Szell, Heger, von Bülow & Weingartner from Botstein

[Alan Howe]

Botstein does it again...
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2012/Apr12/Legendary_conductors_Z6752.htm
...although this appears to be a ten year-old recording...
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Original-Music-Legendary-Conductors-Botstein/dp/B00005Q63I/ref=sr_1_11?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1334183740&sr=1-11

[Latvian]

Botstein does it again...
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2012/Apr12/Legendary_conductors_Z6752.htm
...although this appears to be a ten year-old recording...

I bought a used copy a couple of years ago -- an excellent disc!

[Mark Thomas]

I've had this recording for quite a few years and every piece is worthwhile. Perhaps the weakest is von Bülow's effort, even though it was a well known work in its day. Despite it's rather incoherent jumble of Liszt and Wagner it's far from being a disaster, though. The other works are all enjoyable - particularly so the upbeat Szell and very inventive Heger works. Recommended.

[John Boyer]

It's good to see Heger getting some attention.  I encountered him indirectly when listening to some orchestrated Strauss lieder.  When I heard Soile Isokoski's superb disc for Ondine of Strauss orchestral songs, I noticed the ending of "Zueignung" had an extra bar or two of orchestral flourish that is not present in the piano original, yet all other performances that I'd heard of this song in its orchestral guise followed the outline of the piano score. 

It turns out that most performances use Robert Heger's 1932 orchestration.  When Strauss himself finally got around to doing himself in 1940, he added the extra two bars, which does add just the right bit of panache to the ending.  I don't know why so many recordings favor the Heger, given the extra grandeur of Strauss's 1940 revision.  Perhaps they want to hear it end just as it does in the piano original.   

There is also a 1911 orchestration, the one on IMLSP, but I don't know who the author is.  I think IMLSP bills it as Strauss, but I don't think this is correct.  In any case, none use the same scoring:

IMSLP (1911)

flute
2 oboes
2 clarinets
2 bassoons
4 horns
3 trumpets
3 trombones
tuba
timpani
strings
--

Heger  (1932)

2 flutes
2 oboes
3 clarinets
2 bassoons
4 horns
2 trumpets
trombone
timpani
harp
strings
--

Strauss (1940)

2 flutes
2 oboes
2 clarinets
3 bassoons
4 horns
3 trumpets
timpani
2 harps
strings
--

But I digress...  This led me to learn more about Heger.  I was pleased to see that Heger, in addition to his career as composer, also composed.  In addition to the work above recorded by Botstein, I found on YouTube performances of the 3rd Symphony (in tolerable archival sound) and Cello Concerto (in barely listenable archival sound).  It does make me wish for more.

Symphony #3, Op. 30 (1943): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76QTEMiLzCU

Cello Concerto, Op. 43: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Tzfi5e4RGw&t=98s

[eschiss1]

So Heger's cello concerto is his op.43, Friedrich Hegar's is his op.44, and Hagar's is horrible...

[John Boyer]

...and Hagar's is horrible...

That pun is illegal in more than half the states of the union.