Ries – Piano Concerto, Swedish National Airs with Variations (FLAC)

Composer: Ferdinand Ries
Orchestra: Gävle Symphony Orchestra
Conductor: Uwe Grodd
Audio CD
SPARS Code: DDD
Number of Discs: 1
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Naxos
Size: 237 MB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes

01. Variations on Swedish national airs, Op. 52: Variations on Swedish National Airs, Op. 52

02. Polonaise, Op. 174: Introduction and Polonaise, Op. 174

03. Piano Concerto No. 3 in C sharp minor, Op. 55: I. Allegro maestoso
04. Piano Concerto No. 3 in C sharp minor, Op. 55: II. Larghetto
05. Piano Concerto No. 3 in C sharp minor, Op. 55: III. Rondo: Allegretto

Outstanding new release

The rediscovery of Ferdinand Ries & his music has been full of surprises.

His Concerto op. 55 was first recorded decades ago, but it was crudely done. I kept spinning that unhappy performance in my head, the way I wanted it to be, and wondering why the performers hadn’t done better. Never mind why this was important to me, or why the concerto grabbed my attention at the time. I don’t really know myself.

I am amazed what Hinterhuber, Grodd & the Gavle Symphony Orchestra have done with this music. In their hands the c sharp minor Concerto stands revealed as an outstanding piece of music.

The other two items on the disc, the Swedish National Airs with Variations, and the Introduction & Polonaise are equally good, but I have not had a chance to study them in detail. I believe the performances here are both world premieres.

Both the Swedish National Airs, and the Concerto itself, date from around 1812. The final item, the Introduction & Polonaise, dates from 1833, the last years of the composer’s life. Of these final years, his wife, Harriet Mangean, is alleged to have said that Ries was writing the best music of his life (Bonn, 1784 – Frankfurt, 1838). This is certainly true of his 6th Symphony, which, if I had to judge only from what has been recorded to date, is his masterpiece. This despite the fact that Ries in his last years was severely depressed, if I am not mistaken. So I am looking forward to an extensive study of the Introduction.

Checking Mr. Hinterhuber’s web site, I learn that he & Mr. Grodd recorded a third volume in this series in January, 2007, in Scotland. I am looking forward to its release.