Ferenc Fricsay : Burleske | Oboe Concerto Duet concertino | Till Eulenspiegel L.Goossens | H. Geuser | W. Fugmann | M. Weber Berlin, 1949-1955 RIAS-Symphonie-Orchester RICHARD STRAUSS Burleske for Piano and Orchestra in D minor, TrV 145 Allegro vivace 20:06

Concerto for Oboe and Small Orchestra in D major, TrV 292 I. Allegro moderato 8:17 II. Andante 8:47 III. Vivace – 4:32 Allegro 2:44

Duet concertino for Clarinet and Bassoon with String Orchestra and Harp in F major, TrV 293 I. Allegro moderato 5:32 II. Andante 2:20 III. Rondo. Allegro ma non troppo 8:21

Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks, Op. 28, TrV 171 14:21

Léon Goossens, oboe Heinrich Geuser, clarinet Willi Fugmann, bassoon Margrit Weber, piano RIAS-Symphonie-Orchester* Ferenc Fricsay, conductor Heinrich Geuser *today: Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin FERENC FRICSAY to Bartók or his commitment to modern music which earned the 33-year-old sudden international fame when he conducted the world premier of Gottfried Gottfried of premier world the conducted he when fame international sudden 33-year-old the earned which music modern to commitment or his Bartók to approach fundamental his interpretations, Mozart offiery his think mostly conductor, afficionados Hungarian Fricsay, legendary the Ferenc to it comes When Strauss conducts Fricsay Ferenc Elegy and Experiment ated rhythmic impulses, but also the folksy drive, the drawing power and of course the rapid culmination of events when the hero ends up at the scaffold, Orchestra. Philharmonic Szeged the with concerts as well as theatre and chosehowever, to move refused, toHe the conductor. garrisona of town ofpath Szeged, wherecareer he ledtough the military bandthe aton first andenter soonto proceededthus to and conduct opera performancesopera atthe local the at répétiteur as work to opportunity the offered was graduation his After Dohnányi. Wagner’s von from excerpts Ernő and conducted he which for Bartók Budapest, Béla in academy Kodály, Liszt Franz the Zoltán from country: the of composers famous most the of some from lessons composition took he student, a as school high In addition, and percussion. trombone clarinet, piano, violin, instruments: different many learn to young child the urged who leader aggressive. and sharp turning even sometimes of humour,and a sense wicked tempi unconventional applying also while detail, to attention much way with score in the a and rhapsodic free illuminates Fricsay 16 the from rogue infamous the been, have must model literary his as subversive a“once simple with a upon time”. story the opening Fricsay follows,however, was This What album. picturesque is alla but pleasant, thoughas aflow has natural toit, sentiment, one conducted in is an used operetta-like it to hearing – often just Thetake beginning: the introducing phrase, played frequently of the version Fricsay’s interpretations. of Strauss his aesthetics in the mirrored is clearly affinity This facets. bucolic and burlesque composer’s the works, orchestral chamber the and opuses late the rarities, the pursued he Instead, climaxes. as such poems symphonic major fifth, CD,the this on are ofwhich combined four Strauss, Richard for listed five works than are no There more Richard”. “Strauss, mentioning of entries number bythe far exceeds Johann” “Strauß, keyword the under of entries number the that tion A opera? single a even not and concert, in works his performed once only having Bayeri von opera Einem’s Witnessing the stunning precision of his his of precision stunning the Witnessing 9 August on born Fricsay, Ferenc origins? his to due this Was orchestral vast and sounds of thrill late-romantic its pathos, style Wilhelminian its with Strauss “typical” the of clear have to steered seems Fricsay Ferenc 1956 from until Munich in Opera) State (Bavarian Staatsoper ­sche Dantons TodDantons at the Salzburger Festspiele in 1947. But Fricsay and Richard Strauss? Hadn’t Fricsay, being the general music director of the the of director music general the being Fricsay, Hadn’t Strauss? Richard 1947. and in Fricsay But Festspiele Salzburger the at Ein Heldenleben, Eine Alpensinfonie Heldenleben, Eine Ein Till Eulenspiegel, Eulenspiegel, Till its razor-sharp tutti lashes, the furious attacks of the wind instruments in particular, of wind the accentu instruments the furious the attacks lashes, tutti razor-sharp its th , 1914 in Budapest, shortly after the beginning of World War I, was son to a military band band military a to son was WorldWarI, of beginning the after shortly 1914, Budapest, in , Also sprachAlso Zarathustra 1958, just been accused of not providing enough support to the city’s great son, of of son, great city’s the to support enough providing not of accused been just 1958, th

-century folk tale who antagonized the bourgeois with his mischievousness. his mischievousness. with bourgeois the antagonized who folk tale -century glance at the list of existing sound documents from that time calls to atten to calls time that from documents sound existing of list the at glance or or Don Juan, Juan, Don Meistersinger Tod und Verklärung, Tod Verklärung, und is available online as bonus track bonus as online available is Till Eulenspiegel Eulenspiegel Till as well as a work of his own composition, Fricsay are not represented. not are for example sounds very different than than different very sounds for example ( Till audite.de/95604 is as rebellious and isrebellious as ). Yet - - FERENC FRICSAY passages consisted of many fragments joined together. The same essential feature of experimentalism is already manifested in the early early in the manifested is already of experimentalism feature essential same together. The joined of fragments many consisted passages feel uncomfortable and unruly, even spooky. This approach reveals work thethe kaleidoscope-likemaking – character of Strauss’sindividually it composing:sharpens and it almostepisode seems aseach thoughout the carves instead but mold same the from poem symphonic whole the cast doesn’t he because all that inevitably brings to mind band the leader military Fricsay. that But is not all. Fricsay’s interpretation also comes across as surprisingly modern, partly almost in the same breath, that it had meanwhile become “one of the most beautiful and skilled orchestras in Germany, alongside the .” Berlin the alongside Germany, in orchestras skilled and beautiful most “one the of become meanwhile had it that breath, same the in almost such a miserably state that it was only possible to play second- or third-rate concerts,” the ’48/’49. of maestro in season claimed was the It in in 1960, orchestra over only the took to make“I up the balance protest. no by was stating, there and subsided doubts the administration, military just 1946US in byonly the founded Orchestra, Symphony RIAS the of development breathtaking the to due especially and results artistic the to due case, Fricsay’s in But colleages? his what his innermost idea was.” Usually, these methods are not very popular among musicians: Which player tutti likes to be presented individually in front of that orchestra of the sections individual the with He would work so intensively persistent. and gnawingly relentless He was work. more detailed the he would begin impressions, on the based Then, piece. of or amovement awhole arun-through with rehearsals began usually “Fricsay remembers: Orchestra, Symphony RIAS the with flutist principle former Hoefs, musicians.” young support and help to duty moral and artistic his it considered “He his death. after Weber recalls Margrit person,” kind of this traits character main one of to know the of getting Fricsay, I pleasure with had the my contact of evening first very the “On concerto. piano first Brahms’s play to pianist the hired later Fricsay that coincidental seems hardly it thus – by Brahms inspired is much very in it herwhen comes element to where the sensitively rhapsodic the shaped prevailing the passages episodes, of composition style early is still the on went and they to perform and in Naples, Berlin concerts play to public, the to unknown completely was then until who pianist, the invited promptly he that impressed so was Fricsay Strauss. by piece “knotty” the performed concerto, to a Mozart Weber in addition who, Margrit pianist Swiss 30-year-old the was evening of the soloist The occasion. different a on them be to going was he because with himself familiarize to wished he orchestra an Winterthur, Musikkollegium the of concert a attended the for performer ideal his discovered Fricsay Ferenc that by chance was It appreciation. of symbol a as score the dedicated ally eventu Strauss whom to d’Albert, Eugen to on premier world the passed he Therefore music?” of piece knotty a such practising weeks four spend to me dobar – expect you each for position hand different “A complained: Meiningen, in director asmusic position first for Strauss’s arranged von had Bülow, who andcreativity productive restlessness. in composed orchestra, Needless to say, the “kind person” Fricsay was also downright feared by some of his mentees. Afterall, his meticulous working method was ruthless. Heinz Heinz ruthless. was method working meticulous his Afterall, mentees. his of some by feared downright also was Fricsay person” “kind say, the to Needless To day, the this Burleske Burleske 1885/86, nine years prior to to prior years nine 1885/86, leads a shadowy existence in the concert repertoire which is largely due to its tricky piano part. Early on, Strauss’s mentor Hans Hans mentor Strauss’s on, Early part. piano tricky its to due largely is which repertoire concert the in existence shadowy a leads – expecially in the string sections – he sometimes even asked each desk to play by themselves, until he had achieved he had achieved until play byto themselves, desk each even asked – he sometimes sections string in the – expecially Burleske Burleske Till Eulenspiegel: Eulenspiegel: Till many times. While there are some highly virtuosic passages that are not quite impeccable, Weber Weber impeccable, quite not are that passages virtuosic highly some are there While times. many a work by the 21-year-old Strauss that reflects a bizarre sense of humour, exuberant humour, exuberant of sense bizarre a reflects that Strauss 21-year-old the by work a Burleske Burleske Burleske : In January 1955, he January In : for piano and and piano for - FERENC FRICSAY featured on this CD, a studio recording from September 30 September from recording studio a CD, this on featured is that concerto Oboe Strauss’s of day.” and recording The night as different as was “It him: to surprise great a as came own, his answer: The wonderful. so the firsttime rehearsingMendelssohn, when a violist whowasn’t playingthat projectwalked by andwanted to know which orchestrathis was – it sounded ings are proof of that. of proof are ings record Strauss his And truth. musical of the in search continuously was Fricsay Ferenc disciplinarian: a drilling more than far he was educator. Still, orchestra For Fricsay, this was an opportunity to expose the finesse of hismatured ensemble as if under a burning glass, and to substantiate his reputationas brilliant not onlyConcertino, do thethe two soloists interact with the orchestra, but theretrospect.In strings are also subdividedcertain a intowith solialso andbut tutti sectionssound, in a similar waybeautiful as inpure, a concertofor love grosso.his and melodies indulgent never-ending, the with style, late his of instrumental work which he completed in December of 1947, at age 83, not even two years before his death. This work, too, shows the specific qualities Strauss’s presented players, wind principle two these with together 1953, Fricsay,April Opera.In State Berlin the of members previous both Fugmann, Willi player bassoon the and Geuser Heinrich clarinetist the them among positions, for vacant applied who sector eastern city’s the from players fantastic were many there leadership, of his era the during of excellence a reputation Fricsay’s had to Symphony soon gained themselves Since take overRIAS the Orchestra members goalfor ambitious was orchestra the solo extensive parts. However, Orchestra. Philharmonia the with later twoofit years in recording 1946Proms first at BBC the the and had made premier British concerto’s over again. over and musicians the taught he sing!” notes, play just “Don’t tapestry: like an over-elaborate seem others some where sense makes interpretation unsentimental Fricsay’s like vines. twisting voices meandering with in composed recently had just Strauss that new at time, the brand œuvre, late of this features characteristic the out at bringing skilled especially is Fricsay flat. and never becomes at times all and distinct precise remains sounds the transparently, string tuttis to subtly shaped wind soli and the a of wonderfully balanced mixturemelodiousness of tone colours.enchanting Thethe individualfrom voicesreaching achieved: are alwaysmeanwhile ablehad to be followedorchestra the clearly andculture playing of level stunning the of proof is and Orchestra, For the solo of part the oboe concerto, he had invited the Englishman Léon Goossens, one of the foremost oboists of the time who had performed the Fricsay must have performed this miracle in a very short time. On December th , 1949, marks the earliest document of the cooperation between Fricsay and the RIAS Symphony Symphony RIAS and the Fricsay between cooperation of the document , 1949, earliest the marks Duet concertino 12 for clarinet, bassoon, string orchestra and harp, the composer’s last purely purely last composer’s the harp, and orchestra string bassoon, clarinet, for th 1945: the bucolic atmosphere that calls to mind hot summer afternoons afternoons hot summer mind to calls that 1945:atmosphere bucolic the , 1948, he was standing in front of the RIAS Symphony Orchestra for Translation: Translation: Susanne Stähr Rebecca Beyer -

recording date / location: Till Eulenspiegel: February 11, 1952, Titania-Palast (live) Burleske: May 31, 1955, Hochschule für Musik (live) Oboe Concerto: September 30, 1949, Jesus-Christus-Kirche, Berlin-Dahlem Duet concertino: April 20, 1953, Jesus-Christus-Kirche, Berlin-Dahlem recording producer: Wolfgang Lohse (Oboe Concerto / Till Eulenspiegel) Martin Fouqué (Duet concertino / Burleske) recording engineer: Peter Burkowitz (Oboe Concerto / Till Eulenspiegel) Heinz Opitz (Duet concertino / Burleske)

Eine Aufnahme von RIAS Berlin (lizenziert durch Deutschlandradio) recording: 1949 - 1955 Deutschlandradio research: Rüdiger Albrecht remastering: Ludger Böckenhoff, 2018 rights: audite claims all rights arising from copyright law and competition law in relation to research, com- pilation and re-mastering of the original audio tapes, as well as the publication of these takes. Violations will be prosecuted. The historical publications at audite are based, without exception, on the original tapes from broadcasting archives. In general these are the original analogue tapes, MASTERst which attain an astonishingly high quality, even measured by today’s standards, RELEASE with their tape speed of up to 76 cm/sec. The remastering – professionally compe- ORIGINAL TAPES tent and sensitively applied – also uncovers previously hidden details of the inter- pretations. Thus, a sound of superior quality results. Publications based on private recordings from 1broadcasts cannot be compared with these. We have made every attempt to clear rights for all material presented here. Should you nonethe- less believe that we have accidentally infringed your rights, please let us know at your earliest con- venience. We will endeavour to resolve any issues immediately. photos: Deutschlandradio-Archiv art direction and design: AB-Design

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