557529 bk Schoenberg 4/1/10 11:16 Page 16 SCHOENBERG String Trio, Op. 45 Four Pieces for Mixed Chorus, Op. 27 Three Satires for Mixed Chorus, Op. 28 Septet-Suite, Op. 29 Accompaniment to a Cinematographic Scene, Op. 34 Twentieth Century Classics Ensemble Simon Joly Chorale London Sinfonietta London Symphony Orchestra Available from Naxos Books Robert Craft 8.557529 16 557529 bk Schoenberg 4/1/10 11:16 Page 14 Simon Joly Chorale Three Satires for Mixed Chorus, Op. 28 (1925-26) 11:28 0 No. 1 Am Scheideweg 1:08 Handpicked by Simon Joly from the finest professional singers in London, the Simon Joly Chorale is one of three select choral groups formed by him for the specific ! No. 2 Vielseitigkeit 0:39 purpose needed by each event. Simon Joly has used each group to provide the choral @ No. 3 Der neue Klassizismus 9:41 element in many of Robert Craft’s recordings, from the chamber forces of Schoenberg’s Die glückliche Hand, through Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms, to the Simon Joly Chorale (Simon Joly, artistic director) huge chorus for Schoenberg’s Gurrelieder. He has also trained choruses for several other eminent musicians who have included Pierre Boulez, for his recordings of Members of the London Sinfonietta Webern’s Cantatas and a cappella music of Schoenberg (with the BBC Singers), Paul Silverthorne, Viola • Timothy Gill, Cello • John Constable, Piano Leonard Bernstein’s prize-winning recording of Candide and several recordings and concerts for Claudio Abbado with the London Symphony Chorus. Recorded at Abbey Road Studio One, London, on 9th June, 2006 Producer: Philip Traugott • Recording Engineer: Mike Hatch • Editing Engineer: Raphaël Mouterde Simon Joly. Photo: Gerald Place Septet-Suite, Op. 29 (1925-26) 29:12 London Sinfonietta # 1. Ouverture. Allegretto 8:38 $ 2. Tanzschritte. Moderato 7:41 London Sinfonietta is one of the world’s leading contemporary % 3. Thema mit Variationen 5:46 music ensembles with a reputation built on its virtuosity, ambitious programming and commitment to placing new music ^ 4. Gigue 7:07 at the heart of contemporary culture. Since 1968 it has commissioned almost 250 works from artists including Luciano Christopher Oldfather, Piano • Charles Neidich and Alan R. Kay, Clarinets Berio, Harrison Birtwistle and Steve Reich. Recent world premières include works by Thomas Larcher, Nigel Osborne, Michael Lowenstern, Bass clarinet • Rolf Schulte, Violin Karlheinz Stockhausen, Larry Goves, Christian Mason, Claudia Toby Appel, Viola • Fred Sherry, Cello Molitor, Dominic Muldowney and John Woolrich, as well as the first pieces in a series of Sinfonietta Shorts written for the Recorded at Master Sound Astoria Studios, Astoria, New York, in February 1995 ensemble’s fortieth anniversary by composers as diverse as Harrison Birtwistle, David Lang and Django Bates. Its innovative Producer: Michael Fine • Engineer: Ben Rizzi Blue Touch Paper scheme gives today’s composers the opportunity to develop ideas without the pressure of a public performance, and the London Sinfonietta Academy provides & Accompaniment to a Cinematographic Scene, Op. 34 young instrumentalists with the unparalleled experience of (Threatening Danger, Fear, Catastrophe) (1929-30) 8:38 working and performing with some of the world’s finest contemporary musicians. The ensemble is Resident Orchestra at London Symphony Orchestra Southbank Centre in London, and its headquarters are at Kings Photo: Mykel Nicolaou Place. London Sinfonietta performs with the generous support of Recorded at Abbey Road Studio One, London, on 28th and 29th May, 1994 Arts Council England. londonsinfonietta.org.uk Producer: Michael Fine • Engineer: Simon Rhodes 8.557529 14 3 8.557529 557529 bk Schoenberg 4/1/10 11:16 Page 2 THE ROBERT CRAFT COLLECTION London Symphony Orchestra THE MUSIC OF ARNOLD SCHOENBERG, Vol. 11 The London Symphony Orchestra is widely regarded as one of the world’s leading orchestras, on the strength of its Robert Craft, Conductor performances alone, but there is much more to its work than concerts in concert halls. Its many activities include an energetic and ground-breaking education and community programme, a record company, a music education centre and exciting work in the field of information technology, and much more. At its Barbican home in the City, the LSO promotes more concerts than any other classical music organisation in London, and its LSO Live recordings made String Trio, Op. 45 (1946) 18:53 there take the Orchestra to a global audience of millions. In movies – such as all six Star Wars films - on radio, TV, on 1 Part 1 1:58 computer games, on planes and online, you can hear the LSO just about anywhere music is enjoyed. LSO Live is the 2 1st Episode 5:28 best-selling orchestral own-label in the world, and is regularly No. 1 in the classical downloads charts on iTunes. Five minutes from the Barbican, at LSO St Luke’s, the UBS and LSO music education centre, the LSO is expanding its 3 Part 2 3:22 artistic programme to include BBC TV Sessions, BBC Radio 3 lunchtime chamber concerts and UBS Eclectica 4 2nd Episode 2:45 concerts with world-class artists from diverse musical backgrounds. LSO Discovery is facilitating music education and community music-making, using LSO musicians and animateurs, and new technology to build ever-stronger links with 5 Part 3 5:20 local people and in East London schools. More than a hundred years after it was formed, the LSO still attracts excellent players, many of whom have flourishing solo, chamber music and teaching careers alongside their orchestral work. Rolf Schulte, Violin • Richard O’Neill, Viola • Fred Sherry, Cello The LSO’s roster of soloists and conductors is second to none, starting with Principal Conductor Valery Gergiev, LSO President Sir Colin Davis, and Daniel Harding and Michael Tilson Thomas as Principal Guest Conductors. Recorded at the American Academy of Arts and Letters, New York, on 20th November, 2005 Producer: Philip Traugott • Recording, Editing and Mixing Engineer: Tim Martyn Robert Craft Four Pieces for Mixed Chorus, Op. 27 (1925) 11:01 Robert Craft, the noted conductor and widely respected writer and critic on music, literature, and culture, holds a 6 No. 1 Unentrinnbar 1:39 unique place in world music of today. He is in the process of recording the complete works of Stravinsky, Schoenberg, and Webern for Naxos. He has twice won the Grand Prix du Disque as well as the Edison Prize for his landmark 7 No. 2 Du sollst nicht, du musst 1:19 recordings of Schoenberg, Webern, and Varèse. He has also received a special award from the American Academy and 8 No. 3 Mond und Menschen 3:33 National Institute of Arts and Letters in recognition of his “creative work” in literature. In 2002 he was awarded the International Prix du Disque Lifetime Achievement Award, Cannes Music Festival. 9 No. 4 Der Wunsch des Liebhabers 4:30 Robert Craft has conducted and recorded with most of the world’s major orchestras in the United States, Europe, Russia, Japan, Korea, Mexico, South America, Australia, and New Zealand. He is the first American to have conducted Simon Joly Chorale (Simon Joly, artistic director) Berg’s Wozzeck and Lulu, and his original Webern album enabled music lovers to become acquainted with this Members of the London Sinfonietta composer’s then little-known music. He led the world premières of Stravinsky’s later masterpieces: In Memoriam: Dylan Thomas, Vom Himmel hoch, Agon, The Flood, Abraham and Isaac, Variations, Introitus, and Requiem Mark van de Wiel, Clarinet • Alison Stephens, Mandolin Canticles. Craft’s historic association with Igor Stravinsky, as his constant companion, co-conductor, and musical David Alberman, Violin • Timothy Gill, Cello confidant, over a period of more than twenty years, contributed to his understanding of the composer’s intentions in the performance of his music. He remains the primary source for our perspectives on Stravinsky’s life and work. Recorded at Abbey Road Studio One, London, on 9th June, 2006 In addition to his special command of Stravinsky’s and Schoenberg’s music, Robert Craft is well known for his Producer: Philip Traugott • Recording Engineer: Mike Hatch • Editing Engineer: Raphaël Mouterde recordings of works by Monteverdi, Gesualdo, Schütz, Bach, and Mozart. He is also the author of more than two dozen books on music and the arts, including the highly acclaimed Stravinsky: Chronicle of a Friendship; The Moment of Existence: Music, Literature and the Arts, 1990–1995; Places: A Travel Companion for Music and Art Lovers; An Improbable Life: Memoirs; Memories and Commentaries; and “Down a Path of Wonder”: On Schoenberg, Webern, Stravinsky, Eliot, Auden, and Some Others (2005). He lives in Florida and New York. 8.557529 215 8.557529 557529 bk Schoenberg 4/1/10 11:16 Page 4 Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951): Michael Lowenstern String Trio, Op. 45 • Four Pieces for Mixed Chorus, Op. 27 • Three Satires for Mixed Chorus, Op. 28 Septet-Suite, Op. 29 • Accompaniment to a Cinematographic Scene, Op. 34 The bass clarinettist Michael Lowenstern has performed, recorded and toured the United States and abroad as a soloist and with ensembles of every variety, performing String Trio, Op. 45 former boxer, who could pick me up and put me with musicians and groups such as The Klezmatics, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Steve down again like a sofa cushion. Reich and Musicians, The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and John Zorn. As In a burst of creativity following a near fatal collapse on a composer, he has an active career as a producer of electronic music both for his own 2nd August, 1946, Arnold Schoenberg composed three The Trio, which Schoenberg described to many people works and in collaboration with other composers and performers. His playing can be important works in a row, String Trio, A Survivor from as “a ‘humorous’ representation of my sickness”, was found on over fifty recordings, including four solo discs, the critically acclaimed Spasm, Warsaw, and Phantasy.