Molter Europa Symphony

Music of the period between the High Baroque of Bach and Vivaldi and the High Classical music of Haydn and Mozart has lately been the focus of energetic exploration by historical-instrument ensembles. Italy was in the stylistic forefront of what became the symphony, but experiments in putting together what we know as the exquisitely balanced forms of the late eighteenth century occurred in various parts of Europe. This disc offers a fair sampling of the music of Johann Melchior Molter, a composer active in the German cities of Eisenach and Karlsruhe. There are two pieces titled "Ouverture," essentially French dance suites that are starting to show the influence of the symphony and replace some of the dances with Classical-sounding fast movements.

The Finnish clarinettist Kari Kriikku is best known for his performances of contemporary works, many of them composed specifically to exploit his phenomenal virtuosity; his recording of Magnus Lindberg's Clarinet Concerto was one of the finest of the last year. But as this disc of Mozart and Molter with the Tapiola Sinfonietta shows, Kriikku is an equally impressive interpreter of the mainstream clarinet repertory. Like a number of soloists these days, he opts for a basset clarinet in his wonderfully fluid and constantly alert performance of the Mozart concerto, taking advantage of that instrument's extended lower register to restore the original shape of some of the solo lines. But there is not much he can do enliven the three routine concertos, by Johann Melchior Molter, which will be welcomed by clarinettists more than anyone else. The music leaves little impression, though Kriikku's performances on the high clarinet in D are technically impeccable.

Mozart?s concerto actually began life as a concerto for basset horn (not basset clarinet) and was written in the key of G. The manuscript ended abruptly after the 191st measure of the first movement. Mozart rethought his plan, decided to recast the concerto in A, and overhauled the solo part for basset clarinet, an instrument developed by his friend Anton Stadler The version that entered the repertoire after Mozart?s death was an adaptation of the original.

Johann Melchior Molter - Ensemble Trazom - Chamber Music & Solo Cantatas
300th Anniversary of Molter's Birth - World Premiere Recording
EAC+LOG+CUE | FLAC: 323 MB | Full Artwork: 52 MB | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: Arte Nova # 74321 40742 2 | Country/Year: Germany 1996
Genre: Classical | Style: Baoque, Chamber Music

"Johann Melchior Molter was a German baroque composer and violinist. (…) Molter's surviving works include an oratorio; several cantatas; over 140 symphonies, overtures, and other works for orchestra; many concertos, including some of the first clarinet concertos ever written; and many pieces of chamber music. One of Molter's many Trumpet Concertos is the signature piece of C-SPAN's Washington Journal."

Leave it to Fabio Biondi to take a relatively "new" work of Antonio Vivaldi never before recorded and build something exciting and thoroughly relevant around it. Virgin Classics' Improvisata: Sinfonie con titoli features Vivaldi's plucky Sinfonia Improvisata, RV 802, a fragmentary work that was discovered only in 1999; this appears to be its first recording. As it lasts only three-and-a-half minutes, one could fill it out with other Vivaldi sinfonias and therefore duplicate dozens of other recordings. Instead, Biondi has taken account of the turbulent and highly pictorial character of the short Vivaldi work and has located a selection of similar pieces that complement it well. Most extraordinary among them is the sinfonia La tempesta di mare by mega-obscure Italian Carlo Monza and a cheerful, vibrant symphony by Giuseppe Demachi, La campane di Roma – decorative, highly programmatic pieces from the eighteenth century that have never seen the light of day.

Johann Melchior Molter (1696-1765) - Orchestral & Chamber Music
Nova Stravaganza / Siegbert Rampe
EAC+LOG+CUE | FLAC: 322 MB | Full Artwork | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: MDG "Gold" # 341 1279-2 | Country/Year: Germany 2004
Genre: Classical | Style: Baroque

Johann Melchior Molter was a German baroque composer and violinist. (…) Molter's surviving works include an oratorio; several cantatas; over 140 symphonies, overtures, and other works for orchestra; many concertos, including some of the first clarinet concertos ever written; and many pieces of chamber music.