Jiri Beñohlavek Suk

Both the 'AsraelSymphony' and 'Fairy Tale', considered by many the summit of Suk's achievements, are new additions to the Decca and Universal catalogues. 145 years after Suk's birth, JiříBělohlávekand the Czech Philharmonic present informed performances of two of the composer's most notable works. The 'AsraelSymphony' was composed in memory of Antonín Dvořákand his daughter, Otilie, to whom Suk was married. This release continues the series of JiříBělohlávek'slast recordings of Czech masterworks for Decca Classics before he sadly passed away in 2017. "Splendid recordings do justice to a Czech Philharmonic in fine form, producing a fitting memorial to the remarkable life of Bělohlávek." -Praise for JANÁČEK: GLAGOLITIC MASS / Limelight Magazine

Josef Suk - A Summer's Tale / Prague
BBC Symphony Orchestra - Jiri Belohlavek
SACD ISO (2.0/MCH): 3,83 GB | 24B/88,2kHz Stereo FLAC: 1,23 GB | Full Artwork: 106 MB
Label/Cat#: Chandos # CHSA 5109 | Country/Year: UK 2012 | 5% Recovery Info
Genre: Classical | Style: Late Romantic, Early 20th Century

"…This new Belohlavek version gives us the best of both worlds by combining nobility of utterance and a passionate advocacy of this stirring music in glorious 5.0 multi-channel sound.
The committed playing of the BBC Symphony Orchestra in both works exemplifies their respect both for Belohlavek as arguably the finest interpreter of Czech music alive today and their enthusiasm for the composer's regrettably still neglected output. This SACD is a mandatory purchase for lovers of Suk's opulent scores and audiophiles alike." ~sa-cd.net

Josef Suk - A Summer's Tale / Prague
BBC Symphony Orchestra - Jiri Belohlavek
EAC+LOG+CUE | FLAC: 325 MB | Full Artwork: 111 MB | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: Chandos # CHSA 5109 | Country/Year: UK 2012
Genre: Classical | Style: Late Romantic, Early 20th Century

"…The committed playing of the BBC Symphony Orchestra in both works exemplifies their respect both for Belohlavek as arguably the finest interpreter of Czech music alive today and their enthusiasm for the composer's regrettably still neglected output. This SACD is a mandatory purchase for lovers of Suk's opulent scores and audiophiles alike." ~sa-cd.net

The Benda family has occupied an important and continuing place in music in Germany for some 250 years. The founder of the musical dynasty, Jan Jiří Benda, was born in 1686 in a village in Bohemia and combined the trades of weaver and musician. He married Dorota Brixi, a member of the Skalsko branch of a distinguished family of Czech musicians, and five of their six children became musicians, working in Germany. There the eldest son of the family, František, composer of some eighty violin sonatas and fifteen concertos, entered the service of the Prussian Crown Prince, continuing as Konzertmeister after the latter's accession to the throne as Frederick the Great.

Another in the long line of outstanding Bohemian musical families the Bendas were similarly part of the diaspora that saw them moving across the continent in search of court and church appointments to further their careers. The Catholic Frantisek thus acquired a new religion as well as a new name becoming the Protestant Franz Benda. He served in Vienna, Warsaw and Dresden in a rapid space of time before following the Prussian Crown Prince, now King, to Potsdam where he was to remain for the rest of his life, having finally succeeded the court favourite and violinist-Konzertmeister Carl Gottlieb Graun.

This performance of the fiery Fantasy in G minor for violin and orchestra, Op. 24, of Josef Suk, with violinist Christan Tetzlaff catching the full impact of the irregular form with its dramatic opening giving out into a set of variations, is impressive. And Tetzlaff delivers pure warm melody in the popular Romance in F minor, Op. 11, of Dvorák. But the real reason to acquire this beautifully recorded Ondine release is the performance of the Dvorák Violin Concerto in A minor, Op. 53, a work of which there are plenty of recordings, but that has always played second fiddle (if you will) to the Brahms concerto. Tetzlaff and the Helsinki Philharmonic under John Storgårds create a distinctive and absorbing version that can stand with the great Czech recordings of the work. Sample anywhere, but especially the slow movement, where Tetzlaff's precise yet rich sound, reminiscent for those of a certain age of Henryk Szeryng, forms a striking contrast with Storgårds' glassy Nordic strings. In both outer movements as well, Tetzlaff delivers a warm yet controlled performance that is made to stand out sharply.

One of the benefits wrought by the CD era was the recording of composers and repertoire that the big international labels would never even consider in the LP era. Many small Cd labels did very well with early music, composers of national or regional repertoire and minor composers of all eras some of whom were major composers in their day. This is the case with the three composers on this disc, all of whom had reputations throughout Europe.

'Mr Hadelich increasingly seems to be one of the outstanding violinists of his generation,' wrote the New York Times after Augustin Hadelich played Dvorák’s Violin Concerto under Czech-born Jakub Hrusa’s baton in 2017. Hadelich and Hrusa have now recorded the concerto with the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks .