The conductor Christopher Fifield, who is also a noted writer
about music - and a contributor to MusicWeb International - has
already been responsible for bringing a number of neglected works
into the catalogue, including his fine recording of the Symphony
No 1 by Frederick Cliffe (see review).
Now he gives us a welcome selection of orchestral music by Richard
Franck, a composer whose name and music were hitherto unknown
to me.
As Franck’s name may
be unfamiliar to others, perhaps a little biographical detail
will be helpful. For this I draw on the very useful booklet note
by Paul Feuchte. Franck was born in Cologne. His father, Eduard
Franck (1817-1893) was a well-known composer, pianist and teacher.
His mother, Tony Thiedemann, was a pianist. They met through friendship
with the Mendelssohns; Eduard was a friend of Felix Mendelssohn
and Tony was a member of the circle of Felix’s sister, Fanny.
Richard Franck studied philosophy at Leipzig University but at
the same time pursued musical studies at the city’s conservatoire,
the director of which at that time was Carl Reinecke (1824-1910),
a lasting influence on young Franck. Later Franck spent the best
part of twenty years on the staff of the German music school in
Basel, until 1900. He then moved back to Germany, to Kassel, where
he carved out quite a career for himself as a performer and conductor.
Unfortunately his health began to deteriorate and in 1910 he retreated
to Heidelberg, where he followed a less hectic schedule of performing
and teaching, living there until his death in 1938.
His mature composition
career spans the period from around 1880 until his death, though
after 1910 his creative activity was sporadic. It seems that his
style was pretty conservative, influenced by Reinecke and by his
friend, the Swiss composer Hans Huber (1852-1921) and that’s certainly
the impression conveyed by the contents of this CD. On this evidence
Franck was firmly in the tradition of Mendelssohn and Schumann
– and none the worse for that – though it’s clear that he was
not immune from the influence of Wagner also. The music on this
disc is uniformly pleasing, though it breaks no new ground and
doesn’t storm the emotional heights, and the craftsmanship sounds
to be tasteful and of a high order.
It’s also suggested
in the notes that Franck had difficulty escaping the shadow of
his father. Several of Eduard Franck’s pieces have been recorded
and Rob Barnett’s review
of this present disc includes links to reviews on Music Web International
of some of those CDs and to a disc of chamber music by Richard
himself. So far as I know, that disc has been the sole representation
of his output in the catalogue until now.
There is one work
on this disc that, with sufficient exposure, might establish some
degree of modern reputation for Franck. The Serenade for Violin
and Orchestra may not be technically the finest work in the
collection – I’ll leave that to others to debate – but it’s a
real charmer despite its modest dimensions. The music is predominantly
broad, lyrical and easeful. The soloist has an enviable line,
which is spun beautifully by Fabian Wettstein, who is also the
konzertmeister of the orchestra. He’s aided by sensitive support
from his colleagues. Christopher Fifield rightly mentions Max
Bruch as a comparator. This wholly engaging piece could have been
the slow movement to a concerto though it is, in fact. an independent
composition.
Its companion, the
Serenade for Cello and Orchestra is, I suspect, pretty
contemporaneous to judge by the opus number – one regrettable
omission from the documentation is any information as to the dates
of composition of the various works. This is also a very appealing
piece but it’s somewhat darker hued, perhaps fittingly, given
the choice of solo instrument. The soloist here is the orchestra’s
principal cellist and he’s another fine and sympathetic player.
The Suite for Orchestra
is cast in four movements. The first and third movements are light
and easy going while the second, as Mr Fifield observes, has some
kinship with Brahms in Hungarian Dance mood. The finale, which
is lively and enjoyable, is the most substantial of the movements.
Liebesidyll -
Amor und Psyche is a bigger piece in conception. It opens
with a soulful unaccompanied cello solo – and there’s a second
such passage a little later on. This work is very definitely in
the mould of late nineteenth century German romantic music and
in it Franck deploys the richest orchestral palette so far encountered
on the disc. Though unashamedly romantic it’s not a hothouse piece:
note, for example, the engaging section in compound time between
5:46 and 6:41, which has a fine lilt to it. This may not be a
masterpiece but it’s a very pleasing piece to hear.
The last piece on
the programme, Wellen des Meeres und der Liebe (‘Waves
of the Sea and of Love’) was premièred in Lucerne in 1895 under
the direction of Mengelberg, no less. It’s an enjoyable work if
not, in the last analysis, especially memorable. I don’t know
if there’s a programme of any kind behind the music.
That last comment
highlights the one shortcoming in an otherwise excellently produced
release. There are booklet essays in German and in English by
the same author, but not identical I content. The English essay
contains a good deal of biographical information – very necessary
– but insufficient information about and commentary on the music
itself. That’s a regrettable omission since the music will be
new to most listeners, I imagine. My knowledge of German is only
rudimentary but so far as I can tell the same comment applies
to the German note.
However, that’s the
only criticism I have of this issue. The sound is very good and
so far as I can judge – this is unfamiliar music and I have seen
no scores – the orchestra plays very well and with enthusiasm:
certainly the sound they produce is very pleasing. Christopher
Fifield conducts with refinement and evident enthusiasm for the
music.
No masterpieces have
been unearthed here. On the evidence of this CD Richard Franck
was a conservative and fairly minor composer but he was not a
negligible composer and his music is enjoyable, skilful and attractive.
Enthusiasts for music of this style and period will certainly
want to hear it and so should other collectors with an enquiring
ear.
John Quinn
see also Review
by Rob Barnett
Fabian Wettstein
(violin); Tim Strüble (cello) 