Classics that were forgotten

This week we are catching up with things that arrived at Tammy's while away.

Hjalmar Borgstrom  the Norwegian composer has been well on the way to being rediscovered since the beginning of the new millennium. 

Some composers do long disappear from public consciousness over time and he is one of his most important works were performed in his native Norway until the Second World War.

No one seems to know just why that was.

 Until his death in 1925, he had also played an important role as a critic too.

With the premiere of his two operas and above all the rediscovery of his extraordinarily picturesque symphonic tone poems, a new page in this story of finding acceptance.

A contemporary of Richard Strauss who studied with Johan Severin Svendsen and Carl Reinecke among others, proves to be a legitimate descendant of Franz Liszt and Richard Wagner; it is difficult to escape the captivating boldness of his programmatic concepts and their unconventionally beautiful realization.

I found these works on regular cd from WDR radio recordings encouraged by a favourable Presto review highly enjoyable.

 

Some classical music composers are well known, being household names even amongst those who aren't greatly interested such as Mozart, Beethoven,Chopin and Holst and yet others are seldom heard and even less played regardless of their musics quality.

Clara Schumann a member of well known family that included Robert whose works are much programmed in concert halls is such an example.

Clara Josephine Schumann (née Wieck; 13 September 1819 – 20 May 1896) was a German pianist, composer, and piano teacher. Regarded as one of the most distinguished pianists of the Romantic era, she exerted her influence over the course of a 61-year concert career, changing the format and repertoire of the piano recital by lessening the importance of purely virtuosic works. She also composed solo piano pieces, a piano concerto (her Op. 7), chamber music, choral pieces and songs.

Part of the reason may down to her anxiety and issues with how she saw her own works, often requiring her brother's support to compose and have performed for the public in an era that required a certain amount of self publicity and getting sponsors to act as advocates for your music.

Secure employment even for the best was uncommon and thus over time we heard nothing of her works, indeed it wasn't until the 1996 Proms season a work was performed and on the opening night of this years prom in July we were treated to a performance of her Piano Concerto.

That artist made a recording a few years ago for Decca Records with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic coupled with selection of other piano works  and I recently bought a copy out of curiosity, finding the complexity of her scores fascinating.