Arnold Schoenberg: Chamber Music for Strings [Box set]

Track Listings
Disc: 1

1. String Quartet No. 1, Op. 7: Nicht zu rasch

2. String Quartet No. 1, Op. 7: Kraftig (nicht zu rasch)

3. String Quartet No. 1, Op. 7: MaBig, langsame Viertel

4. String Quartet No. 1, Op. 7: Mabig, heiter

See all 8 tracks on this disc
Disc: 2

1. String Quartet No. 2, Op. 10: MaBig

2. String Quartet No. 2, Op. 10: Sehr rasch

3. String Quartet No. 2, Op. 10: Litanei

4. String Quartet No. 2, Op. 10: Entrucking

See all 8 tracks on this disc
Disc: 3

1. Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: Sehr langsam

2. Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: (C)

3. Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: Schwer betont

4. Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: Sehr breit und langsam

See all 7 tracks on this disc
Disc: 4

1. String Trio, Op. 45: Part 1

2. String Trio, Op. 45: First Episode

3. String Trio, Op. 45: Part 2

4. String Trio, Op. 45: Second Episode

See all 15 tracks on this disc
Disc: 5

1. String Quartet in D Major: Allegro molto

2. String Quartet in D Major: Intermezzo. Andantino grazioso

3. String Quartet in D Major: Andante con moto

4. String Quartet in D Major: Allegro-Presto

See all 13 tracks on this disc

Arnold Schoenberg: Chamber Music for Strings, Music, Taco Kooistra, Viola de Hoog, Arnold Schoenberg, Sepp Grothenhuis, Susan Narucki, Henk Guittart, Jan Erik van Regteren, Janneke van der Meer, Schoenberg Quartet, Box Sets (Audio Only), Chamber, Chamber Music & Recitals, Classical, Classical Composers, Classical Music, Coll. of Character/Single-Movement/Misc. Works for Keyb., Concerto, Concerto for More Than Three Solo Instruments, Keyboard, Miscellaneous, Music for Four Hands at One Keyboard, Music with Spoken Words, Quartet for Four String Instruments, Quintet for Five Woodwind Instruments, Sextet for Six String Instruments, Trio for Three String Instruments, Violin with Keyboard

Arnold Schoenberg: Serenade/Five Pieces For Orchestra
Average customer rating:

I guess I'm not as sophisticated as all of you...

A convert

Excellent performance

A Devastating Five Pieces - A desert island CD

BUY IT

Arnold Schoenberg: Serenade/Five Pieces For Orchestra

Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Schoenberg: The String Quartets

Arnold Schoenberg: Suite, Op. 29, for 2 Clarinets, Bass Clarinet, Violin, Viola, Cello & Piano / Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4 (Sextet for 2 Violins, 2 Violas & 2 Celli) - Ensemble Intercontemporain, Pierre Boulez

Schoenberg: Chamber Symphony No1; Die Jacobsleiter

Schoenberg - Die Glückliche Hand · Variations for Orchestra, Op.31 · Verklärte Nacht / Nimsgern · BBC Orch. · NY Phil. · Boulez

Berg: Chamber Concerto; Three Orchestral Pieces, Op. 6; Violin Concerto

ASIN: B000002818
Release Date: 1993-07-13

Tracks:

Serenade, Op. 24: I. Marsch
Serenade, Op. 24: II. Menuett
Serenade, Op. 24: III. Variationen
Serenade, Op. 24: IV. Sonett Von Petrarca: 'O Konnt' Ich Je Der Rach' An Ihr Genesen'
Serenade, Op. 24: V. Tanzscene
Serenade, Op. 24: VI. Lied (Ohne Worte)
Serenade, Op. 24: VII. Finale
5 Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 16: I. Vorgefuhle
5 Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 16: II. Vergangenes
5 Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 16: III. Farben
5 Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 16: IV. Peripetie
5 Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 16: V. Das Obligate Rezitativ
Ode To Napoleon Buonaparte, Op. 41

Amazon.com

Schoenberg's Serenade is comparable to Stravinsky's The Soldier's Tale. Both works are effective modernist parodies of classical genres. But unlike Stravinsky, Schoenberg's treatments of marches and waltzes are never coolly burlesque, but hyper expressive--indeed, expressionist. Pierre Boulez conducts his Ensemble InterContemporain, underlining the music's prickly sonorities and metallic edges. In his interpretation, the expertly separated timbres are the hinge of the composition. Also on the disc is a classic reading of the Five Pieces for Orchestra and the curious Ode to Napoleon, a work for ensemble with narrator. --Joshua Cody

Customer Reviews:

I guess I'm not as sophisticated as all of you..........2006-09-20

Depth? Genius? This stuff sounds like your watching an old Bugs Bunny cartoon. Its like the background sound effects when Yosemite Sam steps on a rake or Daffy does a double-take. Imagine being Ray Charles or Andrea Bocelli and "watching" old cartoons: it's the same experience. But in this case, I'd rather be Marlee Matlin.

A convert.......2006-05-09

I would like to speak in regards to what some reviewers are saying about the works of Schoenberg. I will admit that the first time I heard Schoenberg, I wrote him off as weird music that I would never like and was not worth listening to. In my defense, the first work I heard was "Pierrot Lunaire" which is a very hard work to understand. But I was assigned a paper of the Second Viennese School and its influences for music history and was forced to really listen to these works among others by much more extreme composers like Boulez and Cage (who I have yet to understand, but I am still young!) Once I stopped grumbling about how much I hated serialism and let myself really HEAR the music, I started to understand it and gained a begrudging respect for Schoenberg, which became a genuine liking. So in light of this, I dare anyone who is so willing to bash Schoenberg outright to really listen to his works and the works of those he influenced with an open mind and see if you can't at least respect the music for what it is.

Excellent performance.......2006-03-25

Having owned nearly all avaliable recordings of all Schonberg, I have found all of Boulez's recordings on Sony to my favorite.

It has been 3 yrs now that I first discovered Schonberg and my love for his music grows more everyday, high genius indeed.
I love almost everything he wrote, but as to his Pelleas, even Schonberg said he was only satisfied with the last part.

Now as to A Music Fan's comments on his This Music Stinks and Ong's in his World comming to an end, this might have been something I wrote back in my early to mid years of adventures in classical music, say 1980-2001.
But you see I grew in a psychological sense and my awareness of what great art is, had made a profound transition into the modern era.
(read all my reviews)

But for some to give either a vote of "no, not helpful", shows we still have way too many under the 13 year olds clicking the vote buttons.
Why even click the vote?
Sure I realize you strongly disagree with both, that you love Schonberg as much as I, maybe more, which I doubt, so why even bother with these 2 who may not ever come to know Schonberg while upon this earth.
That in itself is a big loss to their experience in life.

I see the same youths post on my reviews a "no, not helpful".
Well if you disagree with either Ong and A Music fan, write your own rebuttal to these 2 guys.
Just don't click a button , write a commen of your appreciation for Schonberg's genius.

The old form is clashing with the new. As the romantic and classical eras must give way to 20th century music, I forsee some contentions at the ineviatable changes that are about to occur.
Sure some will want to atke it to battle, as the other side really does not want to give up an inch of its power.
Thus, don't expect many of us modern fans to be at your shows.
The attendance numbers will dwindle, profits will shrink.
If you give us what we want, which is an all modern program, once in awhile, we'll gladly pay the price of the ticket.
Otherwise have fun at YOUR "program".

A Devastating Five Pieces - A desert island CD.......2005-07-15

I still remember the first time I heard this recording of Boulez conducting the Five Pieces. I had heard the work before but the degree of electricity here was something that came as a complete shock to me. From the first note to last this Five Pieces is totally devastating. This is a performance that makes Schoenberg's Mahlerian heritage absolutely clear only he is so much more concentrated and focused in his delivery that the results for me are just shattering. The rapport that Boulez enjoyed with the BBC orchestra at this time is something I have always marvelled at but this takes it to another level. Of course the inner movements are also allowed moments of hushed poetic repose but the outer movements really do remind me of what Robert Craft said of the final pages of the last of the Five Pieces - that it was the greatest thing written in the twentieth century. That statement really surprised me and I think maybe it was a spur of the moment outburst but Boulez does a greater job than anybody of convincing me of its truth.

As for the Seranade, I love this performance. Schoenberg always had a great awareness of early music - perhaps inherited from Brahms. Webern of course even wrote his PhD thesis on Heinrich Isaac's Choralis Constantinus and in his writings Schoenberg refers to composers such as Josquin reasonably frequently. It is highly likely he was also familiar with the madrigals of the late Renaissance period, referred to the Seconda Prattica by Monteverdi. Poets such as Petrach and Tasso were popular amongst madrigal composers and the madrigalian feeling is even further accentuated by the use of instruments such as the mandolin for accompaniment making it sound even more like a twentieth century madrigal. It is a charming and enjoyable work, quirky and mercurial.

The final work on this CD is the Ode to Napolean in which Schoenberg spits vitriolic hatred at Hitler. I have always found Schoenberg's command of English language inflections to be less than perfect - you can hear a slight German accent in the Sprechstimme. Musically by this time Schoenberg starts to also sound increasingly more and more like Brahms and the opening statement by the string quartet and piano has a theme vaguely reminiscent of the opening of the finale of the Brahms Opus 25 G minor piano quartet (the one Schoenberg transcribed for orchestra)! Boulez has always been critical of this tendency in the later Schoenberg but I must confess to liking it. The work is a tour de force - fiery and passionate, yet uplifting and hugely appealling such that I am always surprised it is not played more often, especially when it pays such glowing hommage in the closing passages to George Washington.

All in all this is a desert island CD for me - most especially for the Five Pieces, which is one of the greatest performances of anything I have yet to hear.

BUY IT.......2001-02-28

Somebody who dislikes the music presented on this CD wouldn't know good modern classical music if it smacked him/her across the face. This is quite a statement, I understand, but this music is simply brilliant - particularly 5 Pieces for Orchestra (perhas slightly less well-known than other Schoenberg works). This piece is a treatise on timbre that simply blows my mind. It relaxes you, enthralls you, terrifies you, and makes you very glad you spent the $11 on this CD. Buy it, and open your ears.

Average customer rating:

Mr. Gould: the Genius of Recorded Music!
The definitive interpretation of Schoenberg piano works
Keep listening
The "least dry" Schoenberg ever
A Master Pianist Plays His Favorites

Schoenberg: Piano Works

Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

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Gould Meets Menuhin

ASIN: B0000028O6
Release Date: 1995-02-07

Tracks:

Three Piano Pieces, Op. 11: Massige
Three Piano Pieces, Op. 11: Massige
Three Piano Pieces, Op. 11: Bewegte
Five Piano Pieces, Op. 23: Sehr langsam
Five Piano Pieces, Op. 23: Sehr rasch
Five Piano Pieces, Op. 23: Langsam
Five Piano Pieces, Op. 23: Schwungvoll. Massige
Five Piano Pieces, Op. 23: Wlazer
Six Little Piano Pieces, Op. 19: Leicht, zart
Six Little Piano Pieces, Op. 19: Langsam
Six Little Piano Pieces, Op. 19: Sehr langsame
Six Little Piano Pieces, Op. 19: Rasch, aber leicht
Six Little Piano Pieces, Op. 19: Etwas rasch
Six Little Piano Pieces, Op. 19: Sehr langsam
Suite for Piano, Op. 25: Praludium. Rasch
Suite for Piano, Op. 25: Gavotte. Etwas langsam. nicht hastig - Musette. Rascher - Gavotte da capo
Suite for Piano, Op. 25: Intermezzo
Suite for Piano, Op. 25: Menuett. Moderato - Trio - Menuette da capo
Suite for Piano, Op. 25: Gigue. Rasch
Two Piano Pieces, Op. 33- A & B: Massige
Two Piano Pieces, Op. 33- A & B: Massig langsam

Tracks:

Concerto For Piano And Orchestra, Op. 42: Andante -
Concerto For Piano And Orchestra, Op. 42: Molto allegro
Concerto For Piano And Orchestra, Op. 42: Adagio
Concerto For Piano And Orchestra, Op. 42: Giocoso
Phantasy For Violin And Piano Accompaniment, Op. 47: Grave - Piu mosso - Meno mosso - Lento - Grazioso - Tempo I - Piu mosso -
Phantasy For Violin And Piano Accompaniment, Op. 47: Scherzando - Poco tranquillo - Scherzando - Meno mosso - Tempo I
Ode To Napoleon Buonaparte, Op. 41
Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21: Mondestrunken
Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21: Colombine
Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21: Der Dandy
Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21: Eine blasse Wascherin
Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21: Valse de Chopin
Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21: Madonna
Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21: Der kranke Mond

Customer Reviews:

Mr. Gould: the Genius of Recorded Music!.......2005-01-31

Gould was playing Schoenberg in the 1950s--just shortly after the composer's death. He realizes the Op. 11 pieces in a very late-Brahmsian manner, in keeping with his gestalt of turn-of-the-century Modern music, viz., Brahms, Strauss, Scriabin, Schoenberg, Hindemith, et al.

The Op. 25 Suite is an exquisite refraction of a Bach French Suite--but done in Schoenberg's 12-tone form. Here Gould plays Schoenberg as he does Bach!

Gould's realization of Schoenberg's Piano Concerto is very secco (dry), and intentionally miked very closely: i.e., the recording was made with microphones placed close to the performers, rather than way back out in the audience area of a hall. This was Gould's idea, and the results are outstanding: the best Schoenberg Piano Concerto available--pace, Uchida and Brendel, et al.

Gould's Pierrot is his first attempt at conducting, and one wishes he had completed it and done more. In the end, Gould conducted Wagner's Siegfried Idyll with outstanding results.

This is a great set.

The definitive interpretation of Schoenberg piano works.......2003-12-27

While other pianists dabbled at these fine pieces, none other than Glenn Gould provides the definitive interpretation of Schoenberg's piano works. Thoroughly studied, Gould presents the serialism clearly and presents the dimensions of the revolutionary works.

By detaching yourself from the tonality of traditional tonal music, and immersing in the world of Schoenberg, the shape and lines of the music will gradually become clear. Gould is perhaps the greatest advocate and messenger of Schoenberg's distinct language.

Keep listening.......2000-09-13

These are difficult pieces for me. They require concentrated listening, and challenge my understanding of music. Sometimes, I don't like what I hear, and other times, it's just too much work to listen to very much of this. However, when I am able to devote some time to listening with an understanding mind, I am amply rewarded. I have listened to this CD for several years and I will probably never understand this music. I do enjoy listening and learning from it, though. I am thankful that someone as talented as Glenn Gould has interpreted these pieces. If you are interested in one of the most important composers of the twentieth century, or one of the greatest legends of the keyboard, this CD will interest you. To paraphrase what Moby wrote on his CD, Animal Rights, "Please listen to this CD completely at least once."

The "least dry" Schoenberg ever.......1999-11-10

I believe wholeheartedly that, for the uninitiated, this disc is difficult to truly appreciate without having heard other pianists attempt these pieces (e.g., Pollini). To enjoy listening to Schoenberg necessitates a certain familiarity with prolonged "dissonance", just like strong coffee or unfiltered beer--it takes some getting used to. If you're already there, it's not "dissonant", it's "music" (just like other alternate melodic conceptions-raga, gamelan, mbira, partch, etc.), and Gould's passionate readings here display his love for and understanding of the music's heart. Go Glenn.

A Master Pianist Plays His Favorites.......1999-04-08

Schoenberg's rigid mathematics, his triads, his serialism, his tonal abilities, when demonstated through his piano pieces (especially through these piano pieces) allow a pianist with the mechanical ability and inspired play of Glenn Gould the chance to demonstrate how to hear, feel and convey a music that, to many listeners, often reflects, upon fist listen, chaos. But the music on this 2 CD set is not to be listened to merely once. Glenn Gould, master pianist, is playing his favorite works by one of his favorite composers. The Schoenberg basher will hear more chaos than in other recordings of these piano pieces, merely because Gould's sure fingers, his hands, are as revolutionary as the music he is playing.

Schoenberg: Verklärte Nacht Op4; Shostakovich: Trio No2, Op67

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Warm and welcoming Shostakovich and Schoenberg

Schoenberg: Verklärte Nacht Op4; Shostakovich: Trio No2, Op67

Manufacturer: EMI Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Quintets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

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Icky Thump
Sky Blue Sky

ASIN: B00004LCB0
Release Date: 2000-06-27

Tracks:

I Prelude: Lento - Poco Piu Mosso - Lento
II Fugue: Adagio
III Scherzo: Allegretto
IV Intermezzo: Lento
V Finale: Allegretto
1 Spring Waltz: Allegretto
2 Waltz Scherzo: Allegretto Scherzando
3 Waltz: Tempo Di Valse
4 Waltz Charmaine: Allegretto
I Andante
II Allegro Non Troppo
III Largo
IV Allegretto

Tracks:

Langsam
Sehr Rasch
Viel Langsamer, Aber Doch Fliessend
Viel Langsamer
Etwas Bewegter
Ode To Napoleon Op.41 - Thomas Allen
Grave (Zwei Menschen Geh'n)
Poco Piu Mosso (Ich Trag Ein Kind)
(Sie Geht Mit Ungelenken Schritt)
Adagio (Das Kind, Das Du Empfangen Hast)
Adagio (Molto Tranquillo) (Er Lasst Sie Um Die Starken Huften)

Customer Reviews:

Warm and welcoming Shostakovich and Schoenberg.......2007-02-07

If you are not that familiar with the music of Shostakovich and Schoenberg -- as I was prior to this CD -- this is an excellent and friendly introduction. Both the Schoenberg and Shostakovich selections are among the composers' most accessible works.

Moreover, the Nash Ensemble has to be one of the finest chamber ensembles around. They play with exquisite command and finesse. And the Virgin engineers do a fine job of capturing their sound in a warm, ambient acoustic.

My first introduction to the Shostakovich Piano Quintet and Piano Trio was through a recording by the Borodin ensemble. Although their playing is beautiful and brought the music home to me, this recording by the Nash Ensemble is superior in part because the recorded sound is better and because the musicians seem to play with more vigor and commitment. The waltzes and the Piano trio round out the first disc with delightful and immediately appealing music.

The Schoenberg works are utterly remarkable. If you avoided Schoenberg because you were put off by his serial tonality, you don't need to avoid this CD. These works will convince you that Schoenberg was rooted in a romantic tradition prior to embarking on his serial tonal journey. The surprise jewel on this second disc was the Ode to Napoleon recited by Thomas Allen -- one can imagine it as a classical forerunner to rap music. I was particularly taken by how Schoenberg's harmonies could reach such moving climaxes in each of the works on this CD.

If you want to expose yourself to these composers to help develop an appreciation for their work, this is an excellent CD to obtain. I recommend it highly.

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Historical Documents For Specialists & Collectors

In Honor of Rudolf Kolisch

Manufacturer: Music & Arts Program
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Quartets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

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ASIN: B000099T1G
Release Date: 2006-01-01

Tracks:

Kolisch Quartet - Kolisch Quartet
Mvt I Massig - Kolisch Quartet
MVT 2 Sehr Rasch - Kolisch Quartet
Mvt 3 Litanei Langsam - Kolisch Quartet
Mvt 4 Entrueckung - Kolisch Quartet
Schoenberg - Kolisch Quartet

Tracks:

Mvt I Moderato - Kolisch Quartet
Mvt 2 Adagio - Kolisch Quartet
Mvt 3 Intermezzo, Allegro Moderato - Kolisch Quartet
Mvt 4 Rondo, Molto Moderato - Kolisch Quartet
Schoenberg Speaks - Kolisch Quartet
Mvt I Allegro Molto Energico - Kolisch Quartet
Mvt 2 Comodo - Kolisch Quartet
Mvt 3 Largo - Kolisch Quartet
Mvt 4 Allegro - Kolisch Quartet

Tracks:

Mvt 1 Moderato - Pro Arte Quartet
Mvt 2 Adagio - Pro Arte Quartet
Mvt 3 Intermezzo - Pro Arte Quartet
Mvt 4 Rondo, Molto Moderato - Pro Arte Quartet
Mvt I Allegro Gioviale - Pro Arte Quartet
Mvt Andante Amoroso - Pro Arte Quartet
Mvt 3 Allegro Misterioso. Trio Estatico - Pro Arte Quartet
Mvt 4 Adagio Appassionato - Pro Arte Quartet
Mvt 5 Presto Delirando Tenebroso - Pro Arte Quartet
Mvt 6 Largo Desolato - Pro Arte Quartet

Tracks:

Mvt 1 Poco Allegro - Pro Arte Quartet
Mvt 2 Adante Grazioso - Pro Arte Quartet
Mvt 3 Finale. Allegro - Pro Arte Quartet
Kolisch Interview - Pro Arte Quartet
Mvt I Temp Di Ciaccona - Pro Arte Quartet
Mvt 2 Fuga. Risoluto, Non Troppo Vivo - Pro Arte Quartet
Mvt 3 Melodia. Adagio - Pro Arte Quartet
Mvt 4 Presto - Pro Arte Quartet

Tracks:

Mvt I Allegro - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
Mvt 2 Adagio Molto - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
Mvt 3 Scherzo - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
Mvt 4 Andante - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
Mvt 5 Finale. Allegro Vivace - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
Schoenberg: Fantasie, Op.47 - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
Mvt I Allegro Molto - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
Mvt 2 Intermezzo. Andantino Grazioso - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
Mvt 3 Andante Con Moto - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
Mvt 4 Allegro/ Presto - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin

Tracks:

Mvt I Heftig Bewegt - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
Mvt 2 Sehr Langsam - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
Mvt 3 Sehr Bewegt - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
Mvt 4 Sehr Langsam - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
Mvt 5 in Zarter Bewegung - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
I Massig - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
II Leichtbewegt - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
III Ziemlich Fliessend - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
IV Sehr Langsam - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
V Ausserst Langsam - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
VI Fliessend - Pro Arte Quartet Of the University Of Wisconsin
Mvt ! Adagio - Kolisch Quartet
Mvt 2 Adagio - Kolisch Quartet
Mvt 3 Allegro - Kolisch Quartet
Mvt 4 Andante - Kolisch Quartet
Mvt 5 Menuetto - Kolisch Quartet
Mvt 6 Andante Molto- Allegro - Kolisch Quartet

Customer Reviews:

Historical Documents For Specialists & Collectors.......2005-06-17

This Music & Arts CD set (6 discs for the price of four) contains what can be rightly regarded as "urtext" performances of Schoenberg, Berg, Webern and Bartok. It is in honor of a modern music pioneer, Rudolph Kolisch (1896-1978), the Austrian violinist whose sister was married to Schoenberg. Due to an accident as a boy that cost him about half the middle finger on his left hand, Kolisch became a violinist who bowed with his left hand and played with his right. Obviously he could not play in an orchestra without inflicting damage, so Kolisch dedicated his career to chamber music, primarily of the New Vienna School.

Amazon has only displayed the musical tracks here without identifying the works. There is so much here that I can only address the contents with brief remarks. Despite extremely variable sound, there are some genuine treasures in this set. They will surely appeal to anyone who is interested in the history of performance practice and in hearing how Kolisch and his associates interpreted these works, several of which they premiered. This set comes with a 47 page booklet that includes an appreciation of Kolisch by pianist Russell Sherman (who studied with Schoenberg pupil Eduard Steuermann), an encylopedic and illuminating essay by Tully Potter on the Kolisch Quartet (and the later Pro Arte Quartet led by Kolisch), and extensive notes on the music itself, much of it written by another Schoenberg pupil (conductor Rene Leibowitz).

CDs 1 & 2 contain the first-ever 1936-37 recordings of Schoenberg's four string quartets (composed 1905, 1908, 1927 & 1936) by the Kolisch Quartet (Rudolf Kolisch, Felix Khuner, Eugen Lehner, and Benar Heifetz, with soprano Clemence Gifford in #2). Included are two brief speeches by Schoenberg. These recordings were sponsored by the wealthy film composer Alfred Newman for the purpose of preserving Schoenberg's works and Kolisch's interpretations for posterity. They were issued on private edition 78 rpm discs, and (not mentioned in the notes) they were briefly available on 4 ALCO LPs in the 1950's. I saw that extremely rare set for the first time recently in San Franciso at a collector shop that has a thriving mail-order business overseas. The asking price: $500! So if the music interests you, this M&A set is a genuine bargain! These performances have also been issued on the Swiss CD label Archiphon, but reportedly the transfers are poorly-pitched and overly-filtered.

CD 3 has 1950 recordings of Schoenberg's 3rd Quartet and Berg's Lyric Suite by the Pro Arte Quartet of the Univ. of Wisconsin (Kolisch, Rahier, Milofsky, & Fiedlander) that were once on the Dial LP label.

CD 4 features a "live" 1967 recording of the Schoenberg Violin Concerto with Kolisch and the Wisconsin Festival Orchestra conducted by Leibowitz, an 8 minute interview with Kolisch, and a 1966 live Kolisch performance of the Bartok Sonata for Solo Violin (I regard this disc as an utterly essential item). My other favorites here: Krasner/Mitropoulos (Columbia LP) in the Schoenberg, and Robert Mann's incredible Bartok (available on the internet for $17 from Bartok Records).

CD 5 has a 1945 recording of the Pro Arte Quartet playing Bartok's 5th String Quartet, a 1966 account of the Schoenberg Fantasie (Kolisch with pianist Gunnar Johansen), and the early & unnumbered (1897) Schoenberg String Quartet in D major (Pro Arte Quartet 1952). The latter work is atypical: it sounds very Brahmsian, with a dash of Dvorakian melody tossed in.

CD 6 has three 1950 Pro Arte items that were originally on Dial LPs: Webern's Five Movements for String Quartet op. 5 and Six Bagatelles for String Quartet op. 9, plus a "live" 1940 reading by the Kolisch Quartet & friends of Schubert's Octet. The latter is rather poorly-played and utterly lacks the old world charm of the wonderful Vienna Konzerthaus (Preiser CD).

My own journey to appreciating Schoenberg was a rocky climb. My piano teacher (from age 9 to age 18) regarded Schoenberg as the Devil incarnate who ruined Western music. I also studied viola for a few years with a teacher who held Schoenberg in utter contempt. And my college girlfriend's viola teacher was Robert Gross (a Hindemith pupil), and he was no Schoenberg fan either. But in 1970 I heard Lorin Maazel & the New Philharmonia (on my first visit to Carnegie Hall) perform the Op. 31 Variations for Orchestra, and I was simply astonished at the work's power & genius. In general, I find Berg & Webern easier to listen to, but Schoenberg's music in sympathetic performances is quite simply superb.

Probably the easiest place to start is with Schoenberg's tonal works like Verklarte Nacht (try Stokowski's on a Bridge CD or the original sextet version by the Hollywood Quartet on Testament), his Chamber Symphonies (#1 with Scherchen on Tahra, and #2 with Prausnitz on EMI - see my review of the latter), and Gurrelieder (my favorite is still the old Leibowitz on Preiser CD, despite rough playing & mono sound - its wonderful singers included Richard Lewis and Ethel Semser). Unfortunately, my favorite performance of the marvelous "Pierrot Lunaire" (Semser with Leibowitz) is on a long-gone Westminster LP. The piano works are also very gratifying, especially as done by Steurermann (Columbia LP), Jacobs (Nonesuch CD), and Helffer (a superb Harmonia Mundi 3-CD set that also has piano pieces by Debussy & Bartok).

While the sound of this M&A set is saddled with often noisy originals (the best-sounding items are the ones taken from Dial LPs), the performances here are revelatory. Once heard several times, the Schoenberg string quartets are very nearly as accessible as Bartok's (although the latter's are resolutely tonal, and their over-all superiority is, to my ears, partly a function of greater rhythmic drive & folk music elements). The dreamy and haunting Quartet #2 is unique for its use of a soprano voice (excellently sung here). All in all, I still prefer the greater virtuosity of the Juilliard Quartet's magnificent 1950's set (with soprano Uta Graf) on wonderful-sounding mono Columbia LPs that disgracefully remain in LP limbo. But I DEFINITELY will keep these Kolisch readings. Likewise, I still prefer the Juilliard's recordings of the Bartok Quartets from 1950 (Pearl CD - see my review) & from 1963 (out of print Columbia LPs). The Juilliard's Schoenberg & Bartok cycles strike me as the very finest modern music quartet recordings ever made.

The Berg Lyric Suite here joins the extraordinary 1936 Galimir Quartet's (coupled on a Testament CD with Louis Krasner's greatest-ever Berg Violin Concerto, with the BBC Symphony conducted by Anton Webern) and the mono RCA LP version with the Juilliard as the work's finest-ever accounts. I have never heard Schoenberg's Violin Concerto sound so ingratiatingly like Berg's concerto as it is here with Kolisch & Leibowitz (despite rather poor sound and occasional slips by Kolisch - he was age 70!). And Bartok's solo violin sonata, played with the last mvt. microtone harmonics that were edited out by Menuhin (who commissioned it) is spellbinding, despite some rough playing (it reminds me of Enesco's mesmerizing Bach recorded when he was old and suffering from arthritis). The interview with Kolisch about this last work is fascinating.

If you have difficulty in digesting the 12-tone method, as many people do, here's a simple suggestion: buy or rent the DVD of Nicholas Ray's superb film "Rebel Without A Cause," starring the short-lived James Dean. It's visually brilliant (Ray's use of the color red is downright iconic) and the music, especially in the Planetarium sequence, is utterly riveting. The film's music was composed by Leonard Rosenman (pupil of Schoenberg & Sessions), and nearly the entire score is in the manner of Berg and Schoenberg! Gorgeous recorded excerpts from Rebel & Rosenman's score for East of Eden can be heard on a Nonesuch CD (see my review). Another illuminating resource is the 2002 book "Arnold Schoenberg's Journey" by Allen Shawn (available at Amazon).

This set's old sound will likely be of limited appeal to general listeners. But for collectors & specialists in this music, what is heard here will be an enduring source of wonder and inspiration.

Highly recommended to the curious few.

Jeff Lipscomb

Korngold: String Sextet; Schoenberg: Verklärte Nacht

Average customer rating:

Fascinating compositions given outstanding performances

Korngold: String Sextet; Schoenberg: Verklärte Nacht

Manufacturer: Hyperion UK
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Sextets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

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Bach - Mass in B minor / Argenta, Nichols, Chance, Stafford, Milner, W. Evans, Gardiner
Dvorák: Cello Concerto; Tchaikovsky / Karajan, Rostropovich,
Liszt: The Two Piano Concertos; The Piano Sonata
Shostakovich: Symphonies no 5 and 9 / Haitink
Tschaikovsky: Ballet Suites / Rostropovich, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra

ASIN: B000002ZNU
Release Date: 1993-11-17

Tracks:

String Sextet In D Major, Op. 10: Moderato - Allegro
String Sextet In D Major, Op. 10: Adagio
String Sextet In D Major, Op. 10: Intermezzo (Moderato, con grazia)
String Sextet In D Major, Op. 10: Finale (Presto)
Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4 (Part 1)
Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4 (Part 2)
Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4 (Part 3)
Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4 (Part 4)
Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4 (Part 5)

Amazon.com

The playing of The Raphael Ensemble is wonderfully polished, and the account these young musicians deliver has lots of voltage behind it. The opening is extremely atmospheric--hauntingly stark and subdued--but the climactic pages that come later in the piece have rarely been as intensely presented. Hyperion's 1990 recording is outstanding, and the coupling, Korngold's excellent D-major sextet, receives a marvelous performance from the group that rediscovered it. --Ted Libbey

Customer Reviews:

Fascinating compositions given outstanding performances.......2004-08-07

This disc contains two engaging and colorful works, played by one of the finest chamber groups I've had the pleasure of listening to---The Raphael Ensemble. The first, a lovely composition, is the String Sextet by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, who is best known for his Hollywood motion picture soundtracks from over a half century ago. The piece has a luxurious feel. Its unmistakably romantic influence is captured in a disarming but never maudlin way by the Raphael. This is particularly evident in the pleasant, waltz-like third movement intermezzo. The final presto's exotic, Bartokian sounding elements shift to reveal a somewhat more comfortably lyrical quality. Here and elsewhere, the Raphael plays brilliantly....The Schoenberg Verklarte Nacht is an interesting piece, laden with dramatic and poignant sonorities. Aside from the darkly sweet moments, one occasionally encounters an undoubtedly Wagnerian flavor, particularly in the end (shades of Entry of the Gods Into Valhalla from The Magic Fire Music). I find the work absorbing, and it is given an especially sensitive and concentrated performance by the Raphael. In addition, Hyperion's cover art for the cd is most interesting. It is called Ghostly Cloud, by Richard Riemerschmid. The entire package is firmly recommended.

Arnold Schoenberg: Chamber Music for Strings

Average customer rating:

Essential recording

Arnold Schoenberg: Chamber Music for Strings
Taco Kooistra , Viola de Hoog , Arnold Schoenberg , Sepp Grothenhuis , Susan Narucki , Henk Guittart , Jan Erik van Regteren , Janneke van der Meer , and Schoenberg Quartet
Manufacturer: Chandos
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Quartets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

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Complete Webern
Schoenberg: Piano Works
Schoenberg: Piano Concerto
Alban Berg Collection / Various (Coll)
Arnold Schoenberg: Serenade/Five Pieces For Orchestra

ASIN: B00005NVG9
Release Date: 2001-09-25

Tracks:

String Quartet No. 1, Op. 7: Nicht zu rasch
String Quartet No. 1, Op. 7: Kraftig (nicht zu rasch)
String Quartet No. 1, Op. 7: MaBig, langsame Viertel
String Quartet No. 1, Op. 7: Mabig, heiter
String Quartet No. 3, Op. 30: Moderato
String Quartet No. 3, Op. 30: Adagio
String Quartet No. 3, Op. 30: Intermezzo. Allegro moderato
String Quartet No. 3, Op. 30: Rondo. Molto moderato

Tracks:

String Quartet No. 2, Op. 10: MaBig
String Quartet No. 2, Op. 10: Sehr rasch
String Quartet No. 2, Op. 10: Litanei
String Quartet No. 2, Op. 10: Entrucking
String Quartet No. 4, Op. 37: Allegro molto; energico
String Quartet No. 4, Op. 37: Comodo
String Quartet No. 4, Op. 37: Largo
String Quartet No. 4, Op. 37: Allegro

Tracks:

Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: Sehr langsam
Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: (C)
Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: Schwer betont
Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: Sehr breit und langsam
Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: Sehr ruhig
Phantasy For Violin With Piano Accompaniment, Op. 47
Ode To Napoleon Buonaparte, Op. 41

Tracks:

String Trio, Op. 45: Part 1
String Trio, Op. 45: First Episode
String Trio, Op. 45: Part 2
String Trio, Op. 45: Second Episode
String Trio, Op. 45: Part 3
Six Little Piano Pieces, Op. 19: Leicht, zart
Six Little Piano Pieces, Op. 19: Langsam
Six Little Piano Pieces, Op. 19: Sehr langsame Viertel
Six Little Piano Pieces, Op. 19: Rasch, aber leicht
Six Little Piano Pieces, Op. 19: Etwas rasch
Six Little Piano Pieces, Op. 19: Sehr langsam
Quintet For Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Horn, Bassoon, Op. 26: Schwungvoli
Quintet For Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Horn, Bassoon, Op. 26: Anmutig und
Quintet For Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Horn, Bassoon, Op. 26: Etwas langsam.
Quintet For Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Horn, Bassoon, Op. 26: Rondo

Tracks:

String Quartet in D Major: Allegro molto
String Quartet in D Major: Intermezzo. Andantino grazioso
String Quartet in D Major: Andante con moto
String Quartet in D Major: Allegro-Presto
Chamber Symphony No. 1, Op. 9: Langsam-Sehr rasch
Chamber Symphony No. 1, Op. 9: Sehr rasch
Chamber Symphony No. 1, Op. 9: Viel langsamer, aber doch flieBend
Chamber Symphony No. 1, Op. 9: Viel langsamer
Chamber Symphony No. 1, Op. 9: Schwungvoli
Concerto For String Quartet and Orchestra: Largo-Allegro
Concerto For String Quartet and Orchestra: Largo
Concerto For String Quartet and Orchestra: Allegretto grazioso
Concerto For String Quartet and Orchestra: Hornpipe. Moderato

Customer Reviews:

Essential recording.......2001-11-06

This is a monumental recording. It ended my search for a good performance of Schoenberg's complete string quartets. Compared for instance to the Arditti's version, which makes for a pretty "difficult" listen, hard on the ear and the brain, this one is pretty "easy". Let's not argue about the "romantic" or "modernist" points of vue which have plagued the Schoenberg issue for much too long. This boxed set is a mature rendition of some of the most essential works of the XXth century. The Schoenberg quartet provides excellent performance throughout (although their version of "Verklärte Nacht" might seem rather dark and lacking in contrast as compared to, say, the Boulez reading). This is Schoenberg beyond theory, this is, to put it simply, Schoenberg's music as Schoenberg himself might have wished to hear it. Thanks to the Schoenberg Quartet, the 21st century should see at last a vast audience starting to appreciate a body of work on a par with that of the greats which Schoenberg revered so much : Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms. Treat yourself to this one and relish in an adventure (while it still tastes like adventure).

Hanns Eisler: Variations, Op. 70 / Divertimento for Wind Quintet, Op. 4 / Arnold Schoenberg: Wind Quintet, Op. 26

Average customer rating:

SCHOENBERG'S WIND QUINTET!!

Hanns Eisler: Variations, Op. 70 / Divertimento for Wind Quintet, Op. 4 / Arnold Schoenberg: Wind Quintet, Op. 26
Hanns Eisler , Arnold Schoenberg , Chamber Music Association of the German State Opera - Berlin , and Danzi Wind Quintet - Berlin
Manufacturer: Berlin Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Arnold Schoenberg: Suite, Op. 29, for 2 Clarinets, Bass Clarinet, Violin, Viola, Cello & Piano / Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4 (Sextet for 2 Violins, 2 Violas & 2 Celli) - Ensemble Intercontemporain, Pierre Boulez
Arnold Schoenberg: Serenade/Five Pieces For Orchestra
Schoenberg: Chamber Symphony No1; Die Jacobsleiter
Stravinsky: Three Greek Ballets (Apollo, Agon, Orpheus)
Schoenberg: Concerto for String Quartet & Orchestra; Lied der Waldtaube; The Book of the Hanging Gardens

ASIN: B000007NEX
Release Date: 1998-06-16

Tracks:

Vierzehn Arten Den Regen Zu Beschreiben, Op. 70 Var
Divertimento, Op.4
Divertimento, Op.4
Quintet for Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Horn and Bassoo: Schwungvoll
Quintet for Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Horn and Bassoo: Anmutig
Quintet for Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Horn and Bassoo: Etwas Langsam, ...
Quintet for Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Horn and Bassoo: Rondo

Customer Reviews:

SCHOENBERG'S WIND QUINTET!!.......2005-02-01

The real star here is Schoenberg's Wind Quintet: a 12-tone, classically balanced piece, it's outstanding--especially the langsam/adagio movement: it does something to the electrochemical activity of the brain: relaxes it, while stimulating the Idea. Wonderful!

Pierre Boulez ~ Schoenberg · Berio · Carter · Kurtág · Xenakis

Average customer rating:

A great purchase for new fans modern music
powerful showcase of the last century
Best Single Collection of Modern Music

Pierre Boulez ~ Schoenberg · Berio · Carter · Kurtág · Xenakis
Arnold Schoenberg , Luciano Berio , Elliott Carter , Gyorgy Kurtag , Sir Harrison Birtwistle , Gerard Grisey , Iannis Xenakis , Hugues Dufourt , Brian Ferneyhough , Pierre Boulez , Ward Swingle , Regis Pasquier , Phyllis Bryn-Julson , Adrienne Csengery , Istvan Matuz , and The Swingle Singers
Manufacturer: Elektra / Wea
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Octets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

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ASIN: B000005EDU
Release Date: 1995-06-06

Tracks:

Pelleas Und Melisande - Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Introduction - Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Theme - Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Variation I - Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Variation II - Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Variation III - Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Variation IV - Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Variation V - Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Variation VI - Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Variation VII - Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Variation VIII - Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Variation IX - Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Finale - Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Tracks:

I - Regis Pasquier
II - O King - Regis Pasquier
III - In ruhig fliessender Bewegung - Regis Pasquier
IV - Regis Pasquier
V - Regis Pasquier
Eindruke - Orchestre National De France

Tracks:

Concerto Pour Hautbois - Pierre Boulez
Esprit Rude/Esprit Doux - Pierre Boulez
Anaphora - Pierre Boulez
Argument - Pierre Boulez
Sandpiper - Pierre Boulez
Insomnia - Pierre Boulez
View Of The Capitol From The Library Of Congress - Pierre Boulez
O Breath - Pierre Boulez
Penthode - Pierre Boulez

Tracks:

Messages De Feu Demoiselle R. V. Troussova - Adrienne Csengery
For 16 Voices And 3 Instrumental Groups - Pierre Boulez
Modulations - Pierre Boulez

Tracks:

Jalons - Pierre Boulez
Antiphysis - Istvan Matuz
Version I - Pierre Boulez
Version II - Pierre Boulez

Amazon.com essential recording

Collecting five CDs for about the price of three, this set of Boulez recordings is without parallel among the conductor's new-music releases. Imagine getting Boulez's celebrated single CD of Luciano Berio's Sinfonia and Eindrücke and his equally impressive single CD of Arnold Schoenberg's Pelleas und Melisande and Variations for Orchestra, bundled with four pivotal Elliott Carter works, Sir Harrison Birtwistle's electrifying ...AGM..., Gérard Grisey's Modulations, Iannis Xenakis's Jalons, Hugues Dufourt's Antiphysis, and Brian Ferneyhough's Funerailles, and you have an idea how far this set stretches.

There are the uproarious moments of Berio's clattery free-for-all approach easily juxtaposed against Schoenberg's more measured Variations, as it illuminates the crossroads of serialism and standard classical methodologies. The most astonishing moments come in the Kurtag songs, themselves echoing Pierrot Lunaire, and the Birtwistle work, which crosses extended vocal patterns with exclamatory orchestral interruptions to great effect. For anyone interested in Boulez's conductorly contributions to the postserial world, this is a surefire collection that opens the window on the great one's magic with difficult, thorny music. It also serves as a fascinating primer on the expansion of new music's techniques, especially when you consider the Elliott Carter works, all of them post-1975 and each uniquely expanding the American canon immeasurably, or the Grisey, Dufourt, and Ferneyhough works, as each of these composers came of age in the post-World War II era. --Andrew Bartlett

Customer Reviews:

A great purchase for new fans modern music.......2001-04-02

I just started getting into modern music a few years ago and this set was one of the best purchases I have made so far. It introduced me to several of my now favorite composers, as well as starting me off with a top-notch recording of their work. The $10 per CD price is very good for contemporary music (which usually runs closer to $20 for a CD). The music covers several composers in much greater depth than your average sampler, and every CD in the set would make a great individual purchase. In addition to the content, the recording quality and performance on each track is uniformly flawless. If you are new to avant-garde music, think of this set as an introductory greatest hits compilation that will remain a treasured purchase no matter how big your collection gets. If you're an experienced contemporary music collector you probably bought this CD as soon as you saw the names on it and the price.

powerful showcase of the last century.......2000-04-10

I concur this is the only place to find these masterworks, not all but the Carter pieces,Penthode I know of no other recording. This is a marvelously opaque like work, somewhat dry, Carter's penchant utilization of a rhythmic cell passed around the rather dry sounding ensemble. Especially exciting here is Antiphysis by Hughes Dufourt,a French composer philosopher who is quite outspoken on carrying the torch of European post serial modernity. This work is a veiled flute concerto,largely in two seamless movements where the soloist is simply part of the forever trmoili textures the first half of the work, blizzards of flute tones are conveyed,large doses of fluttertonguing,fast filigreed moments. At times the chamber ensemble seems to engulf powerfully the soloist knocking it out of commission and at times Dufourt with incredible surges of timbre. This is a surface piece of incredible power, long stridently sustained chords, like the internal tension of a suspension bridge, You are waiting for something to snap, it doesn't. The percussion moments in this work as well create great waves and impeccably controlled thunderous roars to stop on a dime. You would never know this piece is actually a miniature flute concerto. The flute lines tossed into all registers with colourful again fluttertonguing, wisps and long scale-like lines. Dufourt is not a prolific composer.So this is a rare treat.

Boulez's residencies with The Chicago Symphony over the past ten years has produced a few profound gems from the Post Romantic world,one not entirely his, and Schoenberg's tone poem 'Pelleus und Melisande' in one of them.This is an early post Wagnerian score double the legth of his equally successful 'Transfigured Night'.Unless you know the motives Herr Schoenberg had utilized from the original Maeterlinck play,the work engulfs one as one colossol tone poem/commentary on the wanderings and below the surface anxieties of the union of this pair of lovers,who never quite get it.Schoenberg as Debussy had visions of the darkest moments of the Maeterlinck with rounded timbral orchestrations. Boulez holds a taut reins here and controls this arduously long work with great vision. It's dark colours and thick textures are all balanced properly. You never sense the works length,it moves,lumbers into its moments quite well and when it hunkers down finally on an old fashion minor chord it is arresting.Chicago plays this music as no other,music written for them, with there overdosed,overexposed repertoire of post Romantics from the Solti Years. They put this expereince to its test in the 'Orchestral Variations' also of Schoenberg, a much later work from his brief year spent in Berlin in 1930, a time when he had full confidence in his visions for the dodecaphonic language. Boulez also enjoys this work with a full spectrum of shapes to lend direction from chamber like moments of some of the variations to discreet solos and duets emanating from the orchestral forces to full bodied statements. This is quite an achievement for this newly found language. But you can see Schoenberg moving into these untenable,new regions. For the isolated sense of expressionist colour seems to have been forsakened here,abandoned for a larger homogeneous one. If you know his 'Five Pieces for Orchestra',you sense an entire universe of difference.As if Wagner now has returned to haunt him. The Ensemble Intercontemporain bring a real sense of immediacy to the Ferneyhough, 'Funerailles',a score scaled down to 2 Violins, 2 Violas, 2 Cellos, Doublebass and Harp.It's in the same gestural habitation of the Dufourt, large textural plains,regions of tremoli,punctuated freely.You may not recognize Ferneyhough here this is an early work with large gestures,not the finely attenuated approach to structuring and shaping timbres as you might find for instance in his 'Etudes Trancendental' or the string quartets. Without the Harp here to punctuate the one-dimensional string timbre produced here this work would indeed have been tedious and bland. The right amount of penetrating timbre is here to give the work the thornyness it deserves.If you are a Xenakis fan then his Jalons (steps) here is for you. This is music about the density and timbre transformations. Almost like standing in front of an industrial contraption waiting for it to turn off or break down or heat up.Blast furnace like timbres and strident whistles are here.

Best Single Collection of Modern Music.......1998-12-21

Listen--this set is actually a great buy, though it may seem like too much of an investment. But for your 45 bucks you get five discs (only $9 per disc), and it has to be one of the best collections of modern music ever, played by Boulez' spectacular group, Ensemble InterContemporain. Look at what you get: Schoenberg's Variations for Orchestra (his most beautiful serialist composition); Berio's Sinfonia (a contemporary classic); Carter's Oboe Concerto, Mirror on Which to Dwell, and Penthode (for Carter fans, the disc is a must, since it's currently the only place you can get the concerto and Penthode, both essential Carter); Kurtag's Troussova (searing), Birtwistle's AGM (powerful, mysterious), Ferneyhough's Funerailles (electric), and Xenakis's Jalons (one of his best). For one purchase, you'll find yourself right in the thick of modern music.

Schoenberg - Pierrot lunaire ~ Herzgewächse ~ Ode to Napoleon / Schäfer, Pittman-Jennings, Ensemble InterContempolain, Boulez

Average customer rating:

Sprechstimme???
Lovely, but not a first choice.
One of the Best Schoenberg Discs Available...
atonal vs. twelve-tone
How the soul recovers itself in the midnight of pain

Schoenberg - Pierrot lunaire ~ Herzgewächse ~ Ode to Napoleon / Schäfer, Pittman-Jennings, Ensemble InterContempolain, Boulez
Arnold Schoenberg , Pierre Boulez , Christine Schäfer , David Pittman-Jennings , Ensemble InterContempolain , Florent Boffard , Jeannne Marie Conquer , Christophe Desjardins , Hae Sun Kang , Sophie Cherrier , and Alain Damiens
Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Similar Items:

Schoenberg: Piano Concerto
Arnold Schoenberg: Suite, Op. 29, for 2 Clarinets, Bass Clarinet, Violin, Viola, Cello & Piano / Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4 (Sextet for 2 Violins, 2 Violas & 2 Celli) - Ensemble Intercontemporain, Pierre Boulez
Verklarte Nacht and Pierrot Lunaire
Complete Webern
Le Chant du Rossignol/L'Histoire du Soldat

ASIN: B00000DBV6
Release Date: 1998-10-20

Tracks:

Pierrot Lunaire - Part I: 1. Mondestrunken
Pierrot Lunaire - Part I: 2. Colombine
Pierrot Lunaire - Part I: 3. Der Dandy
Pierrot Lunaire - Part I: 4. Eine blasse Wascherin
Pierrot Lunaire - Part I: 5. Valse de Chopin
Pierrot Lunaire - Part I: 6. Madonna
Pierrot Lunaire - Part I: 7. Der kranke Mond
Pierrot Lunaire - Part II: 8. Nacht
Pierrot Lunaire - Part II: 9. Gebet an Pierrot
Pierrot Lunaire - Part II: Raub
Pierrot Lunaire - Part II: 11. Rote Messe
Pierrot Lunaire - Part II: 12. Galgenlied
Pierrot Lunaire - Part II: 13. Enthauptung
Pierrot Lunaire - Part II: 14. Die Kreuze
Pierrot Lunaire - Part III: 15. Heimweh
Pierrot Lunaire - Part III: 16. Gemeinheit!
Pierrot Lunaire - Part III: 17. Parodie
Pierrot Lunaire - Part III: 18. Der Mondfleck
Pierrot Lunaire - Part III: 19. Serenade
Pierrot Lunaire - Part III: 20. Heimfahrt
Pierrot Lunaire - Part III: 21. O alter Duft
Herzgewasche
Ode To Napoleon Buonaparte

Amazon.com essential recording

Arnold Schoenberg claimed he had never set out to be a revolutionary. Yet the song cycle he wrote in 1912 based on proto- expressionist poems and featuring a grotesque harlequin figure, Pierrot Lunaire, still reverberates with its haunting, startling originality. This work introduced the world to a hitherto unthought-of musical landscape; to call it innovative would be an absurd understatement. What's particularly exciting about the undertaking here (Boulez's third recorded take on this music) is how utterly fresh the music sounds, its novelty unblunted and yet strangely beautiful--a far cry from the forbidding Schoenberg of stereotype. Soprano Christine Schäfer negotiates the no-man's land between spoken word and sung pitch--the technique known as Sprechstimme which Schoenberg introduced here--with fascinating nuance. She brings a cabaret-savvy sensibility to bear, along with a gripping sense of pathos, alternately sweet and acrid. Boulez treats the songs as miniatures, offering coloristic and multiperspectival--almost Cubistic--portrayals of Pierrot. For all the score's nebulous atmospherics, Boulez distills a keen, sharp clarity of line and timbre. Also included is the extraordinary song "Herzgewächse" (scored for harmonium, celesta, and harp), in which Schäfer matches her voice like a "crystal sigh" to the instrumentation. The album is filled out with Schoenberg's setting, during his exile from the Nazi horror, of Byron's bitterly ironic "Ode to Napoleon Buonaparte" for a baritone reciter. --Thomas May

Customer Reviews:

Sprechstimme???.......2006-03-24

I have a Boulez recording of the Pierrot Lunaire that I recorded on tape from a friend's Lp in 1979. I don't know anything about this lp, except that it is a Boulez's direction, but I think that it is an earlier version of the 1978 recording. The "sprechstimme" is realized better than the De Gaetani recording, obviously better than the '78 Boulez recording (here the reciter sing, and the Pierrot sould absolutely not be sung) and much better than the 1997 recording with Christine Schafer, who sing and often seems, I don't know how to say, almost like a "strangled hen"!... If anybody knows if this recording (my earlier Boulez recording on tape) is available on cd please tell us!!!

Lovely, but not a first choice........2005-02-16

The Pierrot is the major work on this CD. Schafer sings it beautifully and sensitively. But is this enough? Compare (even via the audio snippets on Amazon) this performance with Jan DeGaetani's (with no Boulez). One reviewer says that Schafer "smooths out" the sprechstimme. Well yes, but I prefer it unsmoothed. Otherwise, it becomes, essentially, singing, and that is precisely not what we want to hear. At every moment in the DeGaetani performance, she is precisely between singing and speaking; at every moment, the performance has an unpredictability that I really don't think Schafer/Boulez can offer. Unlike almost every sprechstimmer (and really, I think was artistic folly for Shoenberg to focus on this technique so much), there is high drama in DeGaetani's work.

So, yes, 4 stars for the Schaefer performance. It is a fine, artistic, and honorable performance. But for the performance God and Arnold would prefer, I'd start with the DeGaetani.

One of the Best Schoenberg Discs Available..........2005-01-31

This is a superb disc in many ways: it features three of Schoenberg's great pieces, one of which (Herzgewächse) is virtually unavailable anywhere else. Since the death of von Karajan, Boulez is now the greatest conductor in the world now working; and his understanding of Second Viennese School oeuvre is as insightful as Karajan's was. Christine Schäfer--for my money and to my ear--is the greatest soprano now working: her voice is exquisite: not shrill nor brittle, but rich, moist, and pure, and oh-so-effortless: she's absolutely wonderful, and she, too, has a deep insight into Modern music: for example, she sings the part of Lulu in Berg's eponymous opera.

As for the works: Herzgewächse is an exquisite song of about 4 min duration. It contains a hair-raising Expressionistic leap of the voice at climax, which Webern called, "the summit of music." The text is by Symbolist Belgian Maeterlinck.

Byron's Ode to Napoleon is about 20 mins of excoriating sarcasm and bitter irony on the capitulation of the Corsican. Schoenberg, to whom the sentiments of sarcasm and irony came naturally--set Byron's Ode in English as a protest against Hitler, Stalin, totalitarianism, and autocracy. Set for piano quintet, it's too, too wonderful. It's a 12-tone work, but the tones chosen have tonal ambiguities which also hint at Beethoven's Eroica.

Pierrot Lunaire is of course Schoenberg's most infamous piece. Here it is made most approachable by Boulez and Schafer. The problematic "speech-song" which Schoenberg calls for is smoothed-out by Schafer.

Outstanding performances of exquisite works, well recorded.

atonal vs. twelve-tone.......2004-10-04

I would just like to point out (in contrast to what a few reviews have implied) that while Pierrot Lunaire is "atonal" (not in a conventional key) it is not twelve-tone. Schoenberg did not begin using the twelve-tone system until later in his life.

These songs are incredibly beautiful, and not particularly "hard to listen to". Even if you generally disliked Schoenberg keep in mind that Pierrot is quite different from some of his later works. And don't be put off if you think you don't understand it. Just keep an open mind and enjoy the extraordinary sound Schoenberg has created.

How the soul recovers itself in the midnight of pain.......2004-09-09

Pierrot Lunaire is not an idiosyncratic piece of music - it is absolutely classical and central to the human experience and imagination. There is something in us that simultaneously desires to forget and remember our midnights - when too much cigarette smoke fills the air and all of the coffee we drink does nothing for us yet we keep drinking it anyway. We have had too much wine in our yesterdays but all we got from it is a massive hangover in this midnight that fills us with a terrifying lucidity through which we contemplate our failed romances, (what is worse) our successful romances, the terror of being and the laughter we use to cover it, and the antics of a perfectly white clown. That is the greatness of Arnold Schoenberg, that he communicates through his music that supreme subliminity that crept into Western conciousness in the nineteenth century and reached its final, monstrous fruition in the plays of Samuel Beckett. There is something more scary than a haunted house - Pierrot Lunaire.

Schoenberg: La Nuit Transfigurée; R. Strauss: Métamorphoses

Average customer rating:

Schoenberg: La Nuit Transfigurée; R. Strauss: Métamorphoses

Manufacturer: Calliope Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Classical | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B00005Q4MN
Release Date: 2002-03-12

Track Listings:

Track Listings

track listings

Track Listings

Hey Little Cobra and Other Hot Rod Hits

Piano Masters: Karol Szreter

Mezzanine

For the Love of Peace

Anthology: All I Ever Needed

Old School Cruzin' With the Intruders

My Fair Lady (1956 Original Broadway Cast) [Original recording remastered]

Mozart: Coronation Mass/Organ Solo Mass/Exsultate Jubilate

Party Till the Cows Come Home

Maria João Pires - Le Voyage Magnifique ~ Schubert Impromtus

New Best One [Import]

La Diferenzia

La Gran Furia Musical De Cumbias

Texas Flood

Lucky Number: The Best of Lene Lovich

1. String Quartet No. 1, Op. 7: Nicht zu rasch
2. String Quartet No. 1, Op. 7: Kraftig (nicht zu rasch)
3. String Quartet No. 1, Op. 7: MaBig, langsame Viertel
4. String Quartet No. 1, Op. 7: Mabig, heiter

1. String Quartet No. 2, Op. 10: MaBig
2. String Quartet No. 2, Op. 10: Sehr rasch
3. String Quartet No. 2, Op. 10: Litanei
4. String Quartet No. 2, Op. 10: Entrucking

1. Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: Sehr langsam
2. Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: (C)
3. Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: Schwer betont
4. Verklarte Nacht, Op. 4: Sehr breit und langsam

1. String Trio, Op. 45: Part 1
2. String Trio, Op. 45: First Episode
3. String Trio, Op. 45: Part 2
4. String Trio, Op. 45: Second Episode

1. String Quartet in D Major: Allegro molto
2. String Quartet in D Major: Intermezzo. Andantino grazioso
3. String Quartet in D Major: Andante con moto
4. String Quartet in D Major: Allegro-Presto