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Found a fascinating interview with David Hurwitz, and in one particular segment (1:04:00), he talks about "music history." What he discusses reminds me of what we take part in here at UC, and the purpose of sharing unsung works.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGwYe9a8wj0

He says that music history is based on what was being composed, performed and perceived at that point in time, not what we conceive as strictly the influencers and influenced (Wagner/ Brahms to Schoenberg, etc). There is a brief mention where he states that in the 1870s and 1880s, one would have been just as likely to hear Joachim Raff as Brahms.

As Mark has written about extensively, Raff was enormously popular in his day, and yet, in my opinion, his descent into the abyss was pushed by what the public saw as the true figures of Romanticism. In my view, only then with a re-evaluation on the "history" of Romantic music, did Bernard Herrmann and now the wealth of recordings in the past 30 years provide us with this hidden repertoire. It is not only gorgeous music, but the key to giving us a better idea of how Romantic music had a part in the 19th/20th century classical music culture.

I agree with you, Alan, on the Adagio, especially in amazement of the clarinets, cor anglais and emotional yet not too sentimental strings. It certainly moves from sadness, which reminds me of Glazunov and a bit of George Templeton Strong, to what I imagine to be a bewilderment of beauty through "starry strings" around that 5 minute mark (reminds me of Felix Blumenfeld's final movement from his symphony), then back to bleak sadness. Not sure how else to describe it besides that.

The album is available for download from Amazon, for those who are too impatient to wait like me.

https://www.amazon.com/Symphony-Minor-Department-University-Athens/dp/B08BDMKZLK

I'm told that the recording sessions have been completed and it's disappointing to report that there was only time to record one of the Raff songs

Given that donors were handed this rare opportunity to be involved in a project involving Raff works, and for the orchestra to proceed in getting most of the program recorded in pandemic conditions, we are still grateful for them in honoring this commitment. Hopefully another crowd-fund will be organized for the next CD if not a public concert.

I wonder when the recording might be released...

I don't like to speculate, but I presume it will still be "Fall 2020" according to the fundraising page.

I particularly like her Cello Concerto. Very sentimental andantino. Just wish it was a bit longer, but sometimes it is best to be short and sweet.

That's why you're the conductor Adriano, and David Hurwitz and I are not. 

I heard one of his sonatas and that's just what came to mind. Hurwitz has probably heard all of it.

In my view his "music" is Stockhausen with the piano as the synthesizer.

Thank you so much, Mark! The Largo from "Die Sterne" is amazing.

Is it possible to obtain the text for each of these works in German and English? I purchased this album digitally and wasn't aware that the booklet only comes when you get the physical CD.

I would recommend the Klipsch Bluetooth neckband, which runs at about $129. Have used Klipsch for years and always reliable.

There existed only a (cut) recording from the 1970s]

Do we know if the score was lost after the Werner Andreas Albert radio recording from the mid-1970s?

Boosey & Hawkes Publishing Co. dates the symphony to 1904-5, just for reference.

Also, the Medizinerorchester Bern is set to perform the symphony in Switzerland on the 30th (Biel) and 31st (Bern) of January, 2021.

It will be recording premieres for all three songs (Op.199 comprises two songs), which makes this release an important one for Raff aficionados.

Very exciting! And to know that it should be out by the end of the year. Looking forward to it.

This particular issue has now been discussed to death. Let's now return to the music involved here.

Alan, I was going to jump in and keep beating the dead horse about the translating, but if you insist. 

Have the two Raff songs (Op. 66 & Op. 199) ever been recorded in a concert or realized electronically? Or would this be the first time the public would be able to hear a recording?

I stumbled across the name Harold Darke in the entry on Switzerland and his symphony from 1910-14  entitled "Switzerland".

An article from "The New Music Review," dated 1920, briefly describes Darke's symphony:

"Well, an Englishman, Mr. Harold Darke, has written a symphony entitled 'Switzerland.' The three movements are 'Zermatt, Gornergrat, and Ripplealp,' and there are quotations from Poe to enable the hearer to dilate with the proper emotion. A matter-of-fact Englishman thought that 'The Englishman on a Holiday' would be as good a title as any for the symphony."

My exposure to Hurwitz was slightly different than most where I first encountered his thoughts on YouTube, and then proceeded to read his reviews, and I understand his criticisms without being taken aback. For others, it is clear how he may have been snobbish.

He is clearly self-aware of how he can come off as a pretentious jerk in his written reviews, but shows his humbleness in how this isn't his career or destined profession. He pokes fun at himself, and sarcasm is one of his fortes.

I remember in his Raff video where he went off on a tangent of how the composer was on Wheel of Fortune to win a vacation to Thuringia. No idea why he did that, but it made me laugh and I gained more respect in that he never takes himself or his readers too seriously. Everyone has their own opinions, and it is sometimes healthy to satirize the music world for the benefit of the community.

I wonder how many of our fellow members have a similar Overflow Room?