Rihm: Orchestral Works & Chamber Music

On this CD:

1. Wölfli-Lieder, for voice & orchestra
Composed by Wolfgang Rihm
Performed by Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra with Richard Salter
Conducted by Alexander Dmitriev

2. Piano Piece No. 7
Composed by Wolfgang Rihm
Performed by Bernhard Wambach

3. Frau/Stimme, for 2 female voice & orchestra
Composed by Wolfgang Rihm
Performed by SWF Sinfonieorchester Baden-Baden with Carmen Fugiss, Isolde Siebert
Conducted by Michael Gielen

4. In-Schrift, for orchestra
Composed by Wolfgang Rihm
Performed by Bamberg Symphony Chorus
Conducted by Hans Zender

Customer Reviews:

Overpriced collection of somewhat less notable Rihm.......2006-11-28

This Col Legno disc collects four pieces by contemporary German composer Wolfgang Rihm. The sound quality of these isn't that hot, we get badly-recorded festival performances, and there's no text for the first vocal work. I think it's a bit audacious of Col Legno to charge us full price for what usually ends up in the budget range, but I guess we should be grateful to be able to hear any of this at all.

The "Wolfli-lieder" for baritone and orchestra (1981-82) are settings of texts by Adolf Wolfli, who after being locked up in a Bern asylum created thousands of striking drawings and fantasy tales, and other schizophrenics. It's interesting to compare these to the Wolfli-inspired pieces of Danish composer Per Norgard, who discovered the mad artist around the same time. While Norgard's pieces are schizoid and unstable, with occasional looks back to childhood, Rihm's sound usually like an entirely level-headed shout of consternation with the world. Alexander Dmitriyev leads the Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra, with Richard Salter as soloist. What a pity that there's no libretto here so that I can actually understand what text Rihm is setting, and too bad the recording quality drains the baritone of much of his presence.

"Klavierstuck No. 7" (1980), performed here by Bernard Wambach at the Darmstadt premier, is a virtuoso piano piece. While much of its material, strangely reminiscent of ragtime for this reviewer, is relatively simple and repetitive, the performer must struggle to play shifts in dynamic correctly. While not the most intriguing piano work for me, a fan of Boulez's "Incises" and sonatas, and of course Ligeti's crazy Etudes, Rihm's "Klavierstuck No. 7" is entertaining enough, and I like the clear dramatic arc and aggression in the climax.

"Frau/Stimme" for two sopranos and orchestra (1989) is the most remarkable work here. The orchestra has a role of great violence, and the two sopranos are able to get out only brief vocalizations. In the last four minutes of this twenty-minute piece, however, they break free into a double cantilena that expands widely and defeats the orchestra. This sort of programme of the individual against the masses is a favourite for concertos, e.g. Carter's for piano or Schnittke's for cello, and it's interesting to see it applied to solo voices. Here Michael Gielen leads the SWF Symphony Orchestra, with Isolde Siebert and Carmen Fuggiss as soloists.

It's a pity that the high standard of "Frau/Stimme" isn't continued in the next piece. "In-Schrift" (1995) displays the sort of impressionistic writing common to many of Rihm's purely orchestral works. However, in spite of some interesting moments, however, it drags on terribly. It is performed here by the Bamberger Symphoniker conducted by Hans Zender.

If you haven't encountered the music of Wolfgang Rihm yet, "Jagden und Formen" in Deutsche Grammophon's "20/21" series is a downright exhilirating work that makes a fine introduction. Save this disc for when you decide to build up a good collection of Rihm's music.

A good survey of Wolfgang Rihm's work.......2003-11-21

This disc in Col Legno's Collage series collects four works by the leading German composer of his generation, Wolfgang Rihm. Dating from 1980 to 1995, they provide a good overview of his output.

The Woelffli-Lieder are an orchestral version of his Woelffli-Liederbuch for baritone, piano and drum. This work sets obscene and semi-obscene poetry by the schizophrenic Swiss poet/artist Adolf Woelffli in a musical style which ranges--rather in the manner of Alfred Schnittke--from sugar-candy to violent, crashing dissonance, ending with a pounding drum solo. This performance, sung by the work's dedicatee, Richard Salter, brings this disturbing work off perfectly.

Continuing in this aggressive mood is Bernhard Wambach's superbly virtuosic rendition of the Klavierstuck #7. This is a relentless ten-minute toccata of repeated pounding chords which, just as it is about to become utterly monotonous, suddenly bursts into triadic harmony to superb, shocking effect. If not the equal of its predecessor--or of Rihm's recent Nachstudie for piano, this is still a work well worth hearing.

Frau/Stimme, for two sopranos and orchestra, is probably the least accessible work on the disc. It begins with the orchestral playing fragmentary, alienated non-thematic sounds, entirely lacking in warmth. After a few minutes, the soprano voices enter, first singing single syllables, then words, then phrases. Almost as soon as the vocalists take over the musical argument--singing out in wide-leaping chromatic melody--the work ends. This difficult piece is given as good a chance as it can get by the sopranos Carmen Fuggiss and Isolde Siebert, with the exemplary Michael Gielen's conducting a major plus. Nonetheless, I remain unconvinced.

Much stronger is the concluding--and most recent--work, the orchestral In-Schrift. Inspired, apparently, by the polychoral style of Venice--for whose San Marco cathedral it was intended--this strikes me as a homage to the Venetian composer Luigi Nono in its obsessive focus around a central note. It's not as single-minded as Nono's music, but that was never Rihm's way, and it's still an impressive utterance--one of Rihm's best orchestral works to date. Hans Zender, another veteran of contemporary music, gives an exemplary display conducting the Bamberg Symphony.

Overall, this is an eminently recommendable survey of Rihm's music. The works are on average amongst the better works of this sometimes overly prolific composer--despite my reservations about Frau/Stimme. The live recordings are of surprisingly good quality, and the performances are excellent--it's just a shame Col Legno did not choose to include texts for the vocal pieces.

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