Romantic Piano Concerto 68

The massive popularity of Grieg’s Piano Concerto contributed significantly to his renown, marking a high point in his early period. This is a truly Romantic concerto with parallels to Schumann in its emphasis on melodic lines. The overture In Autumn has an air of Mendelssohn in its sense of drama combined with a ‘union of merry and serious elements’ that characterise the season. The Two Lyric Pieces and the Old Norwegian Melody with Variations provide an attractive mosaic of Norwegian mood pictures. The Elite Recordings for Vox by legendary producers Marc Aubort and Joanna Nickrenz are considered by audiophiles to be amongst the finest sounding examples of orchestral recordings.

Jean-Jacques Kantorow follows his critically acclaimed recording of music by Édouard Lalo with a second disc featuring two further works that were originally intended for Sarasate, the brief Fantaisie-ballet on themes from Lalo’s ballet Namouna, and the large-scale Concerto russe. The Concerto russe borrows themes from two wedding songs included by Rimsky-Korsakov in his collection 100 Russian Folk Songs.

The Naxos coupling of Clara Schumann's Piano Concerto (with Francesco Nicolosi) and Piano Trio was a MusicWeb 'Recording of the Month' review. Now along comes this Tudor offering, providing strong competition and there’s an extra work thrown in. Veronica Jochum - yes, his daughter - is a more than able pianist. She has the advantage of a well-respected orchestra behind her which brings drama and a brisk approach to the opening. The recording has a fine depth but someone was perhaps a little too lavish with the reverb, I would suggest.

Hubay’s 3rd concerto mirrors the format of the piano concertos of Liszt (with whom he studied composition) in that it is performed without a break between the movements. The 4th concerto adheres to a more traditional baroque format regarding structure, melody and harmony, hence it’s title. The third work on the disc comprises a theme and twelve variations. All three works are virtuosic display pieces comparable to the concertos of Wieniawski and Vieuxtemps, and call for much pyrotechnics from the soloist.

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.