Recently Published Chamber Music

WOLDEMAR BARGIEL (1828-1897) was the half brother to Clara Schumann and the brother in law of Robert Schumann, both of whom encouraged him to study at the Leipzig Conservatory which had just been founded by Mendelssohn. His teachers there were all Mendelssohn and Schumann acolytes and it is hardly a surprise that his music shows the influence of those famous composers. His STRING QUARTET NO.2 IN D MINOR, is an early work completed shortly after he graduated from the Conservatory. It is an appealing work which is fun to play and which presents no technical difficulties. This is no mere imitation of Schumann or Mendelssohn	In the brief 29 years which were given to him to live, ALEXANDER FESCA (1820-1849) did not waste any time. Before the poor fellow passed away from tuberculosis, he composed six piano trios, two piano quartets, a piano sextet, two piano septets and two string quartets. His piano trios in particular were tremendously popular, often appearing on concert programs and sought after by members of the home music making public. His PIANO TRIO NO.1 IN B FLAT MAJOR was just such a work, often heard not only in the concert halls of Europe but also in the homes of amateurs. Filled with appealing melodies and good part-writing, this work deserves to be revived and heard on the concert stage. And it is well withing the abilities of amateur trio groups and as such can be recommended to them as well.
Diplomat, composer, festival founder, and artistic director or music venues, BOLKO VON HOCHBERG (1843-1926) was all of these things and this in part, along with the fact that he was a member of an old German noble family, led to his works not being taken as seriously as they should have been. However, professional musicians like Richard Strauss thought highly of his them. His PIANO QUARTET IN B FLAT MINOR like so many other fine piano quartets, has been ignored as nowadays only the works by the very famous get programed due to the concerns box office managers. Audiences will appreciate a fresh sounding work like this which can also be recommended to amateurs.	Virtually all of the chamber music that RICHARD STRAUSS (1864-1949) composed was written before 1900 with the exception of his STRING SEXTET FROM THE OPERA CAPRICCIO which initially was not intended to be a stand alone piece of chamber music but only as an introduction to the first scene of his opera Capriccio. However, soon after finishing the opera in 1942, Strauss changed his mind and permitted the work to published as a stand alone piece of chamber music. It is a work full of charm and elegance and one which can certainly serve for a shorter entee in a sextet concert. It is also well within the range of experienced chamber music amateurs.
While he was alive and throughout the first half of the 19th century, the name of FRANZ KROMMER (1759-1831) was routinely mentioned in the same breadth with those of Haydn and Mozart. Krommer's quartets were immensely popular throughout Europe and even reached the United States. They could regularly be found on concert programs alongside of the quartets of Mozart and Haydn. His STRING QUARTET IN B FLAT MAJOR was a typical example of a work which would appear on those programs but would also have been popular among Vienna's home music making amateur ensembles.	AUGUSTE DE SAYVE (1790-1854) was a true "Renaissance Man".A member of the French nobility, he was not only a composer and excellent pianist, he was a famous author of travel books, an important painter whose works are in museums and lastly an officer in the Napoleonic Army who served in several campaigns, including the 1812 Battle of Borodino in Russia. His QUINTET IN E FLAT MAJOR FOR PIANO AND WINDS was dedicated to his teacher, the famous pianist and composer. Johann Nepomuk Hummel. A worthy piece for the concert which can be recommended to amateurs if they have a technically assured pianist.
It is hard to believe when you hear the NONET IN F MINOR FOR WINDS, STRINGS AND PIANO that was composed by an 18 year old boy who was a student at the Royal College of Music in London. But, in fact, that was the case when SAMUEL COLERAGE-TAYLOR (1875-1912) finished putting pen to paper in 1894. The manuscript to this fine work lay moldering in the library of the RCM until it was finally discovered more than 100 years after it was composed. We are pleased to present an affordable edition of this outstanding work which shows the influence of Dvorak and Brahms. Virtually one of a kind, it is sure to be a success in concert and can also be recommended to amateurs.	To say that JOHANN BAPTIST VANHAL (1739-1813) was on friendly terms with most of the prominent composers then active in Vienna during the classical era would be no exaggeration. Reports survive of him playing the cello in a quartet with Dittersdorf on first violin, Haydn on second violin and Mozart on Viola. Mozart was impressed enough by Vanhal's music to perform several of his violin concertos and conduct his symphones. For the last half of his life, Vanhal had no patron or steady salary and made his living writing for the emerging home music making market. His TRIO FOR CLARINET, VIOLIN AND CELLO IN B FLAT MAJOR is an excellent example of the type of work he produced for this market. Well-crafted and fun to play, it enjoyed considerable popularity and as such received several reprint editions. This is a fine choice for amateur ensembles or student groups looking to present a professional sounding work for recital.
Only now, nearly a century and a half after her death is the Mexican composer GUADALUPE OLMEDO (1853-1889) and her music receiving some of the recognition which they deserve. One such piece is her QUARTETTO STUDIO CLASSICO, a work for string quartet dating from the mid 1870s and for which she was awarded the silver medal for compositional excellence from the Mexican Philharmonic Society. This was the first string quartet ever written by a Mexican composer and it certainly did not deserve to disappear unpublished for nearly 150 years. Although historically important, this beautiful work can stand on its own merits. Good for concert and home music makers.	It is fair to say that JOHANN PIXIS (1788-1874) was a complete musician. He was a virtuoso pianist whom Parisian critics considered the equal of Liszt and Chopin. He was a touring soloist and he often toured as a member of various piano trios, first with his father and brother and then later with the Bohrer Brothers Anton and Max, Anton a virtuoso violinist and Max a virtuoso cellist. Pixis was also an important composer whose works were not only praised by critics but also were favorites with audiences. In Paris, when Lizst gave piano trio concerts with a trios by Beethoven and Pixis, the critics as well as the audience preferred the trios of Pixis. He wrote a great deal of chamber music and the Trio Concertant No.1 was a work he often took on tour with the Bohrer brothers.