The Paradine Case-Hollywood Piano Concertos
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Bernard Herrmann, Franz Waxman, Alex North
Label: Classics
Magazine Review Date: 11/1996
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 51
Mastering:
DDD
Catalogue Number: 37225-2
Tracks:
Composition | Artist Credit |
---|---|
(The) Paradine Case |
Franz Waxman, Composer
David Buechner, Piano Franz Waxman, Composer James Sedares, Conductor New Zealand Symphony Orchestra |
Hangover Square |
Bernard Herrmann, Composer
Bernard Herrmann, Composer David Buechner, Piano James Sedares, Conductor New Zealand Symphony Orchestra |
Rhapsody |
Alex North, Composer
Alex North, Composer David Buechner, Piano James Sedares, Conductor John Taber, Trumpet New Zealand Symphony Orchestra |
(The) Charm Bracelet |
Franz Waxman, Composer
David Buechner, Piano Franz Waxman, Composer |
Prelude |
Bernard Herrmann, Composer
Bernard Herrmann, Composer David Buechner, Piano |
Author: Andrew Achenbach
Written for the 1944 film Hangover Square, Bernard Herrmann’s compelling 11-minute Concerto Macabre is a splendidly theatrical and turbulent affair, boasting a solo piano part full of the most sumptuous Lisztian bravura. It is also both superbly crafted (Herrmann’s customarily bold and resourceful sense of orchestral colour is always in evidence) and tightly constructed too. David Buechner proves to be a no less intrepid purveyor of the work than was Joaquin Achucarro on his 1974 version with Charles Gerhardt. Moreover, Buechner’s Steinway sounds in a far healthier state than that of his rival, while James Sedares and the New Zealand SO provide a suitably vivid backcloth. I also prefer these newcomers’ more challenging tempo for the thrillingly propulsive central section (aptly labelled a “Dance of Death” by Buechner in his own helpful accompanying notes).
None of the remaining tracks here quite measures up to the quality of the Concerto Macabre, though Alex North’s Concerto for piano and orchestra with trumpet obbligato (a reconstruction by Mark McGurty from the composer’s sketches for a Rhapsody (for piano and orchestra) makes enjoyable listening for all that. It was North’s steamy music for Elia Kazan’s 1951 screen adaptation of A Streetcar Named Desire which well and truly launched his career, and both outer movements of the concerto inhabit much the same jazz-inspired landscape as that score. They date from some time in the 1950s, whereas the central Lento (a deeply felt blues of ambitious emotional scope) was written in 1939 and conceived as a homage to Gershwin who had died two years earlier.
The tenderly lyrical curtain-raiser on this enterprising Koch release comprises Franz Waxman’s Rhapsody for Piano and Orchestra (based on themes from his score for Hitchcock’s 1947 movie, The Paradine Case). Though Waxman’s instrumentation is pretty luscious (even incorporating a part for electric violin), the overall effect is more of wistful intimacy rather than red-blooded passion. A haunting, surprisingly delicate creation.
Buechner adds a couple of solo items to round things off: Waxman’s winsome The Charm Bracelet (a miniature suite written in 1949 as a birthday present for his son, John) is followed by a brief, but imposing Prelude composed by Herrmann in 1935. Rich, refined sound throughout. Most enjoyable.'
None of the remaining tracks here quite measures up to the quality of the Concerto Macabre, though Alex North’s Concerto for piano and orchestra with trumpet obbligato (a reconstruction by Mark McGurty from the composer’s sketches for a Rhapsody (for piano and orchestra) makes enjoyable listening for all that. It was North’s steamy music for Elia Kazan’s 1951 screen adaptation of A Streetcar Named Desire which well and truly launched his career, and both outer movements of the concerto inhabit much the same jazz-inspired landscape as that score. They date from some time in the 1950s, whereas the central Lento (a deeply felt blues of ambitious emotional scope) was written in 1939 and conceived as a homage to Gershwin who had died two years earlier.
The tenderly lyrical curtain-raiser on this enterprising Koch release comprises Franz Waxman’s Rhapsody for Piano and Orchestra (based on themes from his score for Hitchcock’s 1947 movie, The Paradine Case). Though Waxman’s instrumentation is pretty luscious (even incorporating a part for electric violin), the overall effect is more of wistful intimacy rather than red-blooded passion. A haunting, surprisingly delicate creation.
Buechner adds a couple of solo items to round things off: Waxman’s winsome The Charm Bracelet (a miniature suite written in 1949 as a birthday present for his son, John) is followed by a brief, but imposing Prelude composed by Herrmann in 1935. Rich, refined sound throughout. Most enjoyable.'
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