Louis SPOHR (1784-1859)
Concertante No. 1 in A major, Op. 48 (1808) [24:20]
Concertante No. 2 in B minor, Op. 88 (1833) [26:07]
Violin Duet in G major, Op.3, No. 3 (1833) [9:55]
Henning Kraggerud (violin); Øyvind Bjorå (violin)
Oslo Camerata and Barratt Due Chamber Orchestra/Stephan Barratt-Due
rec. February 2008, Jar Church, Oslo
NAXOS 8.570840 [57:02]
Spohr’s two Concertanti were written some 25 years apart, and display his
characteristic melodic grace, adept interplay, and a sometimes intriguing
approach to orchestration. It all makes for fluent listening, especially given
the fine performances enshrined in this disc.
The elegant two minute orchestral introduction to the A major Concertante
sets the marker. Clever registral interplay demarcates Spohr’s schema,
allowing contrast but also unison. Overall he imbues the music with a joie
de vivre demonstrated by ebullient trills which lead dramatically into
the orchestral tutti – maybe a stock gadget but when carried off with panache
still an exciting one. Spohr manages too to imbue the wind writing with sufficient
personality and the curlicues for this section add nicely to the orchestral
sound-picture. With a rather pious slow movement – neat running orchestral
pizzicato show the composer pulling out all the stops – there is also sweet
charm. And with a bright, jovial finale, rich in gallant hues (and animating
horns) this is a work well worth getting to know.
Its companion was written in 1833. The two violins enter much earlier than
in the previous work, establishing their credentials with more romantic spirit.
Kraggerud and Bjorå take care to give full weight to those moments when Spohr
encourages a spongy lower string statement from the one and an answering crystalline
upper string commentary from the other. Again the wind playing is pert – the
orchestral forces here are adept. The notes speak of Spohr’s writing here
being anticipatory of Berlioz, Tchaikovsky and Mahler. Well, the last named
is surely far-fetched in this context, but there are some intriguing pre-echoes
of Tchaikovsky certainly. The grazioso double-stops of the two soloists
in the slow movement are set atop intriguingly reduced orchestral support.
The finale has brio but is not aggressive; it’s an Allegretto after all, and
has just a few hints that Spohr was more than slightly au fait with
Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante.
Published in 1833 and one of his studies, the Violin Duet in G major maintains
a good balance between expressive and technical demands, the multi-sectional
nature of the second movement being especially successful in this regard.
There are other performances of the two Concertantes. Ulf Hoelscher recorded
them with his sister Gunhild on CPO 999 798-2 though I wasn’t able to audition
them. Hoelscher, as some will know, is something of a hero of the Spohr violin
discography having recorded the complete cycle of concertos. Nevertheless
this sprucely performed Naxos entrant is notably well played and recorded.
Jonathan Woolf
see also review by John-Pierre Joyce