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Aparté
- 1 CD - AP241 - (p) & (c) 2021
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Franz Joseph Haydn
(1732-1809) |
Symphony
No. 99 in E flat major, Hob. I:99
(1793) |
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25' 30" |
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Adagio - Vivace assai |
8' 31" |
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Adagio |
8' 00" |
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Menuet. Allegretto - Trio |
5' 21" |
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Finale. Vivace |
4' 38" |
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Franz Schubert
(1797-1828) |
Symphony
No. 5 B flat major, D 485 (1816) |
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28' 38" |
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Allegro |
7' 14" |
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Andante con moto |
9' 30" |
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Menuetto. Allegro molto - Trio |
6' 02" |
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CONCENTUS
MUSICUS WIEN
- Erich Höbarth (Konzertmeister),
Julia Rubanova, Christian Eisenberger,
Barbara Klebel-Vock, Karl Höffinger, Peter
Schoberwalter, Annelie Gahl, Elisabeth
Stifter, violin 1
- Andrea Bischof,
Theona-Gubba-Chkheidze, Veronica Kröner,
Florian Schönwiese, Silvia Iberer, Editha
Fetz, violin 2
- Firmian Lermer, Dorle Sommer,
Magdalena Fheodoroff, Barbara Konrad,
Florian Hasenburger, viola
- Rudolf Leopold, Dorothea Schönwiese,
Luis Zorita, Ursina Braun, cello
- Brita Bürgschwendtner, Alexandra Dienz,
Jonas Carlsson, double-bass
- Sieglinde Größinger, Reinhard Czasch, flute
- Andreas Helm, Heri Choi, oboe
- Rupert Frankhauser, Georg Riedl, clarinet
- Alberto Grazzi, Ivan Calestani, bassoon
- Dániel Pálkövi, Edward Deskur, horn
- Andreas Lackner, Manuela Tanzer, trumpet
- Sebastian Pauzenberger, timpani
Stefan Gottfried, direction |
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Enregistré |
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Grande Salle,
Musikverein, Vienna (Austria) -
9-11 ottobre 2020 |
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live / studio |
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live |
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Direction
artitstique |
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Nicolas
Bartholomée |
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Prise de son |
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Nicolas Bartholomée
& Franck Jaffrès
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Montage, mixage,
mastering |
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Franck Jaffrès
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Recording system |
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In
24-bit/96kHz. Microphones DPA 4041
& Schoeps. Recorded and edited
using Merging Technologies
Pyramix. |
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Prima Edizione CD |
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Aparté - AP247
- 1 CD - 55' 00" - (p) & (c)
2021 - DDD
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Note |
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Recorded by Little
Tribeca.
Cover: Detail of the etching Schubert,
sitting underneath a tree,
1997, by Martha Griebler
(1948-2006) by courtesy of the
Estate of Martha Griebler,
represented by Matthias
Griebler.
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Concentus
Musicus Wien continues its
exploration of works of the
Classical and pre-Romantic
periods as envisioned by
Nikolaus Harnoncourt. Stefan
Gottfried conducts Schubert’s
Symphony no. 5, written in
1816 at the age of 19, and the
seventh of Haydn’s 12 London
symphonies, no. 99, written in
1793. The former shows the
melodic inventiveness and
admirable mastery of form of a
young composer, heir to the
giant Haydn. Recorded live at
the famous Musikverein in
Vienna, this concert
immortalises yet again the
skill and the exceptional
sound quality of this renowned
progenitor of historically
informed performance, which
continues to perpetuate the
work of its visionary founder.
····················
The Concentus
Musicus was founded in 1953,
at a time when performance on
period instruments was an
entirely new concept. The
idea, the "spirit" behind
Harnoncourt and the Concentus
I\/lusicus' approach was, and
still is, a constant desire to
find out exactly what the
composer wanted, what sound he
had in his ear when composing,
and what was natural for him
and therefore did not need to
be written down. To this end,
one has to study the
manuscripts carefully, get to
know and understand the sound
and technique of early
instruments, and explore the
original sources on
performance practice. But it
is just as important to forget
all intellectual concerns when
playing, and to create music
out of pure emotion, as if it
were completely new and had
never existed. This
dialectical relationship
between intellect and
emotionality, thinking and
feeling, is needed to do
justice to music and art in
general.
Harnoncourt had also begun to
tackle Franz Schubert's music
with the Concentus Musicus. We
took a further step in this
direction in 2019, with the
recording of Schubert's Unfinished
Symphony, our first by
this composer. This journey,
undertaken with Aparté, was
totally new for us. lt was a
wonderful experience to
capture the magic of
Schubert's music in the unique
acoustics of \/ienna’s Große
Musikvereinsaal. The artistic
and human resonance between
Aparté and the Concentus has
encouraged us to imagine many
joint projects: we naturally
feel a great connection to
Viennese music of the
classical and romantic
periods, but we are still very
much attracted to the Baroque
sound world. This second
recording is therefore another
step on the path we are
following, and we hope that it
reflects the very special
spirit of this orchestra.
Stefan
Gottfried
Interview
by Bertrand Dermoncourt
Franz
Schubert, Symphony no.5
· Joseph Haydn,
Symphony no.99
In an act of homage to
Viennese classicism, the
celebrated ensemble
Concentus Musicus of
Vienna is conducted by
Stefan Gottfried, in a
programme combining the
highly energetic,
colourful Symphony Hob.
I:99 by Joseph Haydn - one
of his 'London Symphonies'
- with the Symphony No. 5
by the young Schubert, a
formally perfect
masterpiece containing a
wealth of melodies, and
overflowing with youthful
vigour.
This unusual coupling -
rather an exception in the
recorded repertoire of
these two composers -
nevertheless has the
advantage of highlighting
certain characteristic
traits of these
symphonies, both in their
similarities and in their
differences. We more often
see Schubert's Fifth
Symphony coupled with
Mozart’s Symphony No. 40,
which it approaches both
in style and in tonality
(Schubert's chosen key of
B flat being the relative
major of the G minor key
of Mozart’s 40th
Symphony), as well as in
aesthetic approach, even
though Mozart's influence
on the young Schubert is
not always obvious (1).
Franz Schubert was still
only nineteen when he
completed the Fifth
Symphony (D.485) in Vienna
in October 1816. lt was
the last of a whole spate
of works composed during
the previous three years
by the prolific teenager.
(2) He was at a turning
point, a halfway milestone
along his symphonic road
between the classical
style and full-blown
romanticism. The imprint
of classicism on
Schubert's writing is
evident here: its
restrained dimensions,
formal simplicity,
adherence to the
accustomed four-movement
structure (including a
minuet), the use of
sophisticated harmonic
progressions, and the
modest orchestral forces
(strings, a flute, two
oboes, two bassoons and
two horns - no clarinets,
trumpets or drums) all
combine to make the work
sound almost like a piece
of chamber music. The
world would have to wait
until 1822 and 1825 for
his major symphonies: No,
7 the 'Unfinished’, and
No. 8, the 'Great' C major
Symphony.
With a vivacity that is
breathtakingly moving, yet
also precise and
perfectly-balanced, the
Allegro first movement in
the classical sonata form
of exposition, development
and recapitulation opens
with a brief three-bar
introduction, then sets
out its two themes: the
first joyful and
confidently combative, the
second more overtly
melodic. Schubert displays
great mastery in the
dialogues he creates
between the timbres of
different instrumental
groups (mainly between
woodwinds and strings).
The second movement, a 6/8
Andante con moto in E flat
major, is tenderly
romantic, with its middle
section's numerous
modulations and
chromaticisms underpinned
by a bass ostinato. As
mentioned earlier, the
Minuet in G minor (with
its Trio in G major) is
particularly akin to the
Mozartian model - it has
the same structure, the
same rhythmic character
even the same harmonic
framework; while the
incredible vitality of the
finale, an Allegro vivace
in sonata form,
impulsively proclaims
Schubert's musical
maturity through its
energy and wide-ranging
palette of sounds: the
manifest talents of a
young composer, though one
who has only twelve years
more to live.
On the death of Nikolaus
l, Prince Esterházy in
1790, Joseph Haydn, who
had been in the service of
this distinguished family
of the Hungarian nobility
as musician and music
director since 1761 - i.e.
for nearly thirty years -
undertook the first major
journey of his life so
far. At the age of
fifty-eight, the composer
travelled to London at the
invitation of the musician
and concert promoter
Johann Peter Salomon, who
had been urging him to
visit for several years.
His first stay in London
in 1791-2 and a second
visit in 1794-5 finally
provided Haydn with the
experience of direct
contact with a public
concert audience. Having
spent so many years at the
Esterházy court, in London
he finally discovered the
outside world, and
experienced a sense of
emancipation. Having been
keenly anticipated, his
arrival caused a
sensation: he was
enthusiastically received,
the press was warm in its
praise for him, and his
works (not only his
symphonies) were widely
performed, enjoying
enormous success. Although
it is one of the twelve
'London symphonies'
performed at his concerts
there (in two groups, Nos.
93-98, and 99-104), the
Symphony No. 99 in E flat
major was actually
composed not in the
English capital, but
between Haydn's two
journeys to England in
1793 in Vienna (or
perhaps, as some
German-language sources
claim, in Eisenstadt), a
period when for six months
he taught counterpoint to
a twenty-two-year-old
musician - a certain
Ludwig van Beethoven.
To inaugurate the second
set of Haydn's London
concerts, this symphony
was first performed at the
Hanover Square Rooms, the
city's main concert hall,
on 10 February 1794. After
a slow introduction, the
generously-proportioned
and expressive first
movement sets out two
contrasting themes that
are developed and then
restated in the apotheosis
of the final section. The
Adagio that follows is one
of the composer's finest
slow movements, toying
playfully with sonorities,
the end of the first
thematic phrase being
echoed by the flutes and
oboes, with a superb
passage for solo winds
(flutes, oboes and
clarinets) and even a
brass fanfare in the final
bars. The various themes
heard in the exposition
are developed with a sense
of high drama, then
restated in a completely
new orchestration. The
exultant, turbulent Minuet
in E flat is set off
against the central Trio
in C major, which hasthe
rather more discreet
elegance of a typical
Viennese waltz. The work
ends with a Vivace in the
sonata rondo form which
Haydn frequently favoured
- this one having a
refrain with three
episodes. (The entire
sketches for this movement
have been found,
containing around thirty
different thematic ideas,
all numbered.) The
movements three verses
correspond to the three
main parts of a sonata
structure; an exposition,
a development of great
contrapuntal density with
a fugato section (another
typical Haydn fingerprint)
and a recapitulation, Here
too, Haydn unfurls
brilliant passages
dominated by the winds,
particularly the
woodwinds, before the
final flourish.
This symphony shows a
certain relationship with
Mozart. Significantly
enough, when Haydn
composed it his friend
Mozart's death was still
quite recent; and although
in many respects the
differences in style of
the two composers are
undeniable, Haydn's 99th
has a remarkably close
proximity to the 'Mozart
sound', beginning with
Haydn's inclusion of the
clarinet. This is the
first of Haydn's
symphonies to use its
bright timbre, and here
the clarinet is heard in
company with the trumpets
and drums that are
themselves sufficiently
rare in Haydn’s symphonies
to be worth noting. These
three instruments are
notably absent from
Schubert's Symphony No. 5,
so with this coupling the
Concentus Musicus Wien is
drawing attention to the
two contrasting choices of
composers breaking with
their usual custom:
Schubert dispensing with
three typical instruments
of the symphonic
orchestral line-up that
Haydn - exceptionally for
him - here decides to use.
(3) On the other hand,
Haydn's opening Adagio
introduction, with its
dramatic ending on the
dominant of C minor
preceded by enharmonically
chromatic modulations, is
a definite reminder of
Mozart's 40th Symphony -
as is the lyric vein
cultivated by Haydn,
particularly in his second
movement. Was this work
then perhaps an elegiac
homage to his lamented
young friend? Yet Mozart
is not the only point of
connection between the
symphonies of Haydn and
those of Schubert.
By the year 1816, Schubert
was already extremely
familiar with this grand
symphonic repertoire: as a
scholarship boy (from 1808
to 1813) of the
prestigious Stadtkonvikt
school in Vienna he had
played in the college
orchestra that regularly
performed the symphonies
of both Mozart and Haydn.
Given that background, the
similarities between the
two works in this
recording emerge more
clearly: the chromaticism
so notably evident in the
slow movements of both
symphonies (also in the
first movement of the
Schubert) and the rich
string textures of both
opening movements are
underpinned in each case
by syncopations in the
internal voices. ln a more
allusive way, the
playfulness of Schubert's
finale recalls the first
movement of the elder
composer's Symphony No.
99, while its freshness
and directness of
expression evokes the
character of Haydn's
sonata rondo finales, such
as that of the 99th.
Conversely, it is tempting
to hear echoes in Haydn of
what is to become a marked
stylistic trait in
Schubert: the brusque
change from major to minor
(or vice versa, the sudden
'dramatic major key' being
almost more tragic than
the minor). ln this light
the central and final
sections ot Haydn's second
movement are particularly
evocative.
Haydn's 99th is considered
one of his most deeply
expressive symphonies:
despite being always
elegant and witty, it has
many dramatic breakthrough
moments which are all the
more poignant because of
their contrast.The
parallels between Haydn
and Schubert manifested by
this recording are a rare
opportunity to highlight
their points of
similarity, less in terms
of a proximity of
technique than in their
undeniably strong
expressive links, and
their shared mode of
feeling.
Gabrielle
Oliveira Guyon
(1) Actually Schubert was
highly influenced by
Mozart's music,
particularly by his 40th
Symphony. There are not
only the obvious
similarities (particularly
in the Minuets of both
symphonies as well as the
first movement’s opening,
its tempo and general
thematic plan), but also
the many influences of
phrase structure,
chromaticism, and melodic
style. These affinities
seem even more real now
than they did in 1816, the
year Schubert composed
this Symphony, writing in
his journal: 'Today will
remain with me for the
rest of my life, a clear,
brilliant, beautiful day.
How sweetly through the
distance of memory sound
the enchanted notes of
Mozart's music! [...]
These exquisite
impressions that neither
time nor circumstance can
erase, remain in our soul
and have a salutary effect
on our very existence.
[...] Mozart, immortal
Mozart, how many, how
infinitely many benign
impressions of a brighter,
better life do you imprint
in our souls!' [* voir
note 1A, du Trad]
(2) From this period we
have Schubert works of
every genre, including
around two hundred Lieder,
two settings of the Stabat
Mater, several piano
sonatas and four Masses.
(3) ln the Haydn period,
the clarinet was not yet a
standard instrument of the
symphony orchestra, and
did not become so until
Beethoven.
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