Ferdinand Ries: Introduction and Rondeau Brilliant, WoO 54, Christopher Hinterhuber (piano) скачать в хорошем качестве

Ferdinand Ries: Introduction and Rondeau Brilliant, WoO 54, Christopher Hinterhuber (piano)

Ferdinand Ries - Introduction and Rondeau Brilliant, WoO 54, Christopher Hinterhuber (piano), Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Uwe Grodd (conductor) “As one of the finest pianist-composers in Europe of his time, it is surprising that the name Ferdinand Ries is not better known today. The neglect of most of his major works is even more puzzling given his long association with Beethoven, first as his pupil, and later as a life-long friend and colleague. In most other circumstances this would have prompted an exhaustive study of his music but in Ries's case this has not happened. One of the reasons for this may lie in his publication of an important book of reminiscences about Beethoven that has proved to be of such enduring interest that scholarship has concentrated on this rather than his music. Unlike Beethoven, whose deafness drove him from the concert platform relatively early in his career, Ries remained one of Europe's most celebrated virtuosi until well into the 1830s. His receptiveness to new musical trends and his ability to develop and exploit them was as fundamental to his success as an artist as it was to his close contemporary Hummel. This quality of Ries is reflected in the formal diversity of his works for piano and orchestra: in addition to concertos, there are several sets of variations, two large-scale rondos and a polonaise. The use of contrasting tempi within a rondo movement may have prompted Ries to think about the possibilities of writing self-contained concert rondos. The experience of composing and performing works such as the Swedish Variations and the Rule Britannia Variations also provided him with valuable opportunities to experiment with independent concert works for piano and orchestra. All of these works take much the same external form: they consist of a lengthy slow introduction that may or may not have a motivic association with the main body of the work. This, be it a rondo or a set of variations, invariably includes sections within it that are contrasted by metre, tonality and tempo thus ensuring that the work contains sufficient variety to keep the audience entertained. The Introduction et Rondeau Brillant, Wo054, composed in 1835, is no exception. Although many of Ries's works remained unpublished at the time of his death, it is symptomatic of his declining fortunes as an artist that such an impressive work as this should have suffered the same fate. It shows no weakening of inspiration either in its thematic ideas or musical structure, nor does the solo writing suggest that Ries's powers as a performer were in any way diminished. It is a work that is every bit as impressive as its predecessors and it is difficult to imagine Ries's audience reacting with any less enthusiasm than they had at his numerous other premieres. Within three years of its composition both he and Hummel were dead and with them, the last links to the golden age of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven were severed.” (extract from album notes by Allan Badley)