> Haydn: Flute Concertos. Uwe Grodd (flute), Martin Rummel (cello), Christopher Hinterhuber (piano). Naxos CD.
Three Flute Concertos were written in the later part of Haydn's life. They are unusual for choice of flute over violin but they were probably designed to appeal to the taste of English and aristocratic audiences. The first two, in D major and G major, have the usual three movements of varied tempos and contrasts built around pleasant melodies, ending with some witty invention.
The third, in F major, is slightly shorter, with only two movements. It seems more serious in character and dispenses with the showy displays contained in the first two. The musicians blend well, with the piano (a sonorous Bosendorfer) heard nimbly played by Hinterhuber, particularly in the prolonged cadenza that ends the G major trio.
Highlight: light and charming chamber music.
> Malipiero: Orchestral works. Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma, Naxos CD.
Four of the five works are world premiere recordings of music by Gian Malipiero (1882-1973). He was an eccentric figure, but one of Italy's most prolific 20th-century composers. These works, new to the ears, have their own identities and beauty. Pause del silenzio I (1917) - regarded as the composer's masterpiece - is enigmatic, but interesting.
The second, Break in Silence, was written in 1926, and there are three works titled Impressioni dal vero I, II and III, written in 1911, 1915, and 1922 respectively but later termed "a single, expressive whole". They are impressions of reality but not impressionistic like Debussy. Malipiero's feelings about nature and Italian rural life include three beautiful evocations of bird life and a wild tarantella in Capri!
Highlight: haunting, atmospheric new music.
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