Franz Krommer Symphonies 1-3

[Alan Howe]

...forthcoming from cpo, conducted by Howard Griffiths:
https://www.jpc.de/jpcng/cpo/detail/-/art/franz-krommer-symphonien-nr-1-3/hnum/5173633

[eschiss1]

Even though only #3 is a premiere, I look forward to this especially if 5-7, 9 and the unnumbered sinfonias follow... (4 too, but like 2 this is on Chandos- and that #2 wasn't a premiere either...)

[TerraEpon]

Big fan of Krommer and don't have #1....so this is probably something to be on my radar.

[eschiss1]

I don't know if it's still available, but a recording of symphony no.1 was available on CD back in 2000 on a Czech label. I think I've heard it on the radio even- but this one will have better distribution!

I recall Wyn-Jones (Symphony in Beethoven's Vienna) being kind of critical of no.3 but I very much hope he's wrong in that.
Any case and above all, this announcement does make me quite pleased. Big fan here too...

[eschiss1]

(The old CD of symphony 1 and concertino op.70 is still available, see here.)

[M. Yaskovsky]

In the meantime cpo's release planning this autumn is neither rhyme nor reason , althought I really appriciate the label's efforts.

[Alan Howe]

There's never any rhyme nor reason to cpo's release schedule - just six random CDs per month...

[eschiss1]

Now listed at Records International, which is good.

("1 and 3 may be first recordings", RI says. Well, no. Whoever prepared cpo's notes might have acknowledged the existence of an earlier CD recording of No.1. And they're actually fairly impressive notes, even for cpo, listing composition/publication dates - as known - for all 8 surviving mature symphonies, etc. and even willing to criticize the works on the recording... (Skimming them now.)  )

[TerraEpon]

I've seen a recording ignore a previous NAXOS recording (granted, one from the mid-90s), so I never fully trust the "premiere recording" claim.

[eschiss1]

My last comment on this tangent in this thread: I recall the promotional material for an ASV recording of Bacewicz' 4th string quartet - possibly -already- the most recorded quartet by that composer - claim it to be a first recording, too. I think that was just down to wishful thinking/not doing any research/assuming "how could it be otherwise?"

Listened (since this disc is already up @ NML- some discs take years to get there, some new releases appear instantly) to symphony 3 - since I think I have heard symphony 1 (the other recording) on the radio and one of the other 2 or 3 recordings of symphony 2 along the way. Found symphony 3 enjoyable; Wyn-Jones' criticism* (that it's maybe a bit much of a copy of Krommer's own 2nd symphony, and maybe of Beethoven's too**) didn't strike me, but...- that was after one listen.

*from that author's The Symphony in Beethoven's Vienna. An interesting and informative book I've so far only read in Google preview, though I'm very tempted to try to interloan it sometime...

**_if_ I remember what I read correctly- though maybe Wyn-Jones was in fact quoting a contemporary criticism, not making one of his own? that's one reason why I must reread Anyway, it's a really interesting book, with even more information on Krommer's symphonies, Czerny's (including the early D major), etc. ...