More piano music by Hans von Bülow

[Mark Thomas]

Here's an upcoming CD: the second volume of Mark Anderson's survey of Hans von Bülow's piano music. I can't say that I was exactly wowed by vol.1, the music on which seemed to be an uncomfortable mix of Liszt and Schumann, leading me to think the Bülow was a much better pianist and conductor than he was a composer. Of the music on this new volume, I have the Königsmarsch in another performance, and I'm afraid that it's a predictably bombastic homage march (much like Wagner's and Liszt's efforts) for "mad" King Ludwig II. To be fair, the harrumphing is at least relieved by a tender, if anachronistic, central section. I'll buy this release, but not with much hope of being bowled over by it.

[Mark Thomas]

And I wasn't bowled over by it. It's pretty much the mix as before: intermingled snatches of Schumann and Liszt clothing melodies of limited memorability. Mark Anderson plays with bravura and evident enthusiasm, and he does his level best as an advocate for von Bülow the composer, but I'm afraid that he doesn't have much to work on. I really did want to have the opinion which I'd formed from the first disc changed, but instead it has been reinforced. Bülow was a marvellous pianist and one of the greatest conductors, but he wasn't a great composer. Shame.

[Jonathan]

Hi Mark,
Interesting, Bülow himself said that he didn't enjoy composing and really wasn't much good at it and prefered to leave it to others!  Having said that, I shall still buy the disc as he was certainly an interesting figure.  Not sure if you've read the biography by Alan Walker (forgotten the title) but it is well worth a read if you haven't...some of it had me laughing at Bulow's efforts to stop people using him to advertise!

[eschiss1]

Are there any recordings of any sort (private or otherwise, orchestral or piano-arranged, etc. ...) of his Nirvana (Annihilation), which Liszt conducted, by the way?...

[Mark Thomas]

Jonathan: Yes, I've read Alan Walker's entertaining, but predictably pro-Liszt biography of von Bülow. I've also got Kenneth Birkin's more comprehensive and balanced, but rather less readable biography, which I can recommend.

Eric: von Bülow's Nirvana was available on an Arabesque CD (Z6752) of orchestral music by famous conductors, the others being Heger, Szell & Weingartner. I think that it's out of print and I haven't come across a download either. For all its fame in its day, Nirvana doesn't come across very strongly either, at least in this performance.

[eschiss1]

Ah. Thanks!