infotext:
At the Weinberg retrospective of the 2010 Bregenz Festival, the focus was on the staged world premiere of his opera Die Passenger, but the performance of more than twenty other works provided an insight into the incredible richness of the oeuvre of this forgotten composer. Weinberg felt compelled to compose to justify surviving the Holocaust as the only one in his family. The resulting magnificent symphonic and chamber music works are full of melancholy and defiance. Thank you to NEOS for allowing others to be a part of the rediscovery of this inspired and important composer. David Pountney Three palm trees op. 120 for string quartet and soprano (1977) A poem by Mikhail Jurjevic Lermontow (1814–1841) tells of three palm trees in the Arabian desert. Weinberg took this text as the basis for his work of the same name, which is very unusually scored for soprano and string quartet. The mixture of chamber music, song cycle and cantata make up the character of this piece, conceived in 1977. Stylistically, the 20-minute composition is extremely expressive, and many lyrical passages are also incorporated. Arnold Schönberg's Second String Quartet op. 10 from 1908, in which a soprano voice is also added to the quartet sound, certainly served as a model. Schönberg's work also deals with a very private experience. This reference also seems to have been important to Weinberg in the Three Palms. In Lermontov's text, the three palms complain to God about their uselessness. The answer has Old Testament vehemence: a group of Bedouins come and use the trees for their campfire. In dying the trees get their meaning. Herein lies the symbolic message of the piece. Weinberg traces feelings of loneliness, later anger and despair as if with a silver pen. Chromatic turns – which reflect the topos of suffering in older musical styles – support the pain of this sacrifice, which leads to absolute desolation towards the end. It remains to be seen whether the Holocaust, the murder of Weinberg's three family members or his own sacrifice in the art dictatorship of the Soviet Union is behind the three palm trees. Perhaps all these aspects played a role in the music. The great sympathy for the fate of the three palm trees can be felt at any time and is musically impressive. string trio op. 48 for violin, viola and cello (1950) Mieczysław Weinberg had already composed his String Trio op. 1950 in 48. However, the work remained unprinted for many years and therefore only existed as an autograph until 2007. The Stalinist origins may have influenced the serious nature of this work. It is believed that Weinberg had musicians from Moscow's Bolshoi Theater in mind for a performance. In the end, however, the work only saw the light of day posthumously. From a musical point of view, the piece can also be interpreted as a dance suite. Since the times of Mozart and Beethoven, the string trio genre has had a playful divertimento character in contrast to the scholarly string quartet. This dance element also predominates in Weinberg's string trio, albeit paired with melancholic traits. It is often not possible to pinpoint where the folk influences come from in Weinberg. His places of residence in Poland, Belarus and Uzbekistan certainly influenced him. Moldova and, of course, Russian folk music were also strong sources of inspiration for him. However, he always used a genuinely Jewish style of music, which in these countries merged with the respective folklore. A work like the string trio can also be heard as a composition by someone who was forced to “internally emigrate”. The festivity in the opening Allegro has a slightly sarcastic undertone. The D minor Andante mixes defiance into the sung pain and is somewhat reminiscent of the proud slow sections of a Hungarian csardá. All three musicians are equally involved in the score. The sound is light like chamber music, but in some places it is definitely increased to orchestral splendor. In this small but weighty work, Weinberg succeeds in making a fiery plea for the freedom of art. If you listen to the music with these ears, the long silence about this masterpiece is perhaps self-explanatory. trumpet concert in B flat major op. 94 (1967) In contrast to Shostakovich, the ever-curious Weinberg also wrote concertos for lesser-known instruments, including the flute, clarinet and trumpet. The latter instrument also plays a major role in Russian circus music. In the Soviet era, these events were even administered by a specially set up body. In addition, several well-known composers wrote music for the artistic and clown-like performances in the arena. In Weinberg's Trumpet Concerto from 1967, a sarcastic undertone mixes with the turbulent circus bustle of the first movement with its rhythmically distinctive and garish sound. The middle movement, in particular, with its alternation of fluffed up and contemplative "episodes" has the effect of a sad clown's psychological drama. Perhaps a self-reflection on the part of the composer. Weinberg wrote his trumpet concerto for the excellent trumpeter Timofej Dokschitsers, the world-renowned arranger of Arutjunyan's trumpet concerto. The soloist is allowed to express himself in a grand cadenza in the finale. This calm finale is extraordinarily crafted. It contains a goodly number of well-known quotations, starting with the fanfare from Mendelssohn's Wedding March. Later there are allusions to the cockcrow from Rimsky-Korsakov's opera The Golden Cockerel and the chorus des gamins from Bizet's opera Carmen. Certainly more quotes and military fanfares can be heard. Instead of the expected rapid finale, Weinberg ends his trumpet concerto, first performed in 1968, with a collage-like farewell that is entirely committed to the spirit of new music. Shostakovich was so impressed by the new structure that he called the concerto a »Symphony for Trumpet and Orchestra«. Matthew Corvin |
program:
[01] Three Palms for string quartet and soprano op. 120 (1977) 23:04
Cantata after verses by Mikhail Lermontov
Talia Or, soprano
EOS Quartet Vienna
[Willy Büchler, violin ∙ Christian Blasl, violin ∙ Roman Bernhart, viola ∙ Andreas Pokorny, cello]
Trio for violin, viola and cello Op. 48 (1950) 15:18
[02] Allegro 05:23
[03] Walking 05:32
[04] Moderato assai 04:23
Kana Matsui, violin
Johannes Lilac, viola
Christoph Stradner, cello
Trumpet Concerto No. 1 in B flat major op. 94 (1967) 22:49
[05] Études - Allegro molto 08:06
[06] Episodes - Andante 08:55
[07] Fanfares - Andante 05:48
Jurgen Ellensohn, trumpet
Vorarlberg Symphony Orchestra
Gerard Korsten, conductor
total time: 61:13
live recording
Press:
no. 2/2012
This is the fifth volume in NEOS's 'Weinberg Retrospective', recorded at the Bregenz Festival in 2010. The centrepiece of the festival was the premiere staging of Weinberg's opera and magnum opus Die Passenger ('The Passenger'), but around two dozen other works were also performed. Volumes 1 and 2 are reviewed here, volume 3 here, and the DVD recording of The Passenger here. Coincidentally, Chandos recently released the fifth volume in their own superb series, begun in 2003, of Weinberg's complete symphonies - see review.
The compact String Trio makes an excellent entry point for newcomers to Weinberg: its light Shostakovichian idiom should appeal to almost all tastes. Matthias Corvin's suggestion in the notes that Weinberg "succeeds in creating a fiery plea for artistic freedom" seems to read more into the Trio than is there, as is so often the case in Soviet-era musicology: it is more folk-inflected and spirited than fiery.
Lermontov's eponymous poem is a harsh Biblical homily that tells of three palm trees in the desert that complain to God about their futility, who responds with typical Old Testament violence, having them chopped down and used as firewood by Bedouins. It is surely no coincidence that Weinberg lost three members of his family – both parents and sister – in a similarly mindless way at a Holocaust death camp. No surprise it was still on his mind more than thirty years later. Despite its lyricism, the music oozes pain and suffering, and ultimately desolation.
Weinberg's alternately witty and nervy Trumpet Concerto in B flat is a hoot, particularly the ironic absurdities of the 'Fanfares' finale. The Concerto does appear occasionally in European concert halls, but nowhere near often enough - this is one of the most memorable since Haydn. The booklet lists it as his Trumpet Concerto no.1, which is certainly true, but he did not write a second one.
There are good performances throughout this program, but soprano Talia Or and trumpet Jürgen Ellensohn merit a special mention for their contributions: Or for her heartfelt passion and Ellensohn for his almost casual virtuosity and humor.
Sound recording is very good indeed: coughing and rustling has been kept to an absolute minimum either by very thoughtfully positioned microphones or benign audiences – one phlegmy splutter near the beginning of Three Palms being the exception. Applause has been skilfully edited out, the audience again being very helpful in not having cut into the short silence which rightly belongs at the end of all works of art music.
Housed in an attractively designed digipak case, the CD booklet is thick, although having everything in four languages means that there is much less information than appears at first sight – most notably, Lermontov's poem has not been included. Nevertheless, the notes are illuminating, well written and well translated into English.
Byzantium
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2012/Mar12/Weinberg_vol5_11129.htm