Pizzetti's Symphony recorded

[alberto]

I have known (and found confirmation in the website of the conductor, Damian Iorio) that Naxos has recorded in September in Torino the only Symphony by Ildebrando Pizzetti with the Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI.
Even if the Symphony dates from 1940 its idiom is decidedly romantic (and the music really worth).
The filler is the Harp Concerto by the same composer.

[Alan Howe]

Well, you are a great source of information, alberto - many thanks!

[thalbergmad]

If it is anywhere near as good as the Canti Della Stagione Alta, then it is a must for me.

Thal

[eschiss1]

I hope the program notes are if anything above Naxos' standard (sometimes they can disappoint a bit and some nice full notes, covering both the very interesting historical background to the symphony (same Japanese Empire commission as Britten's Sinfonia d. Requiem, iirc - for starters) and the work's performance history, structure, etc. etc. etc. - i.e. really good notes would be nice ...)

[adriano]

Pizzetti's Symphony in A (1942) was on top of my Marco Polo suggestions many many years ago. But Klaus Heymann meant that Antonio de Almeida would be a better conductor than I. Also the fact that AdA died a couple of years afterwards did not change the situation.
My "old" list of Italian composers other than Respighi would have been just something like the titles Naxos are doing now. Nobody really understood and appreciated my pioneering repertoire suggestions. The Pilati CD on Marco Polo could only be done thanks to a private sponsor, otherwise Heymann would have refused it. That's why I decided to do the second Pilati CD on another label - and was, therefore, thrown out of Marco Polo, but I was sick and tired anyway to work for Mr. Heymann. Sometimes producers do not even deserve good ideas coming from the slaves they exploit. A similarly proposed (and refused) "pioneering" project was a series with Swiss composers - a part of which, fortunately, I could do on Sterling - and on Guild (now the Brun series has been completed, a new Jaques-Dalcroze CD will be recorded in autumn 2016). The Fäsy CD could be done on Marco Polo also thanks to the help of a sponsor.

[Alan Howe]

What can you tell us about Pizzetti's Symphony, Adriano?

[jerfilm]

Personally, I'd like to see more of Sinigaglia's music on record, speaking of Italians. 

Jerry

[patmos.beje]

Pizzetti's Symphony was recorded at the time of its premiere in 1940 by the The Symphony Orchestra in Celebration of the 2600th Anniversary of the Japanese Imperial Dynasty with conductor Gaetanno Commell.  This was released on a 3 CD set 'Celebrating concert for the two thousand six hundredth anniversay of the Japanese Imperial Era'.  It can be found on You Tube in a fairly poor sounding mono recording.  Naxos reissued this a few years ago in a slightly better sound (also to be found on You Tube) but with the beautiful closing moments of the 4th movement missing (30 seconds or so) greatly spoiling the effect.

It was commissioned at the same time as Britten's 'Sinfonia da Requiem' which was ultimately rejected as being unsuitable due to its Christian connotations and not performed.

Guido M Gatti in his 1951 'Contemporary Composer' series contribution 'Ildebrando Pizzetti' (London: Dennis Dobson Limited), published during Pizzetti's lifetime, in Chapter VI 'The Orchestral Works' says:

'The Symphony in A...is a work of unquestionable significance, epitomizing all that is best in Pizzetti's orchestral music' p.99.

The Symphony lasts about 46 minutes and is in 4 movements: I. Andante ma non troppo sostenuto ma teso - (Allegro); II. Andante tranquillo; III. Rapido; IV. Andante faticoso e pesante - Movimento di marcia molto sostenuto.

Chandos seemed to be a good prospect for recording the Pizzetti Symphony with Gianandrea Noseda - perhaps they may still do so.

The 21 minute Harp Concerto is available in an old RAI broadcast/recording with Clelia Gatti Aldrovandi and - in my opinion - is the least lyrically memorable of Pizzetti's 4 Concertos.

The Naxos release - if it happens - would be a very welcome release for Pizzetti's admirers and would enable one to hear the Symphony in modern sound.  I say 'if it happens' due to Naxos stating it would record Pizzetti's Violin Concerto with the Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra [see: http://www.naxos.com/news/?op=399&displayMenu=Naxos_News&type=2 ].  It is possible that Naxos never got round to recording the Violin Concerto which may explain its non-appearance (although I recall reading that it had actually been recorded). Happily it looks as if the Pizzetti Symphony has been recorded and will be released on CD.

The Violin Concerto was recorded and issued on a private CD by a Slovakian violinist and Italian orchestra and then commercially by Bongiovanni.  It too can be heard on You Tube apparently uploaded by the soloist to his You Tube page.

The Symphony (and Violin Concerto) are late-romantic at best.

[Alan Howe]

Thanks for all that valuable information.

[adriano]

I always liked this work, such a pity I could not record it! I still have a score, if anybody wants some more infos :-) The work is dedicated to his second wife Rirì.
(There is a very famous zipper manufactory over here, with the same name :-)
Wanted to reply earlier, but this entry had disappeared until today; I could not even find it through the search system.

[Sharkkb8]

Presto shows a May 12 release date, for the Naxos recording:

http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/Naxos/8573613

[Alan Howe]

I'm not convinced it belongs at UC, interesting though it may be. We'll soon see...

[adriano]

The Naxos CD with Pizzetti's Symphony and Harp Concerto is out now - excellent music, but the RAI Symphony Orchestra's strings seem to have some problems of remaining together in faster, difficult passages... Still, a very welcomed and well-conducted issue. The booklet notes contain an elaborate and highly interesting study/analysis by David Gallagher