Dvorak - Piano Quintet 2 [The Gaudier Ensemble]

This is one of the very best discs that i own, i've probably played it about 25 times, but it's only featured in my Blog once before [21st May 2012], both works are truly gorgeous, and even though i'm writing about the Piano Quintet 2 here, the String Quintet on this disc ran it a very close second, the third movement Poco Andante is a real gem, there's real soothing spirituality there, the Piano Quintet has some of Dvorak's very best tunes, you would think that he would use them in a big important work, a Symphony or Concerto, but Dvorak sometimes reserves his best tunes for his intimate chamber music, i went out for a walk around my neighbourhood listening to this today, a very sweet experience.

The Gaudier Ensemble comes from a group of soloists to record and play chamber music for strings / wind, with piano, they have built up a small discography on the Hyperion label, they recorded this work in 1995, the front cover is a painting by Hans Thoma called 'The Rhine Near Sackingen'.

I so much loved the first three movements, and i suppose the opening movement was the best of all, it has some truly delicious tunes, it's start is a revelation, a gentle rippling piano accompaniment [Susan Tomes], with the cello [Christoph Marks] announcing one of Dvorak's most sublime and underrated tunes [0:00-0:30], but all this sharply comes to an end when the whole Quintet explode into action in an Allegro [0:30+], on one hand it's a shame that Dvorak didn't develop this theme further, but on the other the Allegro is an exciting moment, and certainly the first movement goes all over the place, fast and daring music interspersed with themes from the sublime opening theme, and this theme makes short [1:19-1:53], and that's Dvorak for you, mixing the zest with the smooth, and at times literally mixing the fast and slow themes [3:57-4:38] in a heady concoction, the Pianist Susan Tomes must be given a special mention, she is so sublime, her piano work is scintillating at times [4:38-5:21], she somehow just gets that 'tone' just right, there's a gorgeous reprise of the opening theme [6:53-7:14], now played by the whole Quintet in a glorious serenade, followed by some irresistible stuff by the five [7:27-7:37], Dvorak really packs it with so many good things, it's ten minutes of the highest quality music possible, and as a finale the Quintet throw the themes into one final fling [9:25+], and if that's not enough, there follows the inspired Dumka second movement!.

Here's the Quintet being played on YouTube.

Schubert - Piano Quintet 'Trout' [Levine/Hetzel/Christ/ Faust/Posch]

This work gets played modestly in my player, i think i used to play it more, i guess it's somewhat slipped off the radar a bit, i still love this though, but there always seems more and more stuff to play these days, that's the downside of having a huge successful variety of music to play, something ends up getting played less, the main / favourite version is Schiff / Hagen on DG, but this is a nice little alternative version.

James Levine is an American Conductor, but also appears on a few recordings as a Pianist, this work was recorded in 1990, the front cover painting is by James Marsh, i don't usually like paintings / artwork as front covers, but this is a good one.

It was both the first and fourth movements that i really enjoyed, the fourth is an ingenious set of variations, and where the work gets its name, but i guess i'd like to talk about the first movement, here's my feelings on it, the whole thing is cast in the unusual form of five movements, the first is roughly twice as long as any of the others, it may start off slow and tentative in the introduction, but before the first minute's out, it comes to life, a lively skippy tune, the work is in the sunny key of A Major, the piano plays cascades of notes [3:17+], and the string players reply with more frantic playing, there are moments where the opening returns, and the whole thing unfolds again, it's certainly fun and enjoyable, and those frantic cascades of notes return [7:30+], after this there's some sort of reflective middle section, maybe in a minor key, but this fairly quickly livens up, and in volume too [9:30+], but of course the original flourishes aren't far away, it shows how much of an accomplished Pianist Levine is.

Here's the Trout Quintet being played on YouTube.

Elgar - Piano Quintet [Roberts/Chilingirian String Quartet] 

Now here's a disc with a difference, this is only the second time i've played this disc, it didn't impress me the first time, but on this listening, wow what a difference!, Elgar's non Orchestral works aren't something i've ventured into, and i've been somewhat put off by his stodgy long drawn out ideas [i'm still trying to come to terms with his Violin Concerto], so it was quite a shock at how really good this music is, the skillful way in which it's constructed, and the great tunes, if i was listening blind, i would swear it was possibly a French Composer, maybe Franck comes to mind, plus as a bonus, the String Quartet was nearly as good as well, i'll be looking forward to hearing this disc again in 2013.

Bernard Roberts is English, he's now 79, he recorded this disc in 1985, one of the great things about this disc is the front cover [photo by Chris Yates], a magnificent landscape shot of trees on a hill, no doubt in winter as the trees are bare, making great silhouettes against the sky, but it's the clouds and light which really makes the picture, there's a certain creamy haze to everything, it's a gorgeous mood shot, and incidentally i went out for a walk to play this disc, and the view on the hill was not unlike this picture, but the music was even more penetrating.

It was the first movement that really grabbed me, when you hear the 'famous' music of Elgar, his Cello Concerto, and Enigma Variations, when you listen to his Piano Quintet you might think 'who is this?', sounds like someone else completely, i suppose in listening to it again, there's certainly a feeling of Brahms's Piano Quartets about it, the work is in the key of A Minor, it twists and turns, it's on the whole dark, but Elgar has some sprightly fun with it, there's fun waltzes that appear out of nowhere, the beginning is hesitant, but soon develops into a Brahmsian seriousness, and  i like the way Elgar changes direction, and plays a whimsical melody [2:15-3:17], which then develops into a full blown waltz [3:26-4:37], again all the time sounding like Brahms, then there's a superb section which could have been composed by Faure, in the vein of his Piano Quintets / Quartets [5:25-6:09], sweet and high strings, with rippling piano in the background, now that's a little melody to die for!, the first movement almost sounds like a Fantasy at times, as if it was meant to be something which would stand up all on it's own, Elgar works the themes expertly, the whimsical waltzes come back to haunt us [9:33-11:04], this time there's pizzicato strummings at the beginning, and i marvel at how Elgar can intertwine such simple ideas into something so much more profound, the Faure music comes back [11:48-12:24], this time with the piano sounding like bells, the very opening returns in sadness [13:14-13:46], what a wonderful movement of music, it was so good to 'discover' this today,  it's another work i can put in my regular listening list to enjoy.

Here's Elgar's Piano Quintet being played on YouTube.

Brahms - Piano Quintet [Schiff/Takacs String Quartet] 

Now this is a nice set of the Brahms String Quartets / Piano Quintet, notice that the booklet is a single disc of only the first two String Quartets, but the back insert is for a Decca Double re-issue, i used this booklet instead because it's so much nicer than the other, Brahms's String Quartets are very underrated as far as i'm concerned, yes they are 'stodgy' to some degree, it takes time to delve into them, the first movements are generally excellent, but... though i would very much like to talk about one of his wonderful String Quartets, it's actually the Piano Quintet that really moved me this time, what a work of genius it is, i played this work / disc a couple of years ago, a wonderful performance [22nd August 2010].

The Takacs String Quartet are a Hungarian Quartet, formed in 1975, they are still going strong today, though with two newer faces, they recorded this work in 1988, the front booklet photo is great, showing the Quartet on the balcony of an Opera house i take it, the column nicely separating the players, the shot looking up into the faces is a good idea, nicely shows the architecture of the place, and he box with the lettering is well done, all those browns and golds are nicely offset by the blue of the back insert.

The opening movement is wonderful, very memorable, couched in Brahms's troubled and sad / angry minor key [F Minor], full of all sorts of expressive ideas, however it was the third movement Scherzo i liked the best, an agitated but strongly noble movement, almost military in its theme / execution, a slow build up explodes into the main theme of the movement [0:21+], i like the way Brahms uses agitation by both the piano and the strings separately, both slowly building up the music [1:05-1:45], before another explosion of the main theme, also i love the way the piano cranks up the franticness [2:32-2:49], there's a more lyrical and sweeter central section [3:05-4:22], which breaks the headlong surge of the first part, the opening returns as a sort of exposition repeat of the beginning [4:23+], a nice whirlwind of a movement.

Here's the third movement being played on YouTube.

Dvorak - Piano Quintet 2 [The Gaudier Ensemble] 

Dvorak's Chamber works are a delight, and he saves some of his very best tunes for these small ensembles, whereas other Composers might use them for a more grander scale of things, the opening of this work is one such moment, this is my favourite Dvorak disc [though not my favourite Dvorak work], i've played it so many times in the 15 years i've had it.

The Gaudier Ensemble were formed in 1989, and on this recording it includes the Pianist Susan Tomes, formerly of the Domus Piano Quartet, also recording for Hyperion, i really didn't know they recorded so many discs, theirs is a superb Chamber Music Ensemble, the front cover is a painting by Hans Thoma entitled The Rhine Near Sackingen, the Rhine here borders Germany and Switzerland, a picture that invokes the easy going pastoral nature of the works on the disc.

Here's Natalie Erlich and the Borromeo String Quartet playing the first movement Allegro on YouTube.

Schubert - Piano Quintet 'The Trout' [Schiff/Hagen String Quartet]

This is the first Trout Quintet disc i bought, and it's a great version, and it's become my touchstone recording that i gauge all other recordings with, i got to fall in love with Schubert's Trout Quintet with this recording, and it opened up my mind to other Piano Quintets, the String Quartet, with the piano is a great combination, a sunny and uplifting work, you can almost hear the bubbling brook, this disc was originally only my third post in my Blog, way back at the beginning of 2010 [3rd January 2010].

Andras Schiff is Hungarian, is now 58, he made this recording back in 1983 when he was 30, the front cover shows a painting by Joseph Anton Koch.

I enjoyed the whole of this work, it's in A major, and even though all the movements are in the major, there's still somewhat of a dark undercurrent to the work at times, however i enjoyed the most the very sunny fourth movement variations, 

Here's Clifford Curzon and the Amadeus String Quartet playing the fourth movement variations on YouTube.

Faure - Piano Quintet 1 [Roge/Quatuor Ysaye] 

Now here's something to get really excited about, some chamber music from Faure, the Piano Quartets i know fairly well [from Domus / Hyperion], but the Piano Quintets are another matter, they still remain unfamiliar to me, so it was so good to get to know them on this Sunday walk to Church, Faure has this unique sound i hear in no other Composer, he has these odd almost sour accidentals punctuated here and there, which make a nice bittersweet sadness at times, well worth getting to know deeper.

Pascal Roge is French, born in 1951, he recorded this work in 1995, the booklet shows a picture of some rural church, looks like France, with lavender fields in the foreground, these Decca Double issues are really clever and useful, bringing together all of Faure's Piano Quartets and Quintets.

I feel that the First Piano Quintet is superior to the Second, cast in three movements instead of the usual four in all the other works here, lovely rippling piano figures in the opening movement, with the strings in sadness mode, typical Faure, and a beautiful idea, and again delicate piano figures in the slow central movement, like drops of rain, but it's the last movement that i found tremendous, it finds Faure in happy mode, with a very simple almost childlike theme on the piano as an introduction [0:00-0:37], and yet it's so wonderfully a memorable tune, it's really stuck in my brain now, after this there's what sounds like to me as a set of variations on this original piano introduction theme, right after the theme there's a low string serenade [0:37-1:16] very soothing, and variation 1 maybe?, and after this the piano tinkles away in its high register like a musical box [1:16-1:51], very effective, variation 2 possibly?, and then there's a waltz [1:51-2:16], superbly shifting into a sweeter key, and sweeping us across the dance floor [variation 3?], and so it continues, until the opening piano theme comes back again [4:33+], and the whole thing breaks up into what sounds like a fugue for the second half of the movement, certainly less structured, themes and ideas come and go in quicker succession, just before a sort of finale right at the end, there's a moment of repose, where the music slows down and goes quiet [7:56+], the lower strings play a sort of coda, all round an interesting and musically fulfilling end to Faure's first Piano Quintet.

Here's the third movement Allegretto Moderato being played on YouTube.