Early/mid romantic chamber music independent of Germanic models

[LateRomantic75]

I've recently been on the hunt for early/mid romantic chamber music that is largely independent of the Germanic models set by Mendelssohn, Schumann, and Brahms. The most prominent example that comes to mind is Peter Heise's brilliant Piano Quintet, which turned out to be a more individualistic and harmonically advanced work than I had expected. Also, Rubinstein's String Quartet no. 1 (which I recently praised), while not as individualistic as the Heise, contains many original touches that break free of Germanic constraints. What are some other examples of this?

[Alan Howe]

Try Sgambati. Of course, chamber music was predominantly the preserve of the musical conservatives - the progressives tended to avoid the genre. So, almost by definition, there's not going to be a great deal of chamber music outside the former tradition in the period in question. It's a bit like looking for symphonies by progressives...

[LateRomantic75]

I realize that such music that I am looking for is not easily found. Perhaps I should clarify that works discussed in this thread do not have to be completely independent of Germanic models. What I'm interesting in is music where the composer's individual voice shines through often, even if it draws its general style from (an)other composer(s).

Thanks for the Sgambati recommendation-I was highly impressed by his Symphony no. 1 and PC and I see his chamber music has gotten some good reviews. I guess Raff could be another example: Though his music is Germanic in different aspects, it manages to retain an individualistic quality-Raff's own personal brand of life-affirming vivaciousness. As has been mentioned many times in these fora, Raff's chamber music is of the highest quality, particularly his Piano Quintet and Piano Trio no. 1.

[Alan Howe]

Draeseke would be another composer to explore:
http://www.draeseke.org/opus/chambermus.htm
http://www.draeseke.org/essays/index.htm
Try some of the audio samples here...
http://www.jpc.de/s/draeseke
...and on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Draeseke&sm=12
Germanic? Certainly - but not in the Mendelssohn-Schumann-Brahms tradition.

[Alan Howe]

And then there's perhaps the greatest non-German composer of chamber music outside the German tradition - Gabriel Fauré. Totally individual, quintessentially French, absolutely sublime music.

[LateRomantic75]

Hmmm....I'll have to check out Draeseke's chamber music. I know his individualistic symphonies on CPO, which sometimes have a craggy severity to them that sets them apart from most other music of the era. I can't say I've completely warmed to them, but they (especially the Third) have powerful and inspired moments.

Ah yes, Faure. His chamber music is simply sublime in its quiet power. I would classify Faure as late-romantic, though, especially since some of his later works point the way forward to Impressionism.

Does anyone know the string quartets of Antonio Bazzini (recorded by Dynamic)? It'd be hard to believe a virtuoso violinist would constrain himself to write in the Germanic tradition!

[Mark Thomas]

As has been mentioned many times in these fora, Raff's chamber music is of the highest quality, particularly his Piano Quintet and Piano Trio no. 1.

The other five works which show off Raff at best are the two Piano Quartets, the Piano Trio No.2, the String Quartet No.1 and the Violin Sonata No.1. A very rich seam tho explore.

[Alan Howe]

I would classify Faure as late-romantic...

Well, his Violin Sonata No 1 dates from 1875-6 and the 1st Piano Quartet from just a few years later. In other words, he begins in the mid-romantic period and continues well into the twentieth century.

BTW his later works don't point forward to impressionism - they are actually contemporary with or post-date much of the music that can be categorised as impressionist.

[LateRomantic75]

Indeed, Faure is quite difficult to classify. Let's not tire ourselves out trying to pigeonhole him!

Re Mark's post: All the Raff chamber works you list are excellent as well, it's just that the Piano Quintet and Piano Trio no. 1 stand out to me as masterpieces of melodic invention and passion. Here's hoping the remainder of his string quartets get recorded!

Perhaps we should expand this thread to discuss early/mid romantic chamber music with an individual voice? It's not much of an expansion, but anything to keep the discussion going

[Alan Howe]

Of course, the better one knows any good music, the more one recognises the composer's voice....

[jerfilm]

Martucci is one of my favorites.  Not very Germanic, I think.

j

[LateRomantic75]

When Sgambati was mentioned, Martucci immediately sprang to mind. I recall being impressed with his Piano Quintet in C, but I haven't heard any of his other chamber works.

[Alan Howe]

There's a lot of Germany in Martucci, I can assure you. But I wouldn't let that worry you - he's a fine composer.

[jdperdrix]

Martucci is indeed a fine composer.
I also recommend Bazzini's string quartets.
There's also an interesting violin concerto available on youtube... closer to the Belgian-French violin school than to the German one (Kreutzer, Rode, Vieuxtemps).

[LateRomantic75]

Glad to see someone knows the Bazzini quartets-what are they like?