Mozart wind concerti

I've long had a disc of the three Mozart concerti (clarinet, oboe and bassoon) with Bohm conducting. I recently heard a disc of the Clarinet Concerto with Michael Collins (?) on clarinet and Pletnev conducting. It puts Bohm to shame. Bohm sounds stodgy by comparison. Pletnev is lively and alert. Full of bounce and vigor. Now I'd like to hear the other two concerti played this way. Any suggestions? Modern or HIP are both welcome.

The Orpheus Chamber orchestra did some Mozart concertos a while ago and I believe they are still kicking around in a new incarnation. They are very lively and well-played. My favorite for the Clarinet Concerto, which is the only one I listen to with any frequency, is still the old De Peyer/Maag recording on Decca.

For HIP, try the discs conducted by Hogwood; I'm not sure how or whether they're available, but they were last seen packaged as a box of two or three discs. The recording (with Anthony Pay) of the clarinet concerto is superb - you won't mind the duplication. Harnoncourt's recording of the bassoon concerto is good too. You probably don't need yet another suggestion for the clarinet concerto, but if you want it in its pre-basset-clarinet guise, I don't think you'll find a better recording than De Peyer/Maag on Decca.

Hallo MIFrost,

Can anyone compare it with Sabine Meyer/Staatskapelle Dresden/Vonk (my favorite non-HIP version)?

Btw, the clarinettist with Böhm is Alfred Prinz, isn't he?

As for HIP, I like the Hoeprich/Brüggen version.

Ciao

You could try Jack Brymer with Beecham conducting (EMI) or, even better, Gervase de Peyer with Peter Maag (Decca).

Yes. But Prinz recorded a better version of the concerto - indeed, my single favorite, run very close by the De Peyer/Maag - with Munchinger and the VPO for Decca.

Paul Goldstein

My favorite Mozart oboe concerto is by Lothar Koch with Karajan and BPO on EMI. As for the Mozart bassoon, I think the Decca McGill/Dohnanyi/Cleveland recording is excellent. It can be found on a CD that also includes Cohen (clarinet cto.) and Mack (oboe cto.). Mack's rendition of the oboe cto. is probably the weakest of the three. Despite what others say, I find Mack's tone to be quite thin in this recording. A much better way to get the McGill recording would be the Decca Double that also replaces the abovementioned Cohen/Dohnanyi with the much lauded de Peyer/Maag recording. Also included here are the 4 horn concerti performed by Tuckwell/Maag. Alas, this compilation still uses Mack's recording, but, at the same price as the Decca single mentioned above, it's definitely a better buy.

Victor

MIFrost) wrote

'Any suggestions? Modern or HIP are both welcome.'

There are several excellent renditions of the bassoon concerto available:

McGill/Dohnanyi/CO is superb

so is

Elliot/Abbado/CSO on DG

Garfield/Ormandy/PO is fine also.

all of these bassoonists are great artists.

my old favorite is Maurice Allard/Markevitch/Lamoureux on an old DG LP from the 50s, I believe. I've not seen it on CD. The French bassoon sound takes some getting used to, but the style and artistry are outstanding.

a perfect example of the wonderful 'souple' style of French playing - so 'vocal' and lyrical. he plays it like a big vocal aria for bassoon. of course, the technique is impeccable, not even an issue. Allard simply sails forth far above such mundane considerations!! LOL!!

I read somewhere that his wonderful Vivaldi concerto LP may have been released on CD. Great!!

This is by far my favorite recording of the bassoon concerto from the point of view of the soloist. The accompaniment could have more energy and character, but it doesn't get in the way of McGill's truly superb playing. In particular, he gets this amazingly 'vocal' expressive quality in the beautiful second movement. David McGill is arguably the finest bassoonist in the U.S. these days.

Also a great is a disc for the bassoon concerto is with Milan Turkovic as soloist, on Orfeo, with the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra. Another really, really beautifully done slow movement. This disc includes concerti by Michael Haydn, Villa-Lobos, Francaix, and some Gershwin arrangements.

For HIP, my favorite is Danny Bond as soloist, with Hogwood and the AAM. Danny Bond is a fabulous bassoonist by any standard, and certainly at the top for period bassoon.

The Orpheus CO disc with Morelli is quite good as well, but I think the others above are more disctinctive. Garfield and Phildelphia with Ormandy is a classic, and I'm glad I own the Elliot/Abbado recording from the 'Chicago Principal' disc, but with both of these I think the ones above are more interesting.

The intrepretation I like the best, however, is my own.

No recording is available though! Too bad, because my cadenza for the first movement kicks ass.

Ryan Hare

What about Gwydion Brooke with Beecham? Some odd articulation and a completely out-of-style (Stravinskian) cadenza in the first movement apart, I love his cheek-in-tongue interpretation of the last movement which is in my opinion better than any other I've heard. Besides, many bassoon players use a lot of ornamentation, particularly in the slow movement (e.g. Benda on Supraphon). How much of it is appropriate? Regards, once-used-to-be-ana-amateur-bassoonist

Both Amazon and ArkivMusic list the Double Decca.