Hugo Staehle (1826-1848)

[Friesner]

(I started this as a reply to a 2-yr-old topic but they advised I start a new one, so....)

In exploring the prior posts in this forum I came across one that asked about the Staehle Symphony in c minor, recorded in 2001 on Sterling.

I have no new news on the symphony, but being curious myself Iwondered what else there might be, and lo and behold, there's a brand new Brilliant release (currently not offered yet in the USA but it will be - UK offers it on Amazon) of a set of his songs, performed by a couple of Italians using a Graf fortepiano and spanning 57 minutes.  "Mädchenliebe" - now, whether this is just a group of love songs for high voice or whether an actual cycle, I can't say, but - so far as I know it's the only Staehle out there at all at the moment, the Sterling symphony seemingly withdrawn at this point.  (Are Sterling even still in business?  I've seen nothing from them in ages.)

Staehle fanatics and completists - there HAVE to be at least a couple of others besides me! - take heed!!

[Mark Thomas]

Are Sterling even still in business?  I've seen nothing from them in ages.

Momentarily off topic: Yes, Sterling are very much still in business, but 2013 was a difficult year for them as both their US and their European distributors went out of business, which reduced the number of new releases they could offer. I understand that new releases, not least this one of orchestral music by Raff, are now in the pipeline.

[eschiss1]

Has his piano quartet been recorded, by the way?

[Friesner]

Two replies here:  First, Mr. Thomas, thanks for the update on Sterling, I'd hate to see them go under as they have dredged up some wonderful things that nobody else cares to touch, viz. the Staehle symphony that started this discussion.

Second, that piano quartet.  So far as I'm aware, no, not yet done, and in fact it was an attempt to search that one out that led me to the song cycle recording.  Of course I am not all-seeing or all-knowing, so I suppose it's possible an obscure label has issued something under my personal radar.  But if so, they're hiding it very well. 

I don't suppose it would do any good to write letters of pleading to, e.g., the CPO people exhorting them to give us a new recording of the symphony - nothing wrong with the old one except it's no longer available apparently - perhaps coupled with the quartet, assuming they'd both fit on one disc....  (Staehle seems to have written on the long side - a symphony at 41 min. in the late 1840s is rather not the norm, nor is a song cycle such as the one that started this thread, coming in at 57 min.  Wonder how long the quartet is?)

Oh, there's also supposed to be a concert overture.  And maybe even a separable overture or prologue to his opera?

[eschiss1]

and maybe his more recently-published String quartet in G major and Scherzo for string quintet in A minor (1846, pub.2002) might be interesting, too... I'm under the impression that the symphony, too (1844) might not have been published until 2001 ("Computer-Notensatz von Rüdiger Pawassar, nach der Orig.-Hs. der Murhardschen Bibliothek Kassel", says Worldcat.) The works I see in HMB published in the 19th century were the piano quartet, a piano work (3 Scherzi, Op.4, pub.1848 or 1849, 2 (but only 2) of them republished in 1865) or two and those songs... which would be his only works out of copyright, I suspect...