Dohnányi

Christoph von Dohnányi’s lean and athletic Dvorák Symphony No. 6 is at the opposite pole from the warm, romantic style typified by Karel Ancerl (type Q6828 in Search Reviews). However, both approaches are valid, as Dvorák’s great symphony is at once a heartfelt work with strong classical underpinnings. The combination of Dohnányi’s energetic direction and the Cleveland Orchestra’s exactingly precise playing makes for a crisp and vibrant rendition, highlighted by the sharp-pointed timpani (well captured by Decca’s engineers).

Expectations run high for any disc of Charles Mackerras conducting Dvořák, and this one doesn't disappoint. He is at the top of his game here, and with an orchestra and soloist to match. No doubt this is among the first of many Mackerras reissues that will be appearing over the coming years. If they are all to this standard, then we are in for a real treat.

Another superb addition to Matthias Bamert's splendid series of recordings with the BBC Philharmonic of the orchestral music of Ernst von Dohnányi, this 2004 disc brings together three concerted works from the composer's early years in Tallahassee, FL. But although they were composed between 1946 and 1952, the Piano Concerto No. 2, the Violin Concerton No. 2, and the Concertino for harp and chamber orchestra all sound as if they could have been written between 1896 and 1914 in Budapest, Hungary: although war and fascism had driven Dohnányi from his place and time, it did not drive from him his place and time. Indeed, the works on this disc are just as tuneful and romantic as Dohnányi's earlier works and anyone who enjoyed them will enjoy these.

With their project ‘The Duplex Coupler Grand Piano’, Florian Uhlig and David Stromberg breathe new life into a forgotten concept. The composer Emánuel Moór, whose works combine wonderful melodies and surprising harmonic twists, developed the ‘Duplex Coupler Piano’ that incorporated a double keyboard. With keys coupled at the octave, this enabled works to achieve special shades of sound. The unique instrument is featured in this recording by David Stromberg and Florian Uhlig of cello sonatas by Moór, Dohnányi and Richard Strauss.

So what if Liszt spent most of his life in France and Germany and never learned to speak Hungarian? The music of the Magyars' fiery favorite son played by a hot-blooded local boy is an irresistible combination. Even the delightful Dohnanyi filler (variations on ''Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star'') doesn't really douse the flames. Put it in the CD player and let 'er rip! Just be sure to remove all flammable vestments first. (Entertainment Weekly)

Dohnányi’s Ruralia hungarica celebrates his homeland’s folk music with authentic melodies, collected by Bartók and Kodály, all presented in glowing, vibrant orchestral dress. The opening movement introduces a pastoral atmosphere with important material for oboe and strings and then comes a song for clarinet about a weeping willow. The music is warm and sunny, sentimental but with a dramatically tense climax. The second movement is a racy, thrusting rondo with a touch of the oriental. The third movement is gentler, calmer and wistful and innocent. The fourth movement is full of emotion, quite raw at times when it touches on the depravity of a girl who is banished from her home. Finally the Fifth movement rushes headlong to a tempestuous conclusion.

Symphony No. 1 in D minor for Large Orchestra and American Rhapsody. Dohnányi’s First Symphony was written just three years or so after the First Piano Concerto and here we are beginning to be aware of a more individual style developing. He scores the orchestra adroitly. Unlike the First Piano Concerto it is less derivative; although, like that work, it is portentous and intense and is a marathon indulgence, sprawling over almost an hour. It begins in the manner of Bruckner and its opening movement spreads over a glut of moods from no-nonsense harshness and martial heroics through eerie and mysterious stuff to intimate sentimentality visiting folk material on the way and indulging in fist-shaking bombast towards its end.

In this series featuring ‘The Romantic Piano Concerto’, Dohnányi’s two works in this form are fitting examples of the genre because he was throughout his life a romantic both at heart and in his musical language. Although he died as late as 1960 he had little to do with the musical developments of the twentieth century. The two Concertos on this recording evoke a world which belongs to the nineteenth century. Dohnányi continued to compose in a style deeply rooted in the Austro-German classical tradition exemplified by Brahms. His merit as a composer is that he was able to prolong meaningfully the classico/romantic past, of which he was one of the last practitioners, well into this century, both in his chamber and orchestral music. This he did with elegance, wit, and stylish virtuosity. The two Piano Concertos are fine examples of his fluent mastery of form and instrumentation.