Carl Czerny

[John H White]

The recent mention of Czerny's symphonies in another thread has led me to investigate his discography on the Internet. At present I just have the Hanssler  CD of his 2nd & 6th symphonies, both of which I am very impressed with as I am with Nonet which shares an MDG disc with his, to me, less interesting Grande Serenade Concertante. I had recently noticed that the German Signum label had issued a CD of the 1st and 5th symphonies. However, my trawl of the Internet yielded only secondhand copies at grossly inflated prices.  I think it is now high time that one of our more enterprising record companies issued a complete set of the symphonies and other important works of this greatly talented pupil of Beethoven

[Hofrat]

John;

In my modest CD collection, I have the following Czerny:
symphonies 1 and 5 on Signum label.
symphonies 2 and 6 on the SWR Music label.
symphony 2 and concerto for 4-handed piano opus 153 on Signum.
divertissement de concert opus 204 on Vox.
piano music for 4-hands.

On LP I have his Introduction and variations on a Haydn theme.

Try the Brana label.  Felicia Blumenthal records on that label and she is a true lover of the unsung.

[Alan Howe]

You are right, John. We badly need the complete symphonies: mind you, I wouldn't like to be an orchestral violinist - their parts are busy in the extreme in everything Czerny wrote, it seems. For my part, Symphony No.5 (from the 1850s, I think) is the best of the four recorded so far.

[edurban]

Hofrat mentions the Brana label: try their website...you can listen to the entire first movement of the Czerny a minor concerto played by Mme Blumenthal.  (The disc is called Pupils of Beethoven.) It's delightful and the opening tutti is my favorite Czerny, period.  Maybe the composer could have cut out a few pages of passagework, but we take what we can get...

[Lew]

Hello everyone.

I echo Hofrat's appeal for a complete CD issue of the Czerny symphonies.

Grove lists the following:

C minor (Op. 780),
D major (Op. 781),
C major,
D minor,
E flat major,
B major,
1 other unpublished.

'No 6 in G minor' (recently issued on CD) doesn't appear in the list. This may be because it is the last one listed above, but I think it more likely be one of the many Grove errors - that is, it is really the one listed as being in 'B major', a highly unusual key for a symphony, even in the middle of the 19th century. Off hand, I can think of only one other symphony in this key (Haydn's No. 46). Are there any others in B major?

Cheers,  Lew

[Hofrat]

If I could catalog my CD collection more effectively, I would have been able to tell this forum that the Erad label recorded Carl Czerny's Fantasia Concertante for piano, flute, and 'cello. 

[JimL]

'No 6 in G minor' (recently issued on CD) doesn't appear in the list. This may be because it is the last one listed above, but I think it more likely be one of the many Grove errors - that is, it is really the one listed as being in 'B major', a highly unusual key for a symphony, even in the middle of the 19th century. Off hand, I can think of only one other symphony in this key (Haydn's No. 46). Are there any others in B major?

I think it quite likely that it is actually in B-flat.  B is the German name for B-flat (h being the German name for B natural).  And Korngold's Sinfonietta is the only other even remotely symphonic work I can think of that is in B (natural) Major.

[Peter1953]

What a sophisticated, elegant piano sonatas Czerny composed. At this moment I'm listening to No. 2 and it's really a beautiful sonata of a very high level. Utterly sumptuous and magical. Vol. 2 of the Czerny Piano Sonatas by Martin Jones is, just like Vol. 1, a real winner. A must-have for all who love great (early) romantic piano works.

BTW, a recent released CD with all his Nocturnes will surprise you as well. The atmosphere of the first 8 Nocturnes, op. 368, is much more subtle (real Nocturnes like those of Field) than the more cheerful 2nd set of 8, op. 608.

Czerny is a rising star on my list of unsung composers, although I'm still a bit disappointed by the lack of depth in some of his concertos, like the one for two pianos and orchestra, op. 153.

[edurban]

Peter1953, unless there's a version I don't know about (always possible in Czerny's vast output) the Concerto Op. 153 is for 1 piano, 2 players.

David

[eschiss1]

The "one other unpublished" symphony by Czerny is in D major (but not his op.781) - may well be that described in http://books.google.com/books?id=8MhXnGxfYkEC (search for Czerny D major , and select page 153 - note the list of movements and keys of the symphony described : Allegro molto quasi presto / Adagio quasi andante (in F) / Scherzo (D minor) / Finale, (a few more pages used to be available in preview that provided context, explaining more about the symphony, giving an excerpt from the symphony, etc.)... 
which is not the same as op. 781. The symphony Wyn Jones is describing is from around 1814 or so.)

(And it's complete, I think, unlike the C major unfinished symphony by Mendelssohn.)
Thanks for that list of keys of Czerny's symphonies- even though it's not quite right (Bflat major for the G minor 6th symphony, eg), it fills in the 3rd and 4th symphonies that were missing from the Wikipedia list of Czerny's works...
Eric

[Peter1953]

Peter1953, unless there's a version I don't know about (always possible in Czerny's vast output) the Concerto Op. 153 is for 1 piano, 2 players.

You're right, David. I have the CD (Christophorus label) coupling that four-handed PC and Symphony 2.

[thalbergmad]

Every time i hear or play something by Czerny, my estimation of him increases. The recording of his "Les charmes de l'amitie" was that pleasing, it actually cured my toothache.

I simply cannot leave some of his variations and fantaisies alone.
If there is a man amongst us who could stop himself from raising a smile whilst listening to his Variations Brillantes Op.14, then he has no soul.

Thal

[Gareth Vaughan]

I feel that way listening to Czerny too. And Herz always lifts my spirits and makes me smile. These chaps knew how to please their listeners - and that's what they set out to do... And that's not a bad ambition for a composer.

[Jonathan]

I agree with the positive things being said about Czerny here - I have his "First" symphony on a BBC music magazine from 2008 (I think) and I think it's a great work.  I have a few bits of piano music scattered about on various CDs and it is on the whole, very good.  I have a recording, on a period piano of some of the Op.740 studies (these are coupled with Liszt's Transcendental Etudes - also on a period piano - most interesting to hear) and even these, despite their implied didacitcism are very good.

[Alan Howe]

Yes, Czerny is a feel-good composer. And sometimes a bit more than that...