Zemlinsky's beautiful Symphony No. 2 seems to have won "first place along with the Symphony in G major by Robert Gound" according to wikipedia entries. Does anyone have any info on this elusive composer or this Symphony?
There are a number of works on IMSLP, and there is a monograph (Robert Gund - Ein vergessener Meister des Liedes) available on Amazon.de.
Dates of Life: 1865 – 1927
Place of birth: Mannheim-Seckenheim,Seckenheim
Place of death: Wien (Vienna)
Occupation: Musiker ; Komponist ; Musiklehrer ; Gesangslehrer
Religious Denomination: evangelisch (Protestant)
Alternate Names:
Gund, Robert
Gmund, Robert
Gound, Ernst Robert
Gound, Robert
https://www.deutsche-biographie.de/sfz24674.html?language=en
At IMSLP:
https://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Gound,_Robert
https://imslp.org/wiki/List_of_works_by_Robert_Gound
There's no sign of a Symphony in the above list, but it could be among the 120 unpublished works. It would be early (fp 1899), so did it survive?
This site gives the Symphony performed on 5th March 1899 alongside Zemlinsky's in B flat as being in 'g-moll' (= G minor):
https://www.wienerphilharmoniker.at/de/konzerte/orchesterkonzert-wiener-tonkunstlerverein/5883/
I'm going to guess that Vienna Philharmonic is right and Wikipedia should be fixed, but score or parts can hopefully be found somewhere... RISM lists 244 works by Gund, by the way, but mostly vocal...
I entered this into the IMSLP worklist at the bottom, though without the link for the moment (feel free to add, of course)...
Thanks very much, Eric. I wonder whether the Gound Symphony is still in Vienna somewhere?
I'm on my way to Vienna now but I can't promise that I'll locate the symphony just by sheer luck... I'll look around, though.
A separate thread on Gund might be appropriate...
His granddaughter, Sibylle Wurzinger-Gund (https://rso.orf.at/en/musiker/89), has been a member of the ORF Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra since 1987. She may well know more about the works of her grandfather.
And I see that bass baritone Christian Immler and pianist Helmut Deutsch are working on a project with music by Wilhelm Grosz and Robert Gund, and that an album is to be released on Alpha Classics early in 2025.
New thread duly created. Thanks for all the interest and information posted.
Good luck, Wheesht, with any search you manage to undertake in Vienna!
On the planned recording mentioned above:
<<Our recent conversation began by my asking Immler about his fascinating exploration of the little-known music of Wilhelm Grosz (1984-1939) and Robert Gund (also spelled Gound; 1865-1927) which use texts by a range of celebrated European writers, including Eduard Mörike (1804-1875), Joseph von Eichendorff (1788-1857), and Clemens Brentano (1778-1842). The album, set for release in early 2025 on Alpha Classics, sees Immler reunite with pianist Helmut Deutsch...>>
https://www.theoperaqueen.com/2023/03/25/christian-immler-2023/
I have written to both Gund's granddaughter, who hasn't replied yet, and the archives of the Wiener Philharmoniker. They replied today: they have neither score nor parts.
Thanks for doing this. Perhaps the granddaughter knows more.
https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/9748967--be-still-my-heart
The disc with Lieder by him has just been released.
Apart from the Symphony, the booklet mentions a piano concerto as another major orchestral work by him.
Has either been found?...
I would not be averse* to a recording of his piano trio, piano quartet, and two violin sonatas and suite, if as yet unavailable, that said.
*I like DuckDuckGo but need to turn off the blasted durned autoincorrect.
Eric, your mentioning of his chamber music makes me think of the curious notion on the imslp page of his 2nd violin sonata that his first has somehow been recorded.
Which according to IMSLP history, I myself wrote back in June 2013. Wonder why I thought that? I'll go check!
(I'm sure I would have written it on the page of the first violin sonata instead, if that existed at the time.)
Ooh, this is why. (https://search.worldcat.org/title/1408633500)
Feel like sending an email to one of the two libraries that has that CD, since it's not turning up anywhere online- Discogs, Ebay, anywhere really.
If the cd only contains this work, then I suspect it's an archive recording, not commercially released......
As one of these libraries is (almost) within walking distance from me so that I can easily go and investigate some time soon – and report back.
Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Wheesht, I'm looking forward to it. I played the opening theme of the first violin sonata from the score and consider it promising enough.
Thanks to you all.
The CD contains just the sonata, in a recording from 2005: Simon Loosli, violin and Jacques Pasquier, piano. It comes with a minimal booklet.
The total playing time is 27 minutes and 21 seconds.
The movements have the following timings:
1. Mässig bewegt 8:37
2. Sehr munter 5:40
3. Langsam 5:27
4. Lebhaft bewegt 7:37
Thanks again! Mind if I add a small amount of that information to the IMSLP page? (Also, does the booklet, though minimal, at least give a clue as to composition date? :) )
(Apparently op.34 was published in 1905 so the 1922 publication date of Op.33 might not be the last word as to its composition date...)
Do go ahead and add what you like of that information to IMSLP. The booklet notes were written by the violinist's wife, I think, who states that the sonata was composed in 1905 and performed by Arnold Rosé in Vienna in 1911.
Thanks!