Search - Karl Ditters von Dittersdorf, Philipp Naegele, Rachel Talitman :: Dittersdorf: Sinfonia concertante, etc

Solid performances of three concertos

Rolf C. Erdahl | Apple Valley, MN United States | 02/05/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I'm a bassist, and purchased this CD because it contains two of the standard classical concertos for the instrument by Dittersdorf -- The Sinfonia Concertante for Bass and Viola and the E major Bass Concerto. This CD has aspects of special interest for bassists, violists, harpists, and fans of early Classical era concertos.All soloists are solid, especially Günter Klaus's bass and Rachel Talitman's harp performances. Naegele's Viola work is adequate, but more accompanimental in nature. Bass and Harp are the main soloists on this recording.The Heidelberger Kammerorchester offers a straight-ahead, classical interpretation on these works. In general, their sparse use of vibrato makes for a slightly tinny sound, but it may be more in keeping with early practice. They don't overpower the soloists and they accompany well. I was particularly taken with the Harp Concerto, which I had never heard before. It contains some very expressive, chromatic, Sturm und Drang sections that made it for me the most interesting piece of music on the recording. As a non-harpist, I don't feel qualified to comment on her playing, other than I found it an overall very attractive performance.Klaus's bass playing in both the Concerto and Sinfonia Concertante is tasteful, accurate, and clean, with a pleasant tone throughout. This is an excellent reference recording for bassists studying this repertoire. I was not familiar with the cadenzas he employed -- they were not the ones by Grüber or Slatford, but they were very stylish and well-played. The overall quality of the recording is good, with clear recordings of the soloists and good balance throughout. The original recording was made in 1978. It's an ADD CD.Notes are in German, English, and French, though bios are only in German. Roughly translated and capsulated, and dated by 25 years, they stated: Klaus is Principal Bass of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra since 1969 and began teaching at Würtzburg in 1976. Born in Stuttgart in 1928, Naegele left Germany to escape the 3rd Reich, and played with the Cleveland Orchestra under Szell and taught at Smith College. Tel-Aviv born Talitman won several international competitions and began as Harp Professor at the Royal College of Music in Antwerp in 1979 and is active as a soloist and chamber musician."