(1778-1837)
Hummel is what I call an Era straddler. He lived during both the Classical and Romantic Eras of music.
Since, as they say, music isn't created in a vacuum, these sorts of composers are sometimes the most interesting. They show the changing winds, or at least the organic growth of musical ideas from what they were, to what they will be.
Hummel is in the unfortunate position to be remembered far after what are considered more important composers. This is a result of being a splendid music student and an apt teacher of music.
His teachers were Haydn (whom he succeeded at Esterházy Palace), Mozart, Salieri, and Clementi (among others), and his students included Czerny and Mendelssohn. Let's not even get into his friendship with Schubert and Beethoven around that time.
And so, Hummel now lurks amidst the likes of Carl Maria von Weber and Luigi Cherubini; rarely thought of first, but important in the scheme of things.
I am quite fond of Hummel's music. His main instrument was the piano, and so the solo piano music and piano concertos must list among his most important.
I rather like his Masses, and the string quartets are worth a peek. I have recently been revisiting his music, so there will be a plethora of recordings I will have looked at, particularly the series of piano concertos on Chandos.
Recordings and reviews currently on hand (Click below to visit):
1987: Piano Concerto in A minor & PC in B minor
1990: Variations for Oboe
1992: String Quartets
1993: Wind Serenades
1996: Septet in D minor & Berwald: Grand Septet
1996: Septet in C Major & Kreutzer: Grand Septet
1997: Piano Concerto in A-flat Major & Piano Concertino
1998: Piano Concerto E Major & Double Concerto
2001: Piano Concerto in F Major & PC in A Major
2002: Mass in B-flat Major & Mass in D Major
2001: Trumpet Concerto & Mandolin Concerto
2004: Mass in E-flat Major & Te Deum
2004: Mass in C Major
2004: Violin Concerto & Viola Potpourri
2004: Piano Concerto in C Major & Rondo Brilliant
2005: Mass in D minor
2006: Piano Concerto in A Major & Oberon's Magic Horn
2006: Durchzug Durchs Rote Meer
2007: Ballet Suites
Update
After listening to the entire Hummel series on Chandos, I thought I would add a few words in retrospect from what I mentioned above and in the linked reviews.
My favorite works from Hummel ended up being the ones away from the piano, for the most part at least. I love the Masses; they are in the model of Haydn, but Hummel is his own man as a composer, and so they made quite the mark on me. So too for the Red Sea Oratorio on CPO as well; I was just taken away by his writing for voice.
Hummel's penchant for composing chamber music is strong too. The Septets are popular, even if I prefer the first to the more liked second, although both use Hummel's beloved piano. The wind serenades really left me with a smile, and his first SQ is the one to hear, with a few standout moments from the others.
As to the piano concertos and orchestral works, Stephen Hough's 80's traversal of Hummel's minor-keyed PCs are required listening. Otherwise, each piano concerto is a major work worth hearing. For the orchestral works, my favorite actually came from Howard Shelley's last volume, where I found those pieces his most characterful, along with James Ehnes' viola traversal.
At some point, I will return to Hummel's piano sonatas and solo piano music. For now I will be moving on other fish to fry, at least in order to avoid over-Hummel-ing myself, if such a thing is possible.
Cheers!