Messages

Brahms wrote this in 1873; please listen from 9:30 in and tell me he hadn't heard the finale of Hiller's C major Symphony:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vwxt3WcodUw

You're quite right, it's similar isn't it?!

However, while Hiller might just as well have copied the ostinato from Brahms for his Symphony, perhaps it's more the case that he was (conciously or unconciously) copying himself: the 4-note ostinato also appears earlier in the beginning of the final scene to the first act of his 1862 opera "Die Katakomben". Take a look at this short sample I put together, you'll see the motif appear there (though here it's in a minor key instead):

Youtube link

You're correct, it's G major, a slip of my "pen"! 

Has it really been 5 years since I created the transcription of the C major symphony? I'm very excited to hear Mr. Griffiths's recording once it becomes available. In the still very minuscule corner of musicology known as Ferdinand Hiller scholarship, it's a very precious event to finally hear this stunning symphony as it is meant to be heard: in the hands of an excellent conductor and orchestra!

In the years since creating the video, I've had the leisure opportunity to study many more scores by Mr. Hiller, and while initially I had mere doubts about the matter, I've grown to be adamant about the symphony having been composed in the 1860-70s. Given Alan's preliminary details about the upcoming volume in the series, CPO seems to agree with this theory, doesn't it?

PS: All other symphonies by Hiller are LOST.

For the record, aside from the lost earlier version of the E minor symphony, the lost symphonies are:

• Simphonie de Victoire à grand orchestre et un quatre parties. (incipits for all four movements listed in Hiller's diary dated 31 October, 1830)
• Symphony in G minor "Im freien", performed in England in the 1850s.

[Kriegers Morgen]

Kriegers Morgen (1869)

A work for orchestra, men's chorus and bass solo, written in the spirit of typical patriotic, german-nationalistic works much in vogue in its time. I couldn't find a source for the text whose author is given as "F. Moritz", and so some of the handwritten lyrics in the composer's autograph escaped my understanding. I rather like the first half of the music, and the composer was clearly gifted in writing for the orchestra, so while the lyrics remain incomplete perhaps this transcription won't be completely useless as far as getting a better idea of the composer's musical idiom.

Dorico/Noteperformer: Youtube link

As an aside, it appears to me that many of the composer's works for orchestra and chorus are unaccounted for or lost (as far as I can tell, though I welcome anyone letting me know otherwise). So unless luck has it and they might come to light one day, we are limited to the two symphonies, two concert overtures, an 1-act opera and this work, as far as Eugen Drobisch's orchestral music is concerned.

Wow, this is great news. Can't wait to hear them! I hope CPO will continue this streak with the excellent C major symphony of Hiller's, too.

Lachner's excellent oratorio Moses exists in manuscript full score, but IIRC (it was a while since I last checked it and more sources might have been uncovered since), there is no complete vocal score for the work which would be necessary for rehearsals. The surviving vocal score only includes the choral sections, which is much better than nothing of course.

I'd also like to hear a recording of the overture to his 1842 "Festspiel", a very fine piece of music!

Wouldn't Schmalfuss make a more convincing job of Lachner's 5th, for example?

I'm sure he would, but I want to hear #2 from him first! 

I find the even-numbered symphonies his best, though Lachner curiously appears to have chosen to promote the odd-numbered ones the most in expense of the others. In all honesty musically I find #1 and #5 by miles the least important of the cycle (but the importance of #5 also lies in part in its controversy as pointed out earlier in this thread). The transformation of #7 into a suite is a great lesson in itself of the public's tastes changing over time throughout the romantic period. I'm supposing if #2 would have been published in Lachner's time, it'd have been among his most fondly remembered today.

Though, upon reflection, many of the tempi in my rendition were on the slower side: I do wish I had done a few things differently.

You are too modest, Tuomas. Your excellent realisation has stood us in very good stead until this commercial recording came along. Many thanks for your great work.

Thank you and once again too kind of you, Mark 

Well, it was great to finally hear a recorded performance of Lachner's 4th. From one "Lachner-ite" to another: my thanks to Mr. Schmalfuss and the Evergreen SO, excellent work!

After a few listens, I'm enthusiastic in general about the recording (with a few hesitations here and there). In the first movement the development section is played most excellently, but for some reason there are places in the other sections the playing felt somehow lifeless and off to me. It could have been the choice of tempi, or just the rendering of certain phrases I remembered being written differently in the manuscript that happened to irk me, but it's minor stuff in any case.

The fast sections of the scherzo were very fine and full of energy and contrasts, perfect!

Now, the only real interesting divergence to me in this recording is the choice of the Scherzo's trio. Lachner's manuscript actually contains two completely different versions of it: it's unfortunate that the sleeve notes fail to discuss this fact at all.

The version heard in the recording is the one which in Lachner's manuscript has the words "gilt nicht" written on the first page of the section. In my Noteperformer transcription, I naturally assumed Lachner did not want this version played and instead there you can hear the second version. There might of course be other facts that I had failed to consider but as I see it, I think the conductor (or perhaps rather the editor of the sheet music) has made a mistake here in using this version.

Also slightly puzzling is the sleeve notes' mentioning the Scherzo trio's tempo indication as "meno mosso": no matter which version, I fail to find it in Lachner's manuscript.

The third movement is very heartfelt and true to the composer's intentions, I felt. The same applies to the finale which with its varying moods mustn't have been easy to pull off. The orchestra handled the movement brilliantly, while only in a few places I thought a broaded sound would have helped it.

Hats off to Schmalfuss and the Evergreen Symphony Orchestra!

I've also seen people use https://www.gofundme.com/ for this sort of fundraising.

This rendition is just the second movement (so far) from Gaze Cooper's 1st symphony. The score was kindly made available to me via the composer's granddaughter.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5jVlX7ICAk

This is a very lovely sample, thank you Martin for making it available!

Gaze Cooper, though not really for this forum has Pf cto no. 3 and last mvt of pf cto 4 listenable here for those interested: https://archive.org/details/pogonyi-cds?tab=collection&query=walter+gaze+cooper]https://archive.org/details/pogonyi-cds?

The link is not working for me. Could you please post it again, would love to learn and listen more of the composer's music.

It's wonderful to come across what seems like an enthusiastic following promoting the composer's neglected work (thanks for the link!) That's certainly one very prolific work-list. It was very kind of his granddaughter to provide you the score. I guess none of his symphonies have been published or recorded?

This is great news, excellent work, CPO! Can't wait to hear it.

I can't believe it's already been 5 years since I created my rendition of the symphony with Dorico & Noteperformer sounds. The discussions on Lachner's symphonies here at the time led me to attempt the undertaking. Though, upon reflection, many of the tempi in my rendition were on the slower side: I do wish I had done a few things differently. In comparison, the times on the CPO record look about right.

Thanks for the supportive comments everyone, yes, Hiller had his shortcomings as a composer but it's always been such a joy working on his music. It doesn't always impress with its depth but I believe there is much good to be had and never is it for nothing. Even his operas! Die Katakomben is, for example, very good. Now that 2025 is something of a celebratory year for Hiller (140 years since his passing), I will want to transcribe at least a few more forgotten works of his this year to highlight it 

I happened to be at one of the live performances of this run and, having previously only heard the work on record, it flowed well on stage and the choice of singers and stage design made a good impression. Chiefly Jussi Rusanen and Maria Turunen, with one or two of the side characters also, sang their roles with a lot of enthusiasm. Rusanen excelled above the rest of the cast in his role. It was nice to see that the set design was in no way distastefully done (as the worry these days can be), with a good balance of traditional and modern elements mixed in with the costumes and sets. Though my criticism in that area would be the constantly spinning stage in the 2nd act, which was a bit too distracting and drew attention from the splendid music in that act.

It's excellent that the video is made available, there really aren't too many recordings of the opera out there!