Ignatz Waghalter violin concerto

[Alan Howe]

...and also here:
http://www.mdt.co.uk/catalogsearch/result/?q=waghalter&t=general

BTW we're looking at a concerto similar in length to Bruch VC1; so, not a big work. Hopefully an entertaining one, though.

[Morris Herzog]

The Naxos CD of Ignatz Waghalter's violin music is, acording to Amazon, scheduled for release on October 2. Excerpts of the music can be heard both on Amazon and Itunes. To the extent that it is possible to form an impression, based on these excerpts, this is very important music. The question posed by Michael Haas needs to be answered: how was it possible that work of this caliber wenr missing for a century?  Well, I suppose that 1933-45 had a great deal to do with it.  BTW, the violinist is fabulous.

[Mark Thomas]

Yes, the extracts available at Amazon promise a very worthwhile CD indeed. It all sounds lovely stuff and I'm really looking forward to hearing the Concerto live in November but, just to carp for a moment, what a shame that Naxos couldn't find another 20 minutes of music to fill out the CD.

[Alan Howe]

Agreed. There does seem to be a late piece for violin and orchestra called An Age-Old Fairy-Tale:
http://www.waghalter.com/hist.html
It's also a shame that the Naxos CD actually includes three works that have already been recorded!
http://www.waghalter.com/music.html

[Peter1953]

Waghalter is completely new to me and I've listened with excitement to the audio samples. The VC could be a gem, but the Rhapsody doesn't sound less promising. The music for violin and piano proves to be really romantic, and therefore I'm actually happy these pieces are the fillers of this almost 60 minutes during Naxos release. This varied music for violin from an unknown composer will surely give me a hour of listening pleasure. Now we have to be patient for few more weeks...

[Alan Howe]

I think the VC will definitely prove to be a gem. 

[petershott@btinternet.com]

Many thanks, Alan, for providing us with the link to the website devoted to Waghalter. Really interesting stuff - and heavens, those operas!

You begin to suspect that, surely, there can't be any further unsung and unknown composers to discover. But, lo, Waghalter emerges - and I strongly suspect he's a stunner!

[DavidWGreen]

I am the grandson of Ignatz Waghalter.  I am deeply moved by the renewed interest in the music of my "Opi," (as he was always referred to in my family, even years after his death). This is truly an extraordinary development, especially when one considers the almost complete oblivion that descended over his work for more than six decades. I hope and believe that the potential for a Waghalter revival arises from a desire for a music that evokes a  range of emotions beyond "angst" and "verzweiflung" [anxiety and desperation]. I would like to thank the contributors to this site who have expressed interest in the "Waghalter Project" and for your championing of "unsung composers" whose music deserves to be heard. I will be in London for the October 1 concert, and hope that I will have a chance to meet some of you who have been discussing Waghalter's music. With best regards, David Waghalter Green

[Mark Thomas]

David, thanks so much for this. At least three of us will be at the concert and we'll see if we can arrange to meet you there. Your grandfather's music clearly strikes a chord with many more of us here and it's to be hoped that the CD and concert will spark a wider revival of interest.

[Alan Howe]

Well, we'll be at the November 14th orchestral concert at Cadogan Hall, rather than at the recital at St John's, Smith Square in October...

[Morris Herzog]

Below are excerpts from a blog by violinist Irmina trynkos, who is the soloist in the new Waghalter CD.

"A major contributing factor to the conservative tastes of audiences is the lack of exposure for a wider range of music composed shortly before the Second World War. Part of this was caused by the turmoil of the war itself, and the strong change in aesthetics thereafter. As a result, a very large number of musical personalities were forgotten in the chaos of this era, without any regard to the actual quality of their music and the success of their careers.

"Today, we do hear a good amount of modern music, composed by living artists, which definitely deserves its place in concerts worldwide. I am, however, convinced that audiences deserve the opportunity to make up their minds about composers whose music has been unjustly suppressed due to uncontrollable historical events. Among these is one I immediately fell in love with - Ignatz Waghalter. The emotional authenticity and force of his lyricism are the unique expression of an extraordinary musical culture. This intense melodic imagination gave me the instant impetus to establish the Waghalter Project, the purpose of which is to popularise the composer's music once again."

The entire text can be accessed at: http://www.gramophone.co.uk/blog/gramophone-guest-blog/rediscovering-ignatz-waghalter

[brightparticularstar]

Dear everyone,

For those of you based on the continent, there will be another Waghalter Project concert in Berlin on the 5th October at 19:30 at Kammermusiksaal, Philharmonie, Berlin. The programme will be as follows:

Schumann:    Sonata for Violin and Piano in A minor No. 1 op. 105
Elgar:      Sonata for Violin and Piano in E minor op. 82
Waghalter:   Sonata for Violin and Piano in F minor op. 5
Waghalter:   Idyll for Violin and Piano
Wieniawski:   Fantasie brillante on themes from Gounod's 'Faust" op. 20

Irmina Trynkos:    violin
Giorgi Latsabidze:   piano

You can buy tickets here: http://www.classictic.com/en/waghalter_project__irmina_trynkos___giorgi_latsabidze/22431/151976/