Bruckner: Chamber Music Roundup

 

This Recording Roundup features just a few one-movement bobs, plus an orchestral throwaway.





Rondo in C minor

Well if anyone complains about any of the early symphonies or chamber works being mere student conceptions, they ain't heard nothin' yet.

This Rondo for string quartet takes its cues from Classicism. The Scherzo could have come straight from the pen of Haydn, and the rest is genial without a harmonic jaunt or rhythmic jerk. A true makeweight to measure the term by.

And yet, I wouldn't be offended if the Rondo were added as an extra on a recording. Composers need to come from somewhere, and students need to follow their teacher's instructions. Sometimes that means music such as this. If you threw a student work of mine on a recording, I would be laughed out of the stable house.

The Raphael Quartet sounds fine in this music, although the poor cello sounds a little murky in the Globe sonics. I included their original cover art at the bottom of this post.

Intermezzo in D minor

This one is much more interesting.

As the Rondo was a possible alternate ending to the String Quartet, so the Intermezzo was meant as an alternate movement for the String Quintet.

Enter Bruckner's sudden unexpected harmonic shifts and crazy key swings. Add to that a little jocularity, and the Intermezzo ends up a curious piece.

Much like Beethoven's Große Fugue which was discarded from his String Quartet no. 13, but it often found a mandatory pairing, I wish ensembles would include the Intermezzo for Bruckner in his String Quintet. The Bartholdy Quintet does so and markedly avoids pairing Bruckner's Quintet with his early Quartet.

Scherzo in G minor

Team Gerd or Team Markus?

As Markus Poschner goes head-to-head with Gerd Schaller crazily recording every edition of every symphony Bruckner ever wrote, here is the 1865 Scherzo from Symphony no. 1 in C minor (the 1891 version of the symphony). Oddly, Poschner already recorded the 1868 edition of the First Symphony, but didn't include this Scherzo there.

Well, everything you want from a Bruckner-ian Scherzo is all here. A manic pace, a swirl of colors, a menacing mood, a contrasting Trio. Poschner's set is noted for the conductor's speed, so there is no chance of being let down by a discarded Scherzo from Bruckner.

Team Gerd all the way!!!

Recording Roundup

Rondo in C minor, WAB 208
  Raphael Quartet
  Globe 1992

Intermezzo in D minor
Bartholdy Quintet
  Avi 2016

Scherzo in G minor
  Linz Bruckner Orchestra
  Markus Poschner, conductor
  Capriccio 2024

Find more Bruckner recordings HERE!