Records
Off the beaten track
Peter Phillips
Czerny and Field: piano concertos (Felicja Blumental; Vienna Chamber Orchestra) Mozart: Serenade for 13 Wind Instruments (Nikolaus Harnoncourt; Wiener Mozart- Fats Waller: Rare Piano Boogies ("Ine always likes to savour the possibil- ity of unknown music by a great composer, especially if there is a complete repertoire in question. What are Schubert's operas like, for instance? Or Vivaldi's? Thanks to Philippe Entremont and the Wiener Kammerorchester (Tele- funken 6.35604) we can bring some focus to bear on the existence of Haydn's piano concertos, which so far in my experience have remained a phantasmagorical spe- culation, somewhere beyond the realms of the accredited classical order. In text- books they are mentioned, along with his operas, to prove that unlike Mozart he had no dramatic flair.
On the evidence of this boxed set there are 12 piano concertos by Haydn. To name the majority of them 'Klavierkonzert' is certainly misleading to those who would judge them by any normal criteria, and I should be interested to know who first applied this term to them — I suspect not Haydn. Not many followers of these things expect a concerto to have two movements and last, in total, two minutes and a half; and some of the others are not very much longer. However, the compilers of this set are not trying to deceive us. The writer (unnamed) of the sleeve-note frankly speaks of movements 'having been written according to a text-book on sonata form' and 'this rather superficial Divertimento'; which I find refreshing. It encourages me to believe the bits about the 'remarkable D-major concerto' — quite rightly: it's a splendid piece. In all there are three full-length concertos, in D, G and F, of which only the F-major is an early work. They sound quite different from Mozart: lessmelody, less figuration from the soloist, less gracefulness. Instead the argu- ment between piano and orchestra is a much tougher one: powerful octaves in the piano part, closely worked counterpoint in the orchestra. Lovers of Mozart's lightness of touch will not find this sort of thing immediately agreeable, but it is a strong way of interpreting the form.
Apparently Haydn was not bothered whether his concertos were played on harpsichord, organ or fortepiano. They are recorded here on a modern concert grand, with the treble register slightly exaggerated to give an increased brightness. Philippe Entremont has a habit of starting off just a shade quicker than the orchestra have been playing, as if he were dropping a witty aside into a conversation, which does not suit the more substantial pieces. They should not be under-played. This vein of beguiling honesty in programme-note writ- ing is extended to another record of piano concertos from around the year 1800, by Czerny and Field, played by Felicja Blumental and the Vienna Chamber Orchestra (Vox Turnabout 334389). We are told, by Dr William Ober, that Czer- ny's 'music does not display great powers of invention, nor does he explore depths of musical passion'. How right he is; but one feels there should be some limit to this kind of deprecation. Field's Third Concerto in E flat is an interesting addition to the cata- logue. John Field was the Irishman who wrote nocturnes before and rather like Chopin. His concertos are more individual: this one is in two movements, here lasting half an hour, and following strict classical procedures. The music unfolds at a very leisurely pace indeed, which gives time for some lovely details to come out, much in the manner of his compatriots telling a story. The classicism does not really suit him, but there is character despite that. It seems a loss that there is no slow move- ment.
Both these unusual recordings are made available by Conifer Records, who specialise in foreign imports. They have the sole rights in this country on Teldec (sometimes Tele- funken), Erato and German Harmonia Mundi, as well as a fair catalogue of foreign EMI material not marketed here by EMI themselves. Their list tends not to fall into neat categories, since they rely on other people's productions, but it is adven- turous. The connection with Teldec seems especially fruitful; and it does no harm to know that the record-pressings from that company will be of good quality, since they own the record-manufacturing plant which has effectively put paid to their rivals in England and France. From them comes a new record of Mozart's Serenade for 13 Wind Instruments, the so-called Gran Par- tita, played by the Wiener Mozart-Blaser conducted by Nikolaus Harnoncourt (Tel- dec 6.42981). Untypically for him Harnon- court has formed this band, to all appear- ances just to play this piece, from the best players he could find without exception, rather than keeping to authentic instru- ments. This will not please the purists, since Harnoncourt has been a demi-god of authenticity for some 20 years now. However this version is first-rate; if the innate sonority of the writing is exagger-
aced by these instruments, especially by the horns and bassoons, that suits it very well. There is an enviable tradition of wood- wind playing in and around Vienna.
Another side of Conifer's activities is to market what are called 'nostalgia records'. The best of these are rare issues of big names like Presley, Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington, Frank Sinatra, Glenn Miller, Fats Waller. These are preserved in original-style packaging, and, in the case of the Presley re-issues, on the unmistakably original 10-inch discs and in mono. I haven't seen the three Presley records so far available - 'Loving You', 'Good Rock- ing Tonight' and 'The Best of Elvis' - but I intend to. The Fats Waller is a collection of 'Rare Piano Boogies', transcribed from piano rolls made in Waller's youth between 1923 and 1927. Listening straight through the set of 12 pieces makes them all seem similar; but individually they are delicious. The record comes from EMI France (PM 164 8671) with a sleeve-note in French and a not entirely happy pastel drawing of Waller; I only mention this because the packaging seems to matter so much to everybody.
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