Ernst Ranglin

Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst (1812-65) was one of the leading musicians of his day, a friend of Berlioz, Chopin, Liszt and Mendelssohn, and for Joseph Joachim 'the greatest violinist I ever heard'. But the popular encore pieces by which Ernst is remembered today represent only a fraction of his output. This third CD — in a series of seven presenting all his compositions for the first time — shows the full range of his creativity and charm. The Élégie sur la mort d'un objet chéri is written in his most moving and melancholy vein, and the Airs hongrois variés push the virtuoso violin to its absolute limits. Between these extremes lie the lyricism of the Pensées fugitives, the inventiveness of his treatment of two Halévy operas and the high spirits of his fantasy on a Strauss waltz.

By all accounts, Ernst Eichner was a distinguished if somewhat disreputable musician in his day. His life and catalogue of employers is given in some detail in Johannes Sturm’s booklet notes for this release. A possible indicator of this renown is the appropriation of the two Harp Concerti Op. 5 as being by Ernst by Amsterdam publisher Johann Julius Hummel, when in fact they are by the ‘otherwise unknown’ Jean Théophile Eichner. This may or may not have been the result of inefficient confusion rather than intentional forgery, but in any case Ernst was the default Eichner as far as the publisher of these works was concerned, and publishers are keen to turn a profit if nothing else.

Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst was nothing more than a stupendously talented violinist and a staggeringly inventive transcriber of other composers' music. And as this 2008 Hyperion recording by violinist Ilya Gringolts shows, that is more than enough to sustain his career during his lifetime and just enough to maintain his reputation after his death.