The
Gould Piano Trio have released a
third volume in their series of Beethoven
Piano Trios – but in fact this disc is a little different, in that there is
only one single movement here (the Variations
on ‘Ich bin der Schneider Kakadu’) that is performed by the full Gould
Piano Trio. The other two works on offer
here, the Op. 11 and Op. 38 Trios, are for clarinet, cello
and piano – so the Trio’s founder, violinist Lucy Gould gets a bit of a rest, replaced by clarinetist Robert Plane. Once again, these are live recordings,
recorded in 2012 at St George’s, Bristol.
The Op. 38 Trio is actually Beethoven’s own arrangement of his Op. 20
Septet, one of his most successful chamber works. It is more like a serenade, with real variety
across its six movements. The Scherzo
which follows the central set of variations is full of energy, and following a
slow introduction, the finale really takes off with rousing Presto. This is Beethoven in playful mode, and the players
are clearly having fun here. The Op. 11 Trio was in fact written first for the clarinet, cello & piano combination,
but it was published with an additional violin part too. It is a light, almost lyrical work, and the
duet in the Adagio is particularly well suited to the clarinet and cello, with
a beautiful tone from Plane here. In
between, we have the Variations, with the humour of the original popular song
(‘I am the tailor cockatoo’) exploited throughout. Whilst none of the works here are the most
profound of Beethoven’s output, these spirited live recordings do full justice
to their lighter, joyful nature. One
minor point – the otherwise informative notes by Robert Matthew-Walker are
slightly confusingly written as if Op. 11 is performed in its version with
violin, rather than clarinet.
The
same forces have also recorded a survey of chamber works by York Bowen
(1884-1961). This time, the forces are
slightly more varied, with Robert Plane
accompanied by the Gould’s pianist, Benjamin Frith for Bowen’s Clarinet Sonata,
and then the Gould string players, Lucy
Gould & Alice Neary, are
joined by Mia Cooper (violin) and David Adams (viola), with Plane this
time on bass clarinet for Bowen’s Phantasy
Quintet. The rest of the disc is
given over to the Gould Piano Trio
by themselves, with the Piano Trio in E
minor, the single movement Rhapsody
Trio, and another single movement from an unfinished Piano Trio in D minor, which the Goulds have edited and prepared
for performance. Bowen’s music is
unashamedly Romantic, and whilst he was incredibly successful in the early
twentieth century, his rejection of the changing styles of more modern
contemporaries meant that slowly his music fell out of favour, and by the end
of the last century, his repertoire was largely forgotten. The works on this disc here are definitely
within a very distinct late-romantic idiom, with an obvious line back to
Brahms, and a strong flavour of Rachmaninov (Bowen was even referred to in his
day as the ‘English Rachmaninov’). This is perhaps most evident in his Piano Trio in E minor, a towering work,
with a particularly virtuosic piano part, of which Frith demonstrates full
command here. The Phantasy Quintet is an equally impressive work, and Bowen makes
imaginative yet unobtrusive use of the bass clarinet, blending it with the
string textures expertly. The Clarinet Sonata which opens the disc
again demonstrates Bowen’s skill at creating a seamless flow through his
compositions, and for all the virtuosity required here from both clarinet and
piano (amply supplied by Plane & Frith), this is a remarkably coherent work
which deserves more hearings. Plane and
the Gould Piano Trio have worked together extensively, and this is highly
evident in their consummate performances on both of these discs.
Late
last year, as part of their 40th birthday celebrations, The Tallis Scholars released a
magnificent recording of the Missa
Gloria tibi Trinitas by John
Taverner (c1490-1545). This is an
incredibly challenging yet incredibly beautiful work, lasting just over forty
minutes. In six voices, the parts have
enormous ranges, stretching the singers and requiring remarkable stamina to
perform. Taverner’s writing here is
hugely architectural, and this further requires sustained intensity, which
director Peter Phillips extracts
from the 13 singers performing here. As
ever, the blend is impeccable, and the unfailing continuity of line is
impressive. The Benedictus is a perfect example of Taverner’s ability to stretch
his settings of the text, and the setting of the ‘in nomine’ here became the
basis of many other composers’ settings, such was its regard. The remainder of the disc is given over to
three settings of the Magnificat,
for four, five and six voices. They
couldn’t be more varied in their settings, with the four-voice the most
dramatic and imitative, and the five-voice is the most subtle, almost
soothing. In the six-voice, understandably,
Taverner makes greater use of variety of textures, with complex passages for
all six parts contrasted with sections for fewer voices. Overall, this disc demonstrates the technical
brilliance and profound depth of Taverner’s writing, and The Tallis Scholars
have chosen a fitting way to celebrate their forty years of bringing such music
to our ears. Long may this continue.
