Bortkiewicz

[John Hudock]

The three Bortkiewicz piano concertos are all very beautiful works.  Unfortunately only #1 has been recorded on Hyperion so far. I have LP recordings of #2 for the left hand and #3 'Per Aspera ed Astra', I don't think either is currently available otherwise. The symphonies are lovely as well as is the piano and chamber music. Hyperion has so far done a yeoman's job at getting his works heard. One can only hope that they will soon release his other two piano concertos.

There is also, according to this site dedicated to him (http://www.xs4all.nl/~ingp0040/)  published, but as far as I can tell never recorded, violin concerto and cello concerto as well as a 'Russian' Rhapsody for piano & orchestra. Perhaps worthy future additions to the Hyperion romantic violin and cello concerto series.

[Alan Howe]

PCs 2 & 3 are in fact available on the NMI label...

http://www.nederlandsmuziekinstituut.nl/nl/winkel

[John Hudock]

Interesting, I must have missed it when it came out last year. I'm sure being on this forum is going to increase my CD budget (much to my wife's chagrin :-). I see now that Records International had this recording in their April '09 catalog and Musicweb reviewed it in May.  It claims to be the premiere recordings, but I have two older recordings on mp3 that may be from live broadcasts:

No 2:
Siegried Rapp (pf),  Kurt Striegler - Dresden PO

No 3:
Hans Bohnestingl (pf), Franz Marsalek - Kolner Rundfunkorchestra

The Rapp performance is mentioned in this review of the Doniga performance:

http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2009/May09/Bortkiewicz_c13172.htm

[John Hudock]

As I have been looking around the forum some more I discovered this post about the violin & cello concertos:

http://www.unsungcomposers.com/forum/index.php/topic,165.0.html

[Alan Howe]

This forum is definitely not for the financially fainted-hearted; nor for those with eagle-eyed spouses!

[Peter1953]

jhudock, you can find more information on Bortkiewicz if you go to the thread Sergei Bortkiewicz (1877-1952): a revival.

If you send me a message, I can arrange a CD with Bortkiewicz's VC and CC for you.

Since I joined this Forum I've given my wife many presents, usually CD's. And I've taken her with me to the Nederlands Muziekinstituut, to buy Bortkiewicz's piano music (3 double discs, very recommendable!). After that we did some shopping in The Hague...   

[thalbergmad]

I have never warmed to the 2nd & 3rd concerti as I did the first. The first for me is complete perfection and i cannot imagine a concerto that would surpass it.

Has the Russian Rhapsody been recorded yet?? It looks rather exciting.

Thal

[JimL]

I have come to love #2 as much as the first, due both to its unique structure and to its melodic invention (and the fact that it's a southpaw work).  I still haven't warmed to the 3rd concerto, and at this point, I doubt I will.

[giles.enders]

The Russian Rhapsody has not been recorded yet. There are recent recordings of piano concertos 2 & 3 which came out last year.  I have them, the performance could be better but I am pleased to have them.
Giles Enders

[Ilja]

Slight word of disagreement here; you couldn't really wish for much better performances of the Bortkiewicz concertos 2 & 3 than the ones that the Dutch Music Institute released last year. Was particularly impressed with Stefan Doniga's playing.

[Peter1953]

Yes Giles, I can only echo Ilja's words. I'm really impressed by the quality of the performance, and Stefan Doniga did a great job! What a pleasure it is listening to both concertos (yes Jim, the 2nd is wonderful and the best, but I have a soft spot for the 3rd as well).

[giles.enders]

I have been wondering if the second piano concerto (for left hand) is not a rehash of his first piano concerto dating from 1902 and which mysteriously disappeared about the time of the second.  The concerto now known as the first was actually his second in terms of composition. There is a very poor, pirate? recording of the second which sounds as if it has been reworked for two hands.
Giles Enders

[Peter1953]

I have been wondering if the second piano concerto (for left hand) is not a rehash of his first piano concerto dating from 1902 and which mysteriously disappeared about the time of the second.  Giles Enders

Maybe you can ask Wouter Kalkman? See http://www.xs4all.nl/~ingp0040/

[JimL]

I have been wondering if the second piano concerto (for left hand) is not a rehash of his first piano concerto dating from 1902 and which mysteriously disappeared about the time of the second.  The concerto now known as the first was actually his second in terms of composition. There is a very poor, pirate? recording of the second which sounds as if it has been reworked for two hands.
Giles Enders

His friend, the pianist Hugo van Dalen, or some other pianist could have possibly arranged the 2nd Concerto for two hands.

As far as the lost 'first' concerto is concerned, a rehash of some of the material is possible, but the progressive tonality of the 2nd isn't something I would expect of him at that early date.  The lack of reference to an earlier concerto on the Hyperion CD of the 1st had me puzzled there for a moment until I saw that the B-flat concerto dates from 1912.  There are some weird things about the cello concerto (the first movement starts in C minor and ends in B Major, but the final movement ends up in C Major) which leads me to believe he was experimenting in such techniques as (rather unadventurous) progressive tonality just after the 1st concerto (which also has some rather interesting ideas about tonality, mentioned in another thread somewhere around here).  1902 would have put him just out of studies with Jadassohn, who was very conservative.  A piano concerto at that time of his life would have been a kind of 'graduation exercise'.  Such works are usually pretty conservative.  I don't think he would have composed something like the 2nd concerto back then.