Presents
Donald Tovey
Piano Quintet in C Major, Op.6
Donald Tovey (1875-1940) was born in the English town of Eton. He studied piano privately and subsequently attended Oxford and the Royal Academy of Music in London where he studied composition with Hubert Parry. He enjoyed a career as a concert performer as well as a composer and served as a Professor of Music for more than 25 years at Edinburgh University. Today he is best remembered for his essays on music, but he regarded himself first and foremost as a composer. Tovey wrote in most genres and his compositions were not only respected but regularly performed in such important venues as London, Vienna and Berlin. But like the works of so many others, it has inexplicably disappeared from the concert stage. He wrote several chamber music works, most dating from the last decade of the 19th century up to the First World War.
Tovey’s Piano Quintet in C Major, Op.6 was composed in 1900 and as such was a relatively early work. Written at a time when he was at his height as a piano soloist, Tovey clearly had himself in mind when composing it. The first movement, Allegro maestoso, has a particularly successful main theme, recalling Brahms. The second subject, somewhat more lyrical is also impressive. The second movement, Allegretto moderato un poco giocoso e teneremente, is a graceful rondo. This is followed by a serious, deeply felt Larghetto appassionato, which makes a strong impression. The finale, Allegro largemente, characterized by its rhythm, takes its time to pick up speed and it is not until the end.
This is one of the most important English late Romantic era piano quintets which certainly deserves its place on the concert stage.
Parts: $44.95
