Carlo Evasio Soliva Video
compositore e musicista svizzero
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Fryderyk Chopin Biret Bunch Kurpiński Elsner Gładkowska Soliva Streicher Tomaszewski 1828 1830 1833
Chopin Grande fantaisie sur des airs polonais Op. 13 in A major - Idil Biret Chopin composed the Fantasy on Polish Airs most probably in 1828, but did not perform it until 1830. It was published in 1833, and so in his Parisian years, as a Fantasie sur des Airs Nationaux Polonais. In his review of the first Warsaw concert, Maurycy Mochnacki described this work as a ‘potpourri of national airs’, emphasising the ‘beautiful simplicity of the native song, which Chopin has assimilated’. This Fantasy does indeed represent the ‘potpourri’ variety of that many-headed genre, and so a loose bunch of melodies of a common character. Chopin chose three tunes, presented them in variation form and preceded them with an introduction. Yet there is no question of an excessively ‘loose’ form to this work. It has a distinctive dramatic shape and was composed as a coherent whole. Each passage from theme to theme occurs without a drop in tension. On the contrary: the switches are made in a way that arouses interest and expectancy, with anticipation and echo. The three themes complement one another, forming a whole that is indeed ‘national’ or ‘native’. The first brings us the melody of a romance about Laura and Philo, the second renders the tune of a dumka attributed to Kurpiński but betraying folk provenance, and the third carries the melody of a dance – a kujawiak, the folk character of which is beyond dispute. In keeping with the conventions of the genre, the body of the work is preceded by an introduction, which proceeds at a slow tempo, Largo ma non troppo. This may be termed a kind of nocturne – the first of Chopin’s nocturnes. Yet it presages not just the nocturnes, for which we will have to wait another two years, but also the larghettos of the two piano concertos. Already we have here that characteristic spinning-out of a narrative somewhere between dreaming and reverie. The first theme, taken from the song ‘Już miesiąc zeszedł’ [The moon now has risen], is presented in a mellifluous manner by the piano, with the requisite sweetness (dolce) and simplicity (semplice). The arabesque of the melody moves along against the nocturne-like ostinato accompaniment and the soft murmuring of the strings. It is followed by successive variations, which break up the tune into pieces. In the second variation, the movement of the figurations increases, and the last is overcome by a pianistic frenzy. One must not forget that in this composition, too, Chopin submitted to the rules of the style brillant. A hush, the octave of the horns announces a new phase in the narrative; the second theme comes in – Kurpiński’s theme, a dumka representing the folklore of the south of the country, more Ukrainian than Cracovian. The striking of the orchestra and the piano con fuoco and con forza may have been meant to convey the sudden impression made on Poles by the news of Kościuszko’s death. What follows is a thoughtful, meditative nocturne. One admires the way Chopin transformed the supremely simple dumka melody into a masterfully sophisticated and expressively distinctive song of the night. The Fantasy on Polish Airs is a concert work, and so it cannot dispense with a coda, which is just as vigorous and insistent as the kujawiak itself. Warsaw heard the Fantasy three times. For the first time in the Chopins’ drawing-room on Krakowskie Przedmieście, in March 1830. The group of musicians was conducted by Kurpiński, and the audience comprised the musical elite, led by Elsner. A gushing review was forthcoming. Chopin wrote about the October performance in a letter: ‘After leading Miss Gładkowska from the stage, we set about the Potpourri on the Moon that has risen, etc. This time I knew what I was doing, and the orchestra knew what it was doing, and the parterre appreciated. Only on this occasion did the mazur at the end [the kujawiak that closes the Fantasy] draw great applause, after which I was called back out – not once did anyone hiss, and I had time to bow 4 times’. That success was no accident. The conductor, Carlo Soliva, led the orchestra splendidly – ‘like never before’, according to Chopin. And Chopin played this time on a Viennese Streicher piano – the best available in Warsaw at that time. Author: Mieczysław Tomaszewski A series of programmes entitled ‘Fryderyk Chopin’s Complete Works’ Read it in full here: (http•••) 0:00 Introduction - Largo non troppo 4:31 Air-Juz miesiac zaszedi - Andantino 8:16 Theme de Charles Kurpinski- Allegretto 12:13 Kujawiak - Vivace Sheet: (http•••)
Frédéric Chopin Friedrich Kalkbrenner Konstancja Gładkowska James Huneker Robert Schumann Beethoven Carlo Evasio Soliva Pleyel François Joseph Fétis Martha Argerich Salle Pleyel 1830 1836
1.Allegro maestoso-0:00 2.Romanze – Larghetto-20:30 3.Rondo – Vivace -30:20 The Piano Concerto No. 1 in E minor, Op. 11, is a piano concerto written by Frédéric Chopin in 1830, when he was only twenty years old. It was first performed on 11 October of that year, in Warsaw, with the composer as soloist, during one of his “farewell” concerts before leaving Poland. It was the first of Chopin's two piano concertos to be published, and was therefore given the designation of Piano Concerto “No. 1” at the time of publication, even though it was actually written immediately after the premiere of what was later published as Piano Concerto No. 2. A typical performance lasts about 40 minutes. The piano concerto is dedicated to Friedrich Kalkbrenner. While writing it, Chopin wrote to Tytus Woyciechowski, saying, “Here you doubtless observe my tendency to do wrong against my will. As something has involuntarily crept into my head through my eyes, I love to indulge it, even though it may be all wrong.”[1] Undoubtedly, this sight must have been the well-known soprano Konstancja Gładkowska, who was the “ideal” behind the Larghetto from Chopin’s Second Piano Concerto. Opinions of the concerto differ. Some critics feel that the orchestral support as written is dry and uninteresting, notably the critic James Huneker, who wrote in Chopin: The Man and his Music that it was “not Chopin at his very best.”[2] On the other hand, many others feel that the orchestral backing is carefully and deliberately written to fit in with the sound of the piano, and that the simplicity of arrangement is in deliberate contrast to the complexity of the harmony. Robert Schumann reviewed Chopin’s concerti in 1836 for the Neue Zeitschrift für Musik that “Chopin introduces the spirit of Beethoven into the concert hall” with these pieces. The premiere, on 12 October 1830, was “a success.... a full house.” There was “an audience of about 700,” according to the Kurier Warszawski. The concerto, with Chopin himself at the piano and Carlo Evasio Soliva conducting. The piece was followed by “thunderous applause.” Seven weeks later, in Paris, following the political outbreaks in Poland, Chopin played his concerto for the first time in France at the Salle Pleyel. It was received well, once again. François-Joseph Fétis wrote in La Revue musicale the next day that “There is spirit in these melodies, there is fantasy in these passages, and everywhere there is originality.” The pianist Martha Argerich said of the concerto, "The virtuosity has to be like an understatement."
Nicolas Isouard Rossini Viardot Massenet Barbiere Ferretti Weber Boieldieu Soliva Bland Richard Bonynge Ensemble XXI 1810 1817 1989 1996
Information on the recording company: The website of the group behind the present superb recording - Ensemble XXI (the first independent orchestra in Soviet history, founded in 1989) - can be accessed through the following link: www.ensemblexxi.org. History: Rossini has probably produced the most familiar and one of the most brilliant operatic versions of the familiar Cinderella fairytale in his lovely 1817 work. However, the Italian maestro was not the first and, indeed, not the last composer to tackle the story: Viardot and Massenet would approach the subject later on, while Rossini's own version is somewhat based on the opera composed in 1810 by the Maltese-born Nicolas Isouard that captivated public affection until the arrival of "La Cenerentola" (incidentally, Isouard is one of the composers, besides Rossini, to set to music "Il barbiere di Siviglia"). Narrative: The story is identical to the one presented in the Italian piece. In fact, it is quite probable that Rossini's librettist, Ferretti, actually "stole" the main plot from Isouard's opera which was actually the first to introduce the character of Alidoro to replace the Fairy Godmother and to give the prince a name, Ramir. However, Isouard and his libretto seem to be bounded by both their "target audience" and their original cast and, thus, are unable to produce something on the scale of "La Cenerentola": the many dramatic possibilities that remain unrealized in Isouard's score are brought to life by Rossini: most strikingly, the crucial rejection by the Baron of Cinderella is treated by a short dialogue in Isouard's treatment, while Rossini turns in one of his most beautiful quintets. All in all, the French opera turns out to be, above all, an entertainment in the best sense of the world: providing a large amount of enjoyment (though it does not strive to be anything more than delightful). The French tradition also dictates a rather more imbalanced approach to the distribution of the roles that in the case of Rossini's piece: as French opera rarely deals with the bass buffo, Isouard does not develop either the Baron or Dandini, while the two ugly sisters, both sopranos, as is Cinderella, are actually made the dominating party. Music: Weber's opinion was that practically every piece in the opera was "routine", and I cannot blame him. With no equivalent of either Dandini or Don Magnifico, Isouard lavishes most of his invention (somewhat similar to the melodic fullness of Boieldieu) on two duos - the Prince and Cinderella (characterized rather sparingly by short romances in a sentimental style) and the two ugly sisters, obviously considered the stars of the evening and communicating almost exclusively in roulades of various virtuoso improbability (each is given a full aria). However, Isouard's work stands in sharp contrast to the already presented opera by Soliva: whereas the latter, in spite of some interesting orchestration and short passages of true feeling, is overall bland and pedestrian, Isouard can, at the very least, boast a more even and inspired musical production and, in the best examples (such as in the recurrent motive that is first stated by Alidor in his short arioso from the Introduction and then used throughout the opera), music to rival the charm of Auber and Boieldieu, bringing considerable delight to the listener, provided, of course, that some of the faults of the composer and his librettist are ignored (such as no large-scale finales). Indeed, the best pieces - the glorious horn prelude, Cinderella's suitably understated cavatina, the topsy-turvy duettino for the ugly sisters, a virtuoso bolero for Clorinda - are all charming pieces. All in all, a light, perhaps even lightish, but always gentle and enchanting treatment of the Cinderella story. Recording: There is but one recording of the opera, a 1996 Moscow performance under the direction of Richard Bonynge, conducting the elegant Ensemble XXI Moscow, a spirited reading on all accounts. Among the singers, the excellent trio of sopranos and a winning Alidor provide the listener with some very accomplished singing; indeed, the whole cast and orchestra team up for quite a delightful performance. Performers: Cendrillon (soprano) - Ludmilla Shilova, Clorinde (soprano) - Byung Soon Lee, Thisbe (soprano) - Marian Sjölander, Prince Ramir (tenor) - Nikolai Doroshkin, Alidor (baritone) - Hans Pieter Herman, The Baron (baritone) - Valery Plankin, Dandini (tenor) - Andre Andryanov, Chorus - Maria Struve Children's Capella. Musical Director - Lygia O'Riordan, French language and drama coach: Marie-Claire. Hope you'll enjoy :).
Frédéric Chopin Friedrich Kalkbrenner Konstancja Gładkowska James Huneker Robert Schumann Beethoven Carlo Evasio Soliva Pleyel François Joseph Fétis Salle Pleyel 1830 1836
The Piano Concerto No. 1 in E minor, Op. 11, is a piano concerto written by Frédéric Chopin in 1830, when he was twenty years old. It was first performed on 11 October of that year, in Warsaw, with the composer as soloist, during one of his “farewell” concerts before leaving Poland. It was the first of Chopin's two piano concertos to be published, and was therefore given the designation of Piano Concerto “No. 1” at the time of publication, even though it was actually written immediately after the premiere of what was later published as Piano Concerto No. 2. The concerto is scored for solo piano, pairs of flutes, oboes, clarinets, and bassoons, 4 horns, 2 trumpets, tenor trombone, timpani and strings. A typical performance lasts about 40 minutes. The piano concerto is dedicated to Friedrich Kalkbrenner. While writing it, Chopin wrote to Tytus Woyciechowski, saying, “Here you doubtless observe my tendency to do wrong against my will. As something has involuntarily crept into my head through my eyes, I love to indulge it, even though it may be all wrong.” Undoubtedly, this sight must have been the well-known soprano Konstancja Gładkowska, who was the “ideal” behind the Larghetto from Chopin’s Second Piano Concerto. Opinions of the concerto differ. Some critics feel that the orchestral support as written is dry and uninteresting, notably the critic James Huneker, who wrote in Chopin: The Man and his Music that it was “not Chopin at his very best.”[2] On the other hand, many others feel that the orchestral backing is carefully and deliberately written to fit in with the sound of the piano, and that the simplicity of arrangement is in deliberate contrast to the complexity of the harmony. Robert Schumann reviewed Chopin’s concerti in 1836 for the Neue Zeitschrift für Musik that “Chopin introduces the spirit of Beethoven into the concert hall”[3] with these pieces. The premiere, on 12 October 1830, was “a success.... a full house.” There was “an audience of about 700,” according to the Kurier Warszawski. The concerto, with Chopin himself at the piano and Carlo Evasio Soliva conducting. The piece was followed by “thunderous applause.” Seven weeks later, in Paris, following the political outbreaks in Poland, Chopin played his concerto for the first time in France at the Salle Pleyel. It was received well, once again. François-Joseph Fétis wrote in La Revue musicale the next day that “There is spirit in these melodies, there is fantasy in these passages, and everywhere there is originality.” It contains the three movements typical of instrumental concertos of the period: Allegro maestoso Romanze – Larghetto (E major) Rondo – Vivace in E major Allegro maestoso — typical performance lasts 20 minutes Both the first and second movements feature unusual modulations; in the opening Allegro, the exposition modulates to the parallel major, i-I, instead of the expected i-III. This tonal relation (i-III) between the second and the third theme finally occurs in the recapitulation, where an actual i-I modulation would have been expected, producing a different effect. The first movement of the E minor concerto has three themes, which are introduced by the orchestra. The piano then plays the first theme (bar 139), followed by the lyric second theme (bar 155), accompanied by the main motif of the first theme in bass counterpoint. The third theme is in E major, introduced in the exposition by the orchestra and taken over by the piano (bar 222). The development begins in bar 385, with the piano opening with the second theme; the orchestra then develops the first theme. The recapitulation begins in bar 486 again with the orchestra playing its opening theme. Romanze – Larghetto — typical performance lasts about 10 minutes The Romanze, although not strictly in sonata form, has its second theme of the exposition ascribe to the classical model of modulating to the dominant (I-V), and, when it returns, it modulates to the mediant (III). Chopin wrote in the same letter to Tytus, saying, “It is not meant to create a powerful effect; it is rather a Romance, calm and melancholy, giving the impression of someone looking gently towards a spot that calls to mind a thousand happy memories. It is a kind of reverie in the moonlight on a beautiful spring evening.”[5] The second movement has been described as "unashamedly heart-on-your-sleeve stuff."[6] Rondo – Vivace — typical performance lasts about 10 minutes Written with much procrastination, hesitation, and difficulty, the third movement features Krakowiak rhythms, a syncopated, duple-time popular dance in contemporary Krakow.[7] It became one of the last pieces written by Chopin before the political turmoil in Poland that prevented him from returning. When, after completing the Rondo in August 1830, he played it privately — first with a string quartet and then a small orchestral ensemble — he said proudly, “Rondo – impressive. Allegro – strong.”
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