’t mention her name at all, this is essentially a chamber recital from bassoonist Donna Agrell. Focusing on works written for 19th-century bassoonist Frans Preumayr, this recording includes chamber music from Swedish composers who don’t pop up all that often – Éduoard Du Puy, and Franz Berwald.   Last year I reviewed a live performance in which the players expressed concerns about the quality of Berwald’s music. Although it’s far from flabbergasting anyone, I would argue that one doesn’t need to hear masterworks all the time. No one cooks with Wagyu beef every day – sometimes all the heart desires is a trip to the local Bunnings’ sausage sizzle. Berwald’s music isn’t going to replace Haydn or Mozart, but it’s fun while it lasts. The two Berwald pieces on this disc (the Septet in B Flat and the Quartet in E Flat) are not without charm, but it’s in the Quintet in A Minor by Du Puy…

Mendelssohn’s Lieder ohne Worte (or Songs Without Words) were a bold step forward in Romantic writing. The title suggests much of the meaning behind the music – that it was possible to give purely instrumental music the emotional depth of a song, even without the added help of words to create imagery. The liner notes point out that the Songs Without Words generally stick to placing the melody in the upper voice, combined with a chordal accompaniment in ABA form. While this is broadly true, what variety Mendelssohn achieves from such a simple set-up! With this disc covering Books 5 to 8 of the set, fortepianist Ronald Brautigam has now recorded the complete Songs Without Words.  These later books contain some of the best-known pieces, including the famous Frühlingslied (Spring Song). There are some delightful links between the composers of the 19th century here – Book 5 is dedicated to Clara Schumann, who had to encore some of the pieces multiple times in her concerts. With this sense of history in mind, Brautigam plays these pieces as they should be heard, and with no sense of artifice. This is honest playing with some of the most natural phrasing I’ve heard…

Baldassare Galuppi is one of those unfortunate composers who were hailed in their lifetimes as being among the finest music-makers…and then promptly forgotten. Galuppi’s writing is in the galant style, essentially the precursor to the Classical era – his melodies might be simple, but they’re never simplistic. This sort of music, so full of elegance and warmth, can sound a tad trite if it’s not played with panache. However, that’s not a concern in this case! Andrea Chezzi brings brilliance to these sonatas when required, but most enjoyably, a definite sense of playfulness. For example, the opening Sonata No 1 in C Major, Op. 1, is given some additional tonal shifts from some well-timed use of the harpsichord’s stops, cheekily jumping from a dark sound to something more nasal in an echoed phrase. On the more reflective side of things, the slower movements are given a lovingly rounded sense of melody. The liner notes point out that this collection of sonatas was never composed as a set but was collated by Galuppi from various works. As a result, some of the sonatas are in three movements, while others are a single movement. While this might sound like… Continue reading Get…

★★★★★ The superstar pianist dazzles Brisbane in an unforgettable concert. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in

Imagine the archaeological thrill of tracking down musical manuscripts and finding works which have been unheard for centuries. In 2011, the Morgan Library in New York acquired a manuscript which alternates sonatas by Soler and Domenico Scarlatti (who influenced Soler’s writing deeply). Of Soler’s works in the collection, 29 were previously unknown and are recorded here for the first time. With a treasure trove of new music before him, harpsichordist Diego Ares can enjoy the interpretive freedom afforded by works without the weight of expectation. While he was composing in Spain in what is ostensibly the late Baroque, to my ears Soler’s style is more similar to that of style galant composers like CPE Bach, with an emphasis on the melodic line and musical twists aplenty. Ares’ playful style perfectly suits this music, which often breaks into a spirited flurry of semiquavers or dashes away with another fresh melody just when it is least expected. Soler’s improvisatory compositional style is reflected in some clever programming. Ares’ notes discuss Soler’s publication of rules for improvising modulations to remote keys, and indeed Ares uses a similar method to insert a few linking passages in between sonatas. Though brief, these… Continue reading Get…

★★★★☆ Crisp and refreshing – and the music is pretty good, too. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in

Generally, when you think of baroque music you think Europe. Handel’s London, perhaps, JS Bach’s Leipzig, or Vivaldi’s Venice. For the composer Domenico Zipoli, his training as a missionary meant that he wound up further afield. Instead of hobnobbing at the courts of Europe, he lived and composed in Argentina at a time when getting to South America meant a difficult and lengthy journey. The music recorded on this disc was published as Sonate d’Intavolatura per Organo e Cimbalo, before Zipoli’s South American adventures began. Though still far from well known, the suites and partitas in the harpsichord half of the set are masterful enough to have impressed fellow composers. Writing centuries later, Vincent d’Indy referred to these works as proving Zipoli “one of the greatest Italian masters in musicality and elegance in composing”, and compared him favourably to Frescobaldi, Pachelbel and Bach. For the most part following the standard baroque dance suite form, Zipoli’s music is brought to life in this recording. Giovanni Nesi’s choice to record these works on the piano serves the music well, bringing a wonderful crispness and clarity to these works. Usually I’d quibble… Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe…