Sunday 30 June 2013

LESSEL - Piano Concerto in C major op.14

INSIGHTS & DETAILS

        Let me introduce the composer, Franz Lessel, was born in 1780 into a musical family. He was the son of well-known composer Vincent Lessel. He received his first musical lessons from his father. He intended to study medicine in Vienna but completed a course in civil engineering. At the same time, he studied music with Joseph Haydn, whom considered him as his favourite pupil and successor. During his ten-year-stay at Vienna, Lessel composed a great deal of works, including the three Sonatas op.2, dedicated to Haydn. After Haydn's death, he returned to Poland and died there in 1838. He did not cease to compose after he returned to Poland although most of his masterpieces were composed in Vienna, the most fertile period of his life. Currently, only a few works in extant had been found and were published by Artaria and Breitkopf & Hartel.
        The Piano Concerto in C major op.14 is the most important known work by Lessel. Probably composed towards the end of his Viennese period and during the first few years following his return to Poland. It offers a magnificent example of blend between the classical style of Beethoven's time and the budding romantic movement. This new romantic style may be found chiefly in the concerto's third movement (most favourite of mine)which is written in the ternary rhythm used twenty years later by Chopin. This concerto also provides proof of Lessel's very considerable creative gifts. Highly beautiful themes, technical and harmonic discoveries of the greatest interest are found. The current decent version, reconstituted for the instrumentation by well-known Polish composer Casimir Sikorski is published by PWM (well-known Polish music publisher)
       Lets make no hesitation to get an insight view of this wonderful piece:

1st movement Allegro brillante

In quadruple time, this piece starts with a tuning melody played by the first violins, the string instruments started the first call of the movement...
It continues when the wind instruments arise (oboes, bassoons and horns)
Prime motive when the melody ends
The supporting violins for the motive
Second melody starts
The second melody fiddled by the first violins again
The prime motive is heard again..
The piano sounds ..
Imitating the first melody of the violins (regarded as prime melody) with minor variations
A minor key blast off by the piano, bringing the piece towards a different mood..
A melody appeared after a long cadenza, which only found in the solo piano part..
con simplicita = playing the melody as simple as possible
Rapid passages...prime motive followed by orchestra
violins imitating the third melody..


Transitional part played by solo piano. Aware of the beauty of flowing sextuplets in the left hand...


A part that I found special especially in the right hand, some Bachian style writing with a strong backup by the left hand.
The opening of the song is heard again
Solo piano playing first melody quickly followed by the third..
No surprise onwards, just a repetition of the first part

Typical Mozartian ending the movement (actually classical ending)

OVERALL COMMENT of the movt.

Melodious movement I can say, some virtuosic passages found in the solo piano part and that's a sign of budding romantic elements (which never can be found in Mozart's PCs). Lack of cadenza compared to most classical concertos.
Opening is melodious (not as grandeur as Beethoven), transitions between melodic elements are rather smooth. 

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2nd movement Adagio

Saturday 29 June 2013

In the realms of oblivion - The Classical Period

       The Classical Period, as stated in Wiki, are generally accepted as being between about 1730 and 1820, ranging about 90 years, often regarded as a bridging gap between the Baroque and Romantic periods. 
Often mentioned in the piano world, names such as Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven had dominated over 20 years, their works remained or a must be included in almost every repertoire nowadays. Over a thousand of recordings of the "3" sonatas, piano concertos made a laid-out point for every rising pianist. Such dominance, as what I called, overpowering has made lots of classical sonatas fell out of the pedagogical world. For example, friend and pupil of Mozart, Anton Eberl wrote magnificent piano sonatas that will overrate his teacher's works in terms of technique and complexity. Ferdinand Ries, friend and pupil of L.V.Beethoven, wrote 14 piano sonatas which unearthed these few years, showed a similarity in style of Beethoven. These 2 composers, whom overshadowed by the dominance of Mozart-Beethoven, fell into oblivion that simply wiped out off a pianist's mind. Someone even classified some Eberl's piano sonatas as Mozart's because of his overpopularity. Franciszek Lessel, in the other hand, pupil of Haydn, composed an elegant Grand Concert op.14 in C major which now been played frequently because of its rising popularity (This piece will be mentioned in the later posts). Stylistically classical, a masterpiece from a Polish composer suffered the same fate decades ago. Franz Schubert, classified as a transitional composer, had only 3 piano sonatas published during his lifetime (due to the declining trend of piano sonatas at that period and somehow overshadowed by Beethoven's last sonatas) is getting an uprising trend today in the piano world. His 20-odd sonatas are being frequently played and published in many editions (standard repertoire in exam as well as concerts). There is no luck to Eberl and Ries for a decent edition of their complete piano sonatas ALTHOUGH their sonatas are all published during their lifetime. As a rival of Mozart (legendary), Leopold Kozeluch wrote 50-odd piano sonatas which also suffered the fate of being forgotten. Thanks to Hogwood and a group of scholars who revived his music nowadays, a decent Urtext edition is being published by Barenreiter. The problem is there is simply no pianist dare to include these sonatas to their recordings (2 cds of sonatas has been recorded). Regarding piano concertos, only 5 out of 20 has been recorded so far. This is such an injustification to a classical master whom fame spread across Europe that time. Naxos is now issuing more classical period music than ever. A complete piano concertos and sonatas for Ferdinand Ries has been recorded.  I am now obtaining copies of music of forgotten classical composers and will make reviews on every single piece. I will focus more on piano works and works for piano and orchestra.