Haydn Floreligum

With 19 symphonies spread across six CDs, this major reissue set of Trevor Pinnock's performances (with The English Concert) of a substantial selection of Haydn's "Sturm und Drang" symphonies is outstanding in every regard. Derived from the German literary movement that affirmed that emotionalism and dark-hued urgency powerfully reflected the human condition, "Sturm und Drang" (literally "Storm and Stress") exerted a profound impact upon the evolution of the Classical symphony, especially in Haydn's hands. No one with an interest in either the period or the composer can possibly afford to be without this set. The performances are simply magnificent! Pinnock's periodist band sounds brilliantly accomplished throughout, and the recorded sound is clear, impactful, and detailed.

It's not as if recordings of the 62 Piano Sonatas of Franz Josef Haydn are thick on the ground. Among the relative big names, there's Jeno Jando on Naxos and John McCabe on Decca. Among the less well-known names, there's Walid Akl on Koch Discover, Roland Batik on Camerata, Ronald Brautigam on BIS, Walter Olbertz on Berlin Classics, and Christine Schornsheim on Capriccio. And for those listeners with record players and aging memories, there's also the venerable Hungaroton cycle, the first complete recorded cycle, that coupled relatively well-known Hungarians like Zoltán Kocsis and Dezsö Ránki with nearly unknown Hungarians like János Sebestyén and the inimitable Zsuzsa Pertis.

The London symphonies, sometimes called the Salomon symphonies after the man who introduced London to Joseph Haydn, were composed by Joseph Haydn between 1791 and 1795. They can be categorized into two groups: Symphonies Nos. 93–98, which were composed during Haydn's first visit to London, and Symphonies Nos. 99–104, composed in Vienna and London for Haydn's second visit.
Every London Symphony, apart from one (No. 95), has a slow introduction to the first movement.

Haydn’s Seven Last Words—heard here in the composer’s own arrangement for string quartet—is simply sublime, and a fitting testimonial to the composer’s deep, enduring faith. It provides an apt and generous coupling for the two magnificent Op 77 quartets, Haydn’s final complete contribution to the string quartet genre.

The crowning glory of this collection rests in Frans Brüggen’s marvelous set of the 12 “London” Symphonies. These, along with some of the lesser-known late works, such as Symphonies Nos. 86 and 90 (with its thrilling horn writing), alone justify purchase of this inexpensive 13-disc collection–but really it’s all pretty fine. One of the more anachronistic aspects of the “authentic-instrument” movement has been that works written to be performed without conductor at all (or in collaboration between concertmaster and players) receive the loving ministrations of “specialists” such as Brüggen (and Harnoncourt, for example) whose inclinations in terms of tempo manipulation and expressive phrasing could make a Stokowski blush. And so we find a finale of Symphony No. 88 that’s even slower than Karl Böhm’s, and when you come right down to it, it’s none the worse for the experience: it makes up in charm what it lacks in sheer energy.

Thomas Quasthoff’s great artistry needs no introduction. Here he follows up his much-raised Bach Cantatas recording with another project perfectly suited to his dark-hued, flexible voice. In anticipation of the forthcoming Haydn year – the 200th anniversary of the composer’s death falls in May 2009 – Quasthoff turns his attention to the Viennese master’s considerable operatic output, with an album of arias drawn from both Haydn’s comic and serious operas.

Throughout this Warner Classics six disc set one remains impressed with Harnoncourt’s tightly controlled direction of his magnificent forces, employing tempi that always feel appropriate. The sound quality is of a high standard as is the interesting and informative annotation. A valuable set of Haydn sacred music that is perfect for dipping in and out.

Haydn wrote the six quartets of Opp 54 and 55 in 1788, by now a celebrated composer across Europe and still opera Kapellmeister at Esterházy. These period instrument players, whose very name declares their affinity for Haydn, excel in the latest in their Hyperion series. Ever spry in fast movements, faultless in dexterity and intonation, they find a special warmth of feeling in the slower moments: the songful Adagio Cantabile of Op 55 No 1, the puzzling, melancholy Andante of Op 55 No 2, the dark, hymn-like first bars of Op 54 No 2’s Adagio, out of which the violin soars in almost improvised, bluesy reverie. Too many pleasures to enumerate. Try for yourself.

Recorded in Budapest between 1993 and 2006, this complete set of the Haydn String Quartets performed by the Festetics Quartet represents the most challenging project accomplished by Michel Bernstein, the mythical founder of Arcana who died a few months after the recording of the very last volume. For the first time in a boxed set, this monumental achievement is the first and only complete on period instruments and features the complete 58 string quartets authenticated by the composer for the great Artaria edition, making a total of 19 CDs put in chronological order. A reference edition, enriched by the detailed essay signed by the Hungarian musicologist László Somfai, one of the most eminent Haydn scholars. The Festetics have extensively studied Haydn’s original quartet manuscripts, and have relied heavily on László Somfai.