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Tuesday, March 17, 2020

Paul Hindemith - Sonatas (Various Artists)


Information

Composer: Paul Hindemith
  • (01) Sonata for Althorn and Piano
  • (05) Sonata for Violoncello and Piano
  • (08) Sonata for Trombone and Piano
  • (12) Sonata for Violin and Piano
  • (14) Sonata for Trumpet and Piano

Teunis van der Zwart, althorn
Alexander Rudin, cello
Gérard Costes, trombone
Isabelle Faust, violin
Jeroen Berwaerts, trumpet
Alexander Melnikov, piano

Date: 2015
Label: harmonia mundi
http://www.harmoniamundi.com/#!/albums/2069

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Review

If there is a Cinderella among Hindemith’s three dozen(ish) sonatas, it’s not that for double bass, tuba, or even the Canonic Sonatina for two flutes, but the Sonata for althorn (1943). A tenor instrument, known in the US as the alto horn, it is so rare that Hindemith accepted his sonata could be played on the horn or alto saxophone. It is a delightful work for a delightful instrument, beautifully rendered here.
Melnikov’s role parallels that of Glenn Gould but his accounts are less wayward than the Canadian’s, his soloists generally stronger. Indeed, in most of the sonatas, the primary competition comes from one-off recordings (now that Ensemble Villa Musica’s almost-complete sonata set, with pianist Kalle Randalu, is unavailable). On BIS, Roland Pöntinen is accompanist for three rival accounts. In the 1935 Violin Sonata, Wallin may now have been overtaken by Zimmermann, Becker-Bender and now Isabelle Faust but choice will depend primarily on couplings since the margins between these contenders is so fine.

So, too, with the others, though Wendy Warner remains peerless in the Cello Sonata despite a fine challenger here from Rudin. I would not want to be without Lindberg’s Trombone Sonata, though BIS’s sound is a tad over-resonant. Costes’s superb interpretation is the finest since Antonsen’s, accompanied by Sawallisch (EMI – sadly nla), and certainly a match for Laubin’s. I prefer Costes to Tine Thing Helseth’s driven account with Kathryn Stott, in a comparatively fierce recording. In short then, this is a magnificent disc, with leading or contending versions of all the works in terrific, beautifully balanced Harmonia Mundi sound. Let’s hope Melnikov & Co return to record some more.

-- Guy Rickards, Gramophone

More reviews:
BBC Music Magazine  PERFORMANCE: ***** / RECORDING: *****
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2015/Mar/Hindemith_sonatas_HMC905271.htm
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/jan/22/hindemith-sonatas-for-melnikov-review
https://www.allmusic.com/album/hindemith-sonatas-for-mw0002800354
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hindemith-Sonatas-Isabelle-Faust/dp/B00OJE87D0

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Paul Hindemith (16 November 1895 – 28 December 1963) was a German composer, violist, violinist, teacher and conductor. Hindemith is among the most significant German composers of his time. His early works are in a late romantic idiom, and he later produced expressionist works, before developing his neoclassical style in the 1920s. Notable compositions include his song cycle Das Marienleben (1923) and opera Mathis der Maler (1938). Hindemith's most popular work, both on record and in the concert hall, is probably the Symphonic Metamorphosis of Themes by Carl Maria von Weber, written in 1943.

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Alexander Melnikov (born 1973) is a Russian pianist. He graduated from the Moscow Conservatory under Lev Naumov. Melnikov developed an interest in historically-informed performance practice at an early age, and performs regularly with period ensembles. As a soloist, Melnikov has performed with orchestras such as the Royal Concertgebouw, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, and the Philadelphia Orchestra. Melnikov's discography on Harmonia Mundi features works by Weber, Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Brahms, Dvorak, Rachmaninov, Hindemith, Scriabin, Prokofiev and Shostakovich.

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