Erich Wolfgang Korngold - Piano Quintet; String Sextet (Doric String Quartet)

Information

Composer: Erich Wolfgang Korngold

1. Piano Quintet in E major, Op. 15: I. Mäßiges Zeitmaß, mit schwungvoll blühendem Ausdruck
2. Piano Quintet in E major, Op. 15: II. Adagio (Freie Variationen über die Lieder des Abschieds, Op.14)
3. Piano Quintet in E major, Op. 15: III. Finale. Gemessen beinahe pathetisch - Allegro giocoso
4. String Sextet in D major, Op. 10: I. Moderato - Allegro
5. String Sextet in D major, Op. 10: II. Adagio. Langsam
6. String Sextet in D major, Op. 10: III. Intermezzo. In gemäßigtem Zeitmaß, mit Grazie
7. String Sextet in D major, Op. 10: IV. Finale. So rasch als möglich (Presto). Mit Feuer und Humor

Doric String Quartet
Alex Redington, violin
Jonathan Stone, violin
Simon Tandree, viola
John Myerscough, cello
&
Kathryn Stott, piano (1-3)
Jennifer Stumm, viola (4-7)
Bartholomew LaFollette, cello (4-7)

Date: 2012
Label: Chandos
https://www.chandos.net/products/catalogue/CHAN%2010707

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Review

What a delightful surprise this disc is! Korngold, best known for his opera Die Tote Stadt and several scores for American movies, here presents himself as a composer of chamber music, and it is without question the most exceptional music I’ve heard from this composer. The first movement of the quintet, with its unusual harmonic changes and postromantic melodic line, reminds me very much of Strauss, while the second movement is wholly unique, floating through harmonies that even Strauss didn’t use (at least not in this rapid succession or with such audacity). I see where the Adagio uses a theme from one of the composer’s Abschiedslieder of 1915–20, “Mond, so gehst du wieder auf,” but I am not familiar with that song, recorded by Anne Sofie von Otter on DG 459631 (along with a performance of this quintet). One critic found the quintet too long-winded, but I disagree. At least in this performance, it is an absolutely delightful musical journey, even the almost eight-minute finale.

On the other hand, I have some issues with the earlier String Sextet of 1914–16. The first movement is fascinating, especially at the beginning when the first violin takes off with the theme, supported by the other strings in a way that almost sounds like a chamber concerto. Again, there are a number of unusual key changes before yet another theme is played by the solo violin. This is followed by a fugue, based on the opening triplet of the movement, before the recap and finale. The Adagio is also quite interesting, with more shifting harmonies and a strongly sensuous mood. (The liner notes suggest that Schoenberg’s Verklärte Nacht influenced this movement.) Musical themes overlap each other, including one by the viola taken from yet another song by Korngold, “Nachts.” My problem is with the third movement, which is sugary in the style of much of Die Tote Stadt or some of the more self-indulgent themes from Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier. Annotator Troy Dixon feels that it brings “much-needed relief to the highly charged atmosphere that was established by the preceding Adagio, ” but I find it out of place musically, like dropping a Léhar or Leo Fall operetta melody into a serious chamber work. In the finale, however, Korngold returns to his better form, despite the introduction of a very sentimental theme in the middle of the movement. Here, Korngold is both creative and cheerful.

This is at least as fine a performance of the quintet as the one by violist Henri Sigfridsson with the Aron String Quartet on CPO 777436-2. The Doric Quartet plays with exceptional energy as well as the proper musical style, and Chandos’s sonics capture it all splendidly.

-- Lynn René Bayley, FANFARE

More reviews:
http://www.gramophone.co.uk/review/korngold-quintet-op-15-sextet-op-10
http://www.classical-music.com/review/korngold-piano-quintet
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2012/Mar12/Korngold_quintet_CHAN10707.htm
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2012/May12/Korngold_quintet_CHAN10707.htm
http://www.thestrad.com/cpt-reviews/korngold-string-sextet-in-d-major-op-10-piano-quintet-in-e-major-op-15%E2%80%A0/
http://www.theguardian.com/music/2012/feb/26/korngold-string-sextet-doric-review
http://audaud.com/2012/03/korngold-piano-quintet-in-e-major-sextet-jennifer-stumm-viola-bartholomew-la-follette-cello-kathryn-stott-p-doric-string-q-chandos/
http://www.allmusic.com/album/erich-wolfgang-korngold-string-sextet-piano-quintet-mw0002290824

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Erich Wolfgang Korngold (May 29, 1897 – November 29, 1957) was an Austrian-born composer and conductor. He was a noted pianist and composer of classical music, along with music for Hollywood films, and the first composer of international stature to write Hollywood scores. Along with such composers as Max Steiner and Alfred Newman, he is considered one of the founders of film music. Korngold's serious music, with his late romantic style, has recently undergone a re-evaluation and a gradual reawakening of interest.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_Wolfgang_Korngold

***

The Doric String Quartet was formed in 1998 at Pro Corda, The National School for Young Chamber Music Players. Described by Gramophone as 'one of the finest young string quartets', the Doric String Quartet has emerged as the leading British string quartet amongst the new generation. Its member are: Alex Redington & Jonathan Stone (violins), Simon Tandree (viola - replaced by Hélène Clément in 2013) and John Myerscough, cello.
http://www.doricstringquartet.com

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

FLAC, tracks

Links in comment

Enjoy!