RECORDING OF THE MONTH     CHOPIN Waltzes and Impromptus Vladimir Feltsman £11 post free World-wide VIVALDI The four seasons London Mozart Players/Juritz £12 post free World-wide BEETHOVEN Symphonies 4 and 5 LSO/Yondani Butt £12 post free World-wide

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Antonio JOSÉ (1902-1936) Sinfonía castellana (Castilian Symphony) (1923) [28:33] Suite de la ópera El mozo de mulas (The Muleteer) (1934) [8:44] Evocaciones (Cuadros de danza campesina) (Sketches of country dancing) (1926) [6:48] Marcha para soldados de plomo (March of the lead soldiers) (orch. Alejandro Yagüe) (1931) [3:13] Suite ingenua, for piano and strings (1928) [10:13] Alberto Rosado, piano (Suite ingenua) Castile and León Symphony Orchestra/Alejandro Posada rec. Teatro Lope de Vega, Valladolid, Spain. July 16-19, 2003. NAXOS 8.557634 [57:30]

Fans of twentieth century European music know the toll taken on Soviet composers by the excesses of Stalinism, and the loss of home and sometimes of life suffered by Jewish musicians in Nazi Germany. Yet totalitarianism and violence extended much further in the last century than central and eastern Europe. Antonio José was killed in the Spanish Civil War in 1936, at the age of 33. The liner notes for the recording, by Enríque Martínez Miura, provide a helpful overview of the life of the composer, whose full name was Antonio José Martínez Palacios. Despite the turbulence of José’s time and place, he wrote music in the accessible, upbeat nationalistic style common around the turn of the century away from the musical capitals. As with other such composers - I think, for example, of Bartók - José collected and published his country’s folk music and incorporated it into his own writing. It is perhaps surprising, then, that the Sinfonía castellana sounds as much French as it does Spanish or Castillian. The symphony’s Nocturno in particular, has a Debussy-like impressionism that may evoke visions of a Monet painting. Like the second-tier impressionistic composers, José’s use of the colors of the orchestral palette is masterful, but his development of the musical story-line can be less than compelling. As the liner notes put it, "there are no well-defined thematic contrasts." The Suite ingenua for piano and strings is my favorite work here. It is, at ten minutes, a miniature piano concerto, with a beautifully elegiac "Balada" as the middle movement. The outer movements are rhythmic and propulsive, the piano and strings by turns pushing each other forward. I am as unfamiliar with the performers as I was with the composer. Alberto Rosado is the pianist in the Suite ingenua. All of the works feature the Castile and León Symphony Orchestra, which was formed recently in 1991, and conductor Alejandro Posada Gómez. All concerned bring complete passion and skill to these performances. As is so often the case, Naxos has brought to our attention a little-known composer who deserves a hearing. For someone just beginning to explore the "Spanish Classics" series, I would recommend more familiar names such as Rodrigo or Turina. José’s music is good, but it is not great. It also may be imperfectly representative in light of its strong French flavor. For those, on the other hand, curious to explore the by-ways of Spanish orchestral music, this recording is an important document. Brian Burtt see also review by Rob Barnett     Advertising Rates Visitor stats MusicWeb International has over 40,000 Classical CD reviews on offer Discs received Having a problem Donating? Gerard Hoffnung Concerts & The Bricklayer Story   New Releases New Releases   MusicWeb sells the Polish catalogue CDAccord £10.50 post free W-W MusicWeb sells the Arcodiva catalogue £12.00 post free W-W £11.75 post-free world- wide MusicWeb can now offer you discs from the following catalogues: Prices include postage [Acte Préalable £13.50] [Arcodiva £12.00] [Avie from £6.25] [British Music Society £12.00] [CDACCORD from £13.50 ] [ClassicO £12.50] [Hallé from £11] [Heritage £10] [Hortus £14.99 ] [Lyrita ONLY £11.75 ] [Nimbus Special prices] [Northern Flowers £13.50] [REDCLIFFE £11 ] [Sheva £11] [Tactus £11.50 ] [Talent from £12.00 ] [Toccata Classics £10.50 ] Musicweb Special Offers Monthly Best Buys     Google Ads - for information about privacy matters, click here.  Amazon Musicweb International is a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com

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