Unsung Composers

The Music => Recordings & Broadcasts => Topic started by: Alan Howe on Wednesday 04 December 2013, 22:44

Title: String Quintets by Adolphe Blanc (1828-85)
Post by: Alan Howe on Wednesday 04 December 2013, 22:44
From Es-Dur:
http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/Es-Dur/ES2046 (http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/Es-Dur/ES2046)
Title: Re: String Quintets by Adolphe Blanc (1828-85)
Post by: Mark Thomas on Thursday 05 December 2013, 07:36
An Octet by Blanc, coupled with one by Reicha, played by Consortium Classicum, used to be available on CD from Orfeo. Very pleasant, if a mite old-fashioned for its time, as I recall.
Title: Re: String Quintets by Adolphe Blanc (1828-85)
Post by: eschiss1 on Thursday 05 December 2013, 09:24
Several of his works can be skimmed/downloaded/&c on IMSLP and seem interesting to me. (I was confused by the "quintets" and thought that this was quartets instead, in fact, of which he also wrote at least 4 (published, anyway), but his 3rd of that sequence is in F major, not D.)  Glad that more works of his are being recorded, based on what I can tell from his scores(/parts/etc.)
Title: Re: String Quintets by Adolphe Blanc (1828-85)
Post by: eschiss1 on Sunday 08 December 2013, 05:27
Hrm. Thought I hadn't seen these quintets in our IMSLP worklist (http://imslp.org/wiki/List_of_works_by_Adolphe_Blanc) for Blanc, but they're there. The 5th is listed in the Bibliographie de la France as published in 1858 by Richault of Paris, and the others have opus numbers - I'm guessing at least many of them were also published after all. The CD might be already out, rather than just out soon, for all I know. Will try to get a listen soon then myself, as I said he seems to have a decent melodic gift (&c)... (and I recall someone talking about having played one of his 2 string sonatas, or am I thinking of someone else?...)
(Hrm.
Another quintet- with piano and winds- is available on another chamber music CD of music by Blanc.
I also see that the 7 string quintets- some with, some without double bass- cover a lot of Blanc's career, from op.15 early on to op.50 published in 1866 (admittedly a-ways before his last string quartet, published 1877, or some other chamber music published 1884/85.) No sign that Es-dur will do a complete cycle, though, but then I'd be the only one who'd care about that, it's true...)