ROMANZA
WORKS
FOR TRUMPET, CORNO DA CACCIA,
BASSOON & ORCHESTRA
HUMMEL,
LACHNER & WEBER
GUY FEW
trumpet, corno da caccia
NADINA MACKIE JACKSON
bassoon
Toronto
Chamber Orchestra
NICHOLAS McGEGAN
$14.95 ~
MS1232
"[The
Hummel and Lachner] performances are exciting renditions of historical works played with
a tremendous amount of zeal and vigor. Above
all, Few’s playing demonstrates the dynamic and stylistic variation possible
on the instrument. The outer
movements of Hummel’s concerto are pristine, played with a marvelous
brilliance and clarity of articulation. Few
achieves a wide dynamic range to establish each of the contrasting themes. In the middle movement he displays lyrical playing with a singing quality
that blends extremely well with the strings. A real treat for this reviewer is the performance of the Lachner Concertino
on corno da caccia. The mellow
sound of the conical-bored corno blends nicely with the bassoon, allowing for an
equal partnership without overpowering the double reed instrument.
The manner in which the bassoon and corno interact is outstanding in this
seldom-heard work. Additionally,
both players demonstrate their virtuosity in soloistic passages, as well as
ensemble sensitivity during the combined passages.
...this recording is
well worth the investment to have these performances in one’s archive."
David
Bohnert, ITG Journal ~ January 2010
"[In
the Hummel Trumpet Concerto] virtuoso Guy Few plays in a mellifluous legato...
[this] is a well-polished gem that should please those familiar with the work...
The Andante is particularly luscious and lingers in the senses like the memory
of a gourmet meal long after it has been consumed... Hummel's Grand Concerto for
Bassoon and Orchestra delivers all the excitement and freshness one could hope
for.
Jackson
's chops are fantastic... Her playing can be described as nothing short of saucy
and supremely confident; those who love the bassoon would be hard-pressed to
find more liquidity and precision of articulation.
Jackson
removes all doubts as to the bassoon being a born solo instrument: the Romanza
contains the most delicious, heart-achingly sincere bassoon cadenza I’ve ever
heard... In
a unique offering, the two virtuosi pair up for Lachner's Concertino. This work
presents a canvas that allows the masterful concertino free reign; their
lightning-quick parallel runs are breathtakingly exact. To McGegan's credit, the
maestro's fingerprint is nowhere too distinct—the immensely capable soloists
constantly shine through the even texture. Everyone seems to expect nothing but
the best from McGegan, and thanks to the wonderful soloists this recording
certainly lives up to that standard.”
Northwest
Reverb ~ April 2009
"...these
performances are top notch... Mr. Few's performance of the Hummel Trumpet
Concerto is clean and polished. Phrases are crafted to perfection, and his tone
is rounded to a point of fascination. Ms. Jackson's performance of the concerto
is also made her own... This pair of performers is indeed a good one, and I am
glad they are collaborating as much as they have. Let us hope that this
collaboration continues.”
American
Record Guide ~March/April 2009
"Guy
Few begins the CD beautifully with an excellent interpretation of the Hummel
Trumpet Concerto. [In the Bassoon Concerto] Nadina's interpretation...gives us
three impressive 'lessons'. The first is in exquisite double-tonguing, the
second is in equally exquisite lyricism, and in the third it is making us
literally want to 'dance' to her interpretation... this recording is the very
best of the Hummel Bassoon Concerto since John Miller's landmark disc of the
1960s. It makes the CD worth getting for this work alone! The entire CD is a
delightful 'journey' through the age of Romanticism...A final singular word
about the marvelous Toronto Chamber Orchestra and its conductor Nicolas McGegan
needs to be added: Perfecto! They do an incredible job throughout, giving the
two artists a luscious 'canvas' upon which they can freely 'paint' their magical
sonorities...state of the art 'concert-hall' recording technique, and you have a
CD that is equally Perfecto: a fabulous recording that I cannot recommend
highly enough. Once again I am dazzled by Nadina's musical prowess on the
bassoon and profoundly jealous of her formidable technique. Braves to all
involved in this recording! ”
Rating:
5 Crows! The Double Reed ~December 2008
"Seductively
and shimmeringly gorgeous…”
World
Magazine ~ June 2008
"This
latest release by Ms. Jackson couples her once again with trumpet wiz Guy Few in
a superb program consisting of some wonderful music... The Hummel Trumpet
Concerto is played here to perfection by Few, with ample and gracious support
from the reliable Toronto players. [Few provides a] vigorous performance that
ensures full competitive standing... my favorite [Hummel] Bassoon Concerto to
this date (that of Dag Jensen on a Capriccio release) cannot really top this
wonderful reading by Jackson, one of the best, if not the best on disc. This is
a wonderfully proportioned reading that simply sparkles. [The Lachner] piece is
a gem, playing to the instruments in a really facile manner, and keeping your
attention easily... Jackson’s reading [of the Weber] meets all challenges
while kicking up a lot of dust in the dizzy final pages, great fun and spirited
playing. The sound is very naturally captured, as are all of the best MSR
releases, without undue microphone placement on the soloists. As mentioned, the
orchestra is up to the high standards set by the soloists, and I cannot imagine
a better put together recital, for the specialist and the generalist—you will
love it."
Audiophile
Audition ~ August 2008
"Few
and Jackson’s remarkable virtuosity… most striking trumpet playing, strong,
confident, very secure in the high register…dark, burnished and sensuous way
of playing the bassoon…”
American Record Guide
~ 2008
“Few
and Jackson play with polished tone, immaculate intonation and infectious high
spirits; its obvious they are having a blast.”
All Music Guide ~ 2007
“…stunningly
beautiful in every way… pure virtuosity… gorgeously together and
breathtakingly in tune…"
The Double Reed ~ Spring 2007
*
* *
ROMANZA
is the second disc in the long term recording and commissioning project directed
by Nadina Mackie Jackson and Guy Few with the Toronto Chamber Orchestra, pairing
double concerti with solo concerti for trumpet and bassoon. The title of this
recording is inspired by the lyrical slow movements that figure in each of these
nineteenth century concerti for trumpet, bassoon, corno and orchestra. Courtly
yet amiable, the romanza frequently followed a rondo pattern and was the perfect
vehicle for the wind virtuosi of the nineteenth century, players demonstrably
capable of delicately persuasive expression and dazzling flights of fingers.
*
* *
The
three composers on this recording, Johann Nepomuk Hummel, Ignaz Lachner and Carl
Maria von Weber, were all were renowned as opera composers and directors.
Written in a time when wind soloists were much more common than today, these bel
canto concerti give leading roles to the trumpet, corno and bassoon within the
texture of the full orchestra.
*
* *
GUY
FEW is a virtuoso. As a
pianist, trumpeter, cornist and singer, he delights audiences with his intensity
and charm. Montreal's Le Devoir called him "outrageously gifted" and
"quite simply phenomenal". It is no wonder that he is in demand as a
soloist, performing with many orchestras and festivals in Canada and the United
States. Guy is equally at home in classical or contemporary genres. Through the
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada Council and the Ontario Arts Council,
he has debuted new works by Canadian composers including Glen Buhr, Peter Hatch,
Alain Trudel, Melissa Hui, Boyd McDonald and Jacques Hétu, among others.
Jacques Hétu’s concerto, written for Guy, is available on Canadian Trumpet
Concerti with the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony conducted by Raffi Armenian (CBC
SM5000). He has also recorded for S.N.E., Arsis Classics, Musica Viva, ibs,
Naxos and Hänssler Classics labels. Hänssler recordings include the Grammy
Award winning CREDO of Penderecki with the Oregon Bach Festival Orchestra under
Helmuth Rilling.
Guy
has been invited as a professor, adjudicator, soloist, principal and recitalist
to many festivals including the Festival of the Sound, Scotiafest, Kiwanis
National Music Festival, Ottawa Chamber Festival, Vancouver Chamber Festival,
Tanglewood, Takefu International Music Festival and Oregon Bach Festival.
Clinics and master classes have been presented internationally at institutions
such as the Montreal Conservatory, University of Toronto, Memorial University,
New York State University at Fredonia and Sonoma State University. Guy is a gold
medal graduate of Wilfrid Laurier University, Ontario and holds a Fellowship
Diploma from Trinity College, London, England. He performs and records on a
regular basis with Bellows and Brass, Nadina Mackie Jackson and Stephanie Mara.
Guy has appeared on CBC-TV, CTV, BRAVO, TV5 and European television broadcasts
and is heard regularly on CBC Radio and NPR.
Guy
lives in Elora, Ontario, and is a part time faculty member at Wilfrid Laurier
University where he conducts the Wilfrid Laurier Brass Ensemble and teaches
trumpet and duo piano. He is a Yamaha Artist and performs on XENO and Custom
trumpets.
Combining
a virtuosic technique with an exuberant artistic flair, NADINA
MACKIE JACKSON has gained
a world wide following through her many solo recordings and recitals. One of
today’s most exciting and articulate performers she brings a creative spark to
her performances and has appeared with orchestras in Canada and the United
States. Many new works have been written for Nadina alone and in connection with
distinguished collaborators, including Guy Few, Patrick Gallois and David Swan.
An
active chamber musician, Nadina has formed many chamber groups in Toronto and
Montreal, the most well known being the Caliban Quartet of Bassoonists. Her
baroque chamber group, Musica Franca, released two CDs on MSR Classics in 2006,
and was described by Gramophone Magazine as "refined,
quicksilver & swashbuckling."
Nadina
is equally at home as an orchestral musician; for two years, she was the
principal bassoonist of the Canadian Opera Company Orchestra and can also be
heard on more than 50 of the Montreal Symphony recordings. She continues to
perform and record with such groups as Les Violons du Roy, Aradia Ensemble and
Toronto Chamber Orchestra. As a baroque bassoonist, she has appeared with such
groups as the Handel & Haydn Society of Boston, Tafelmusik, Ensemble Caprice
and the Theatre of Early Music. A founding member of the Council of Canadian
Bassoonists, Nadina is also on the Advisory Board for the Meg Quigley Vivaldi
Competition.
Nadina
is currently on faculty at Wilfrid Laurier University in Kitchener-Waterloo,
Ontario and the State University of New York at Fredonia along with the
University of Toronto and the Glenn Gould School of the Royal Conservatory of
Music.
Conductor
Nicholas McGegan
is one of the world’s
leading authorities on Baroque and Classical repertoire and a favorite guest of
major orchestras and opera companies around the globe. Mr. McGegan’s itinerary
includes regular appearances on the most illustrious international podiums. In
North America these include engagements with the Atlanta, Chicago, Cleveland,
Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, New York, Philadelphia, Saint Louis
and Toronto Symphony Orchestras. He has also conducted the Royal Concertgebouw
Orchestra, Amsterdam, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the Academy of
St. Martin in the Fields, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, the Sydney,
Melbourne and West Australian Symphonies in Australia, and orchestras in
Lithuania, Hungary, Austria and Italy.
Mr.
McGegan has been music director of Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra for more than
20 years. Since 1990, he has also been Artistic Director of the International
Handel-Festival Göttingen, the oldest festival for baroque music in the world.
Under his directorship, the Festival has returned to presenting fully staged
Handel operas such as those that marked its launch in 1920, heralding the
revival of interest in the composer’s work. His Göttingen performances have
resulted in more than a dozen notable recordings of Handel’s operas, including
the Gramophone Award-winning Ariodante with Lorraine Hunt Lieberson. Nicholas
McGegan’s 100-plus recordings cover a range of opera, orchestral and chamber
music and appear on the Avie, BMG Conifer, Classic fM, Decca, Deutsche Harmonia
Mundi, Erato, Harmonia Mundi USA, Hungaroton, Reference Recordings and Virgin
Classics labels and are available on iTunes and Magnatune.com.
McGegan
was born in England, studied at Cambridge and Oxford Universities and has
received an honorary degree from the Royal College of Music in London. He has
also been awarded the prestigious Handel Prize from the Halle Handel Festival in
Germany, and in 1996 was presented with the Drottningholmsteaterns Vänners
Hederstecken, the honorary medal of the Friends of the Drottningholm Theatre. In
2006, he was made an Honorary Professor of Philosophy at Georg-August University
in Göttingen.
www.nicholasmcgegan.com
The
Toronto Chamber Orchestra
draws players from the best groups in Toronto and Canada, including the Toronto
Symphony, Canadian Opera Orchestra, Canadian Ballet Orchestra, Tafelmusik,
Winnipeg, Vancouver and Victoria Symphony Orchestras and Aradia Ensemble. Many
of the musicians also play baroque instruments and are all well-versed in
stylistic issues from the 18th century to the modern day. As such, the
orchestra's approach is to extend transparency and purity of tone to all periods
of music. The TCO has made five recordings for Naxos (symphonies of J. Haydn, W.
Pichl, L. Mozart, F. Beck and overtures by D. Cimarosa).
