Gernsheim cello and piano concertos

[eschiss1]

Oh, neat!!

[Alan Howe]

Neat indeed!

[JanOscar]

Alan, your introduction some 15 years back was spot on. I absolutely love it.

[terry martyn]

I was ,up until now, thinking that the Venetian Ambassador's remark "If Death came from Spain, we would live for ever" was only too apposite when it came to this recording.

So,it is all the more welcome that cpo have finally managed to outrun my expectation that I would never live to see the fruits of Triendl's labour.

[Ilja]

I've taken some time today listening to this recording. I remember that a few years ago Gernsheim's piano concerto, Urspruch's concerto and the one by Rufinatscha became available in the same week, either through a commercial release or on Youtube. Back then I felt that the Rufinatscha was something of a disappointment, but the Gernsheim and particularly the Urspruch were very good works indeed. Thankfully, this release of the Gernsheim is even better than the one that appeared on Youtube back then (which also featured Oliver Triendl, but with the Nürnberger Symphoniker conducted by Radislaw Szulc). Triendl is as reliable as ever, but the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Mainz seems to be more engaged than the Nürnbergers, and the sound is also better. It's a gorgeous piece, even if it's not quite of the same level and personality as Gernsheim's mature works.

The two other pieces on the CD are known from earlier recordings and here the results are more mixed. Hülshoff and Bäumer's approach to the cello concerto is quite different from Gerhardt and Lintu's. While the latter emphasized the rhapsodic, Konzertstück-like aspect of the piece, the former seem to approach it more like a "true" concerto, giving a definite lyrical treatment. I'm not sure yet which I like more, but it's good to have two somewhat contrasting visions of the piece regardless.

For me, Zu einem Drama is Gernsheim's orchestral masterpiece, but unfortunately this is where I feel Bäumer lets us down somewhat. His version is almost two minutes slower than the older Arp recording and it's difficult to justify that extra time. The problem is mainly one of articulation, and the sonics don't help: at times the playing feels labored by comparison, and the dynamic passages can get outright mushy. Compare Bäumer (5:10) to Arp (4:43), for instance.

By the way, Zu einem Drama is divided into three parts here; no doubt a consequence of Youtube's, Spotify's and others' renumberation per individual stream. Be prepared to see future releases get divided into micro-sections.