The horns are slinkier in the more reflective second movement, with delicate piano pecks over gentle strings, before concluding with a lumbering march. There are cartoon capers in the opening movement, with sliding piano lines and bright horns. He relocated to Los Angeles in 1975 – receiving an Emmy for his signature tune for Murder, She Wrote.
Written in 1959, we can hear the film music that Addison was best known for (eg. Scored for two horns, piano, percussion and strings, the horns actually take centre stage with some really challenging and rapid exchanges, deftly handled here by Tim Thorpe and Meilyr Hughes. John Addison’s (1920-1998) Wellington Suite kicks things off, and this is a great, playful romp. Only one of the works here has been previously recorded (the Benjamin), and that was back in 1959. Yet there are some great pieces here, ranging from the light and almost comical to more weightily, expressive offerings. ‘New’ piano concertos, often for modest orchestral forces, were a popular feature of concert programmes in the early half of the twentieth century, but by their very nature, many of them failed to achieve longevity and often disappeared without trace. Pianist Simon Callaghan joins the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, conducted by Martyn Brabbins for a great selection of obscure British Piano Concertos. The combination of some delightfully inventive keyboard music, the surprisingly versatile and sonorous fortepiano, and Grisvard’s virtuosity combined with delicacy and lightness of touch make this recording a resounding hit.įasch, C. Fasch ends with a rattling motion, and Grisvard’s clattering chords bring this to a suitably striking conclusion.
Grisvard is on a roll here, and shifts effortlessly from variation to variation, shifting from a gently rocking lilt to rapid top to bottom scales with effortless smoothness. But it is the Ariette and its variations that prove to be the real demonstration of Fasch’s inventiveness, taking the graceful and delicate theme through a gentle dance (3), perpetual spinning wheel motion (4), dramatic statements (7) and rich repeated chords (13) to mention just a few. La Cecchina is delightful, with its sudden runs and pleasing melodic material. Of the character pieces, L’Antoine perhaps stands out, with Grisvard again bringing out its mournful expressiveness with the muted tone of the instrument. The F major Sonata is equally lively and emphatic in style, with beautifully expressive touch from Grisvard in the mournful central movement, whilst demonstrating his virtuosity in the bright finale. Grisvard creates such a variety of tones here, from the sound of a music box in the quieter sections to a guitar-like sound at the light, hiccupping finish.
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The C major Sonata is full of Viennese gentility, despite its challenging hand crossing, and an expressive central movement is followed by a fiery yet playful finale, with its stop-start rhythms. Whilst conventional in structure, its finale has drama too in its fantasia-like explosion before the return of the opening material. In its slow movement, the rich lower tones of Grisvard’s instrument are warmly echoey, and the trumpet-like repeated notes ring out almost like an organ stop. The B flat minor Sonata has a dramatically rippling opening, and continues with almost perpetual motion, with falling arpeggios dropping to a sombre trill at the bass of the keyboard. The disc includes three of Fasch’s Sonatas, and several short ‘character’ pieces, ending with a wonderful Ariette with Fourteen Variations. Philippe Grisvard has recorded a selection of Fasch’s keyboard works, performing them on a gloriously ringing fortepiano from around 1790. He was also responsible for establishing the Singakademie in Berlin, which was chiefly responsible for the rediscovery of JS Bach’s music which by then had fallen into obscurity. Carl Friedrich Christian Fasch (1736-1800) was expected to follow in the footsteps of his more famous father, Johann Friedrich Fasch, as Kapellmeister in Zerbst, but instead he went on to share the position of harpsichordist to Frederick II with CPE Bach, and then ultimately when CPE Bach left after the seven years war, he remained.
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