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Eduard FRANCK (1817-1893) Violin Concerto in E minor Op. 30 (1855) [34.08] Symphony in A major Op. 47 (1860?) [36.42] Christiane Edinger (violin), Saarbrücken Radio Symphony Orchestra/Hans-Peter Frank rec. 13-14 Oct 1997, Studio 1, Saarländischer Rundfunk, Saarbrücken co-production with Saarländischer Rundfunk premiere recordings AUDITE 20.025 [71.54]

Eduard was the brother of Hermann (1802-1855) who, as a writer on music, had contact with Wagner, Goethe and Heine. The other brother, Albert, had a bookshop in Paris and kept company with Chopin, Charles Hallé and Stephen Heller. The E minor Violin Concerto was composed in Cologne to which Franck had moved at the request of Ferdinand Hiller. It was premiered by another Hiller invitee, Theodor Pixis. It is a work of streaming intensity deliciously prone to lyrical flights akin to the Mendelssohn concerto (in the same key) but without the ineffable surge of smiling quicksilver. The last movement recalls a village fiddler and rustic dance floors across the continent. The Symphony in B flat major represents a crossroads between early Schumann and Mendelssohn. The horn solos are very colourful and make a memorable effect although the execution is not ideally polished or rounded. There are some Schumann-like accelerandi like those that inject the drama into the Fourth Symphony. You will find yourself easily hooked whether by the fluttery athleticism of the second movement, the winsome flute-playing of the Adagio with its momentous atmosphere or the Mendelssohnian chasseur-style allegro writing. This is a strong mood invoker, relaxed and Beethovenian (Symphonies 4 and 8). Ludger Böckenhoff and Audite should take a curtain call for their valiant advocacy of this otherwise disgracefully disregarded figure. Meritorious and highly attractive music at last out into the light of common day. Rob Barnett Gerard Hoffnung CDs Advertising on Musicweb Help us with a donation? New Releases Musicweb sells the following labels Acte Préalable Arcodiva Avie British Music Soc. CDAccord Hallé Hortus Lyrita Nimbus Northern Flowers Redcliffe Sheva Tactus Talent Toccata Classics Follow us on Twitter Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter

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