Two lost composers are brought back to life
mainFrom the Lebrecht Album of the Week:
I struggle to describe my joy at hearing two unknown works by Berthold Goldschmidt, a brilliant composer who fled to London in 1935 and lived in obscurity until a late burst of recognition in the 1980s. I saw a lot of Berthold in his final decade when he was flying around the world for performances, and I remember how he wore acclaim with the same wry modesty as he had endured oblivion.
“The Comedy of Errors” overture is a piano trio he composed for his parents’ 25th wedding anniversary…
Read on here.
And here.
These are hardly “lost composers” most anyone who appreciates music knows at least some of their works. What’s lost are music label’s and orchestra’s soul for not performing and recording them more often. Profits over substances is sadly what rules the day. Anyway, off to purchase this album all the same.
What’s also lost is a large, musically educated audience which demands to hear this music and able to help pay. Can’t blame performers or recording companies for not producing music that won’t sell. You can’t operate at a loss forever. The old days of companies like Columbia where the pop division would subsidize the classical side are long gone.
In the classical music world, audiences are not determining what is being performed and recorded. It is the programmers and promotors who make the decisions. And most of the time, they don’t have the musical sophistication and insights which could enhance programming, because they are not musicans themselves but manager types, and their job is to get the hall full and the recordings sold. Audiences can only buy or not buy a ticket, or a CD, and that is all. When audiences stay away, socio-cultural initiatives are launched to ‘target’ groups, minorities, etc. to compensate for the losses.
I agree. At least in Germany Goldschmidt and esp. Schulhoff are on the program regularly. Orchestra, chamber, you name it. And I have heard Schulhoff even in the United States. So, while they used to be forgotten, fortunately, that is no longer the case.
I would love to see someone perform the operas of Carl Loewe. His lieder–really romantic/heroic ballads and odes–are so fantastic, like Wagner with piano-only accompaniment, much more exciting than (for instance) Schubert’s gooey crooning– I’d just love to see someone do his operas.
That is indeed the thought that always bubbles-up every time when I hear a piece by Goldschmidt.
“Schubert’s gooey crooning.”
A shame he doesn’t match your exacting standards.
==much more exciting than (for instance) Schubert’s gooey crooning
You’ve said the un-sayable here. Yes, an evening of Schubert Lieder can be very earnest.
Loewe’s opera “Rudolf der Deutsche Herr” is long overdue a revival.
BTW: Please could the input font on the site be made bigger ? And maybe in black rather than dark red ? It’s very hard to use. Thanks
Dead is dead, and I think we can all agree that the Nazis were very bad people, but Schulhoff actually died of tuberculosis (albeit in a camp).
Great recording. But wasn’t the recording released already quite long time ago……. ?
The composers who were killed in the Holocaust rarely have their music played, if ever, nor the refugees; yet Wagner and Strauss continue to be performed constantly, despite their despicable behavior. #JewToo.
Umm…neither Wagner nor Richard Strauss are responsible for what happened during the Nazi era.