Martin Jones - Hans Gál: Piano Music (2007)

Tracklist

01. Two Sonatinas for Piano, Op. 58: No. 1, I. Moderato e cantabile
02. Two Sonatinas for Piano, Op. 58: No. 1, II. Presto ma non troppo
03. Two Sonatinas for Piano, Op. 58: No. 1, III. Leggiero e vivace
04. Two Sonatinas for Piano, Op. 58: No. 2, I. Allegro con fuoco
05. Two Sonatinas for Piano, Op. 58: No. 2, II. Arioso. Adagio
06. Two Sonatinas for Piano, Op. 58: No. 2, III. Andantino capriccioso, un poco sostenuto
07. Two Sonatinas for Piano, Op. 58: No. 2, IV. Vivace
08. Drei Skizzen, Op. 7: I. Allegretto vivace
09. Drei Skizzen, Op. 7: II. Lento e dolce
10. Drei Skizzen, Op. 7: III. Vivace
11. Suite für Clavier, Op. 24: I. Präludium
12. Suite für Clavier, Op. 24: II. Menuett
13. Suite für Clavier, Op. 24: III. Capriccio
14. Suite für Clavier, Op. 24: IV. Sarabande
15. Suite für Clavier, Op. 24: V. Gigue
16. Sonata for Piano, Op. 28: I. Tranquillo e semplice
17. Sonata for Piano, Op. 28: II. Quasi menuetto
18. Sonata for Piano, Op. 28: III. Andante un poco sostenuto
19. Sonata for Piano, Op. 28: IV. Allegro con spirito
20. Drei kleine Stücke, Op. 64: I. Humoresque
21. Drei kleine Stücke, Op. 64: II. Melody
22. Drei kleine Stücke, Op. 64: III. Scherzino
23. Three Preludes for Piano, Op. 65: I. Vivacissimo
24. Three Preludes for Piano, Op. 65: II. Lento e tranquillo
25. Three Preludes for Piano, Op. 65: III. Presto, grazioso e con anima
26. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: I. Allegro
27. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: II. Con spirito ma non presto
28. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: III. Vivace
29. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: IV. Quasi andantino, alla danza
30. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: V. Allegretto
31. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: VI. Moderato
32. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: VII. Andante
33. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: VIII. Allegro pesante
34. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: IX. Vivace
35. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: X. Grave
36. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: XI. Andante grazioso e scherzando
37. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: XII. Con moto
38. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: XIII. Adagio
39. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: XIV. Presto
40. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: XV. Tranquillo con moto
41. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: XVI. Allegro con fuoco
42. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: XVII. Quasi andantino
43. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: XVIII. Allegro maestoso
44. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: XIX. Andante
45. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: XX. Allegro agitato
46. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: XXI. Allegro piacevole
47. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: XXII. Allegro energico
48. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: XXIII. Allegretto
49. 24 Preludes, Op. 83: XXIV. Allegretto

For those who think that twentieth century Austrian music made a wrong turn with Schoenberg, Berg, and Webern, there are several possible alternative composers. On the one side, there is the intensely expressive but not quite expressionist music of Ernst Krenek; on the other side, there's the intensely romantic but not quite neo-Romantic music of Franz Schmidt; and in the middle, there's the post-Romantic but not quite expressionist music of Hans Gál. Born just outside Vienna in 1890 and dying in Edinburgh in 1987, Gál wrote in a style informed by the spirit of Brahms and Schubert, but with a modernist clarity and acerbity that almost make him an honorary member of the postwar generation. While this two-disc set played by Martin Jones is not the first nor the most complete recording of Gál's piano music - Leon McCawley's three-disc set on Avie adds the 24 Fugues, Op. 108 - it is still an apt introduction to the composer's works. In these first-rate performances - Jones first made his name as a Debussy player and his varied touch and technical perfection serve him well here - there are many excellent places to start listening. There are the two delightful, three-movement Sonatines, Op. 58, with their crisp themes and shapely forms; the amusing Three Sketches, Op. 7, with their droll themes and witty harmonies; the almost-but-not-quite neo-Classical five-movement Suite, Op. 24, with its almost-but-not-quite sarcastic Menuett, Capriccio, and Gigue; the ambitious four-movement Sonate, Op. 28, with its turbulent intensity; the slender but lovely Three little Pieces, Op. 64, with their dry-eyed but affecting central Melody; the tiny but evocative Three Preludes, Op. 65, and, finally, the kaleidoscopic 24 Preludes that present snapshots of the composer in a huge range of moods. Recorded in clear but ever so slightly too reverberant digital sound by Nimbus Records, this set will satisfy listeners who like their twentieth century Austrian music to have a good tune.