Villa on Vinyl #5: Bachianas Brasileiras #3

This LP is from 1977, in the Stereo/Quadrophonic (SQ) sound system that never really caught on commercially, though judging from our LP collection there were plenty of SQ-compatible albums sold in the 70s and 80s. I'm by no means an super-audiophile; I prefer full, warm, lifelike recordings, but can't be bothered with the pursuit of perfect high-fidelity. For me the details of this ultimately dead-end technology are boring, but if you want to learn more, Wikipedia has you covered. I wonder if anyone today has a working SQ decoding system to play these LPs.

Luckily, the technology was fully compatible with ordinary stereo, so we can hear two remarkable musicians and a wonderful orchestra play one of Villa's greatest works, and a second piece that's just plain fun.

Villa-Lobos wrote quite a few works for piano and orchestra. There are five numbered Concertos, which are all of interest, especially the First and Fifth, but all are easily outstripped by two masterworks from Villa's two great unconventional series. The Eleventh Choros, from 1926, is a big work for piano and orchestra; it's one of his best compositions. And the Third Bachianas Brasileiras, written in 1938, is perhaps just as good; it's a sprawling piece with as fine a balance of the Bachian and the Brazilian as any work in the series.

Until fairly recently, Villa-Lobos's orchestral music wasn't often recorded by world-class orchestras and famous conductors. It's so good to have Vladimir Ashkenazy here, conducting the New Philharmonia Orchestra. On the other hand, there have always been lots of Villa-Lobos recordings by very fine pianists, especially from Brazil (Nelson Freire, Sonia Rubinsky, Robert Szidon, João Carlos Martins, Guiomar Novaes, among others). Christina Ortiz is in the top tier of that group; this Bahia-born pianist is a perfect interpreter of this music. These two good-looking young musicians - Ortiz was 27 when this was recorded, & Ashkenazy was 40 - are captured in a nice portrait by photographer Clive Barda on the cover of our LP.

Meanwhile, the Momoprecoce, a Fantasy for Piano and Orchestra, is a flashy, tuneful celebration of the Brazilian Carnival. It's a version of Villa's Carnaval das crianças brasileiras, written for solo piano in Paris in 1920, adapted for piano and orchestra in 1930 back in Rio de Janeiro. I expect this album turned on a lot of people to Villa-Lobos back in the late 1970s; it's a wonderful album.

A night of Brazilian classics

Performed by the Young Musicians Symphony Orchestra, conducted by James Blair, "A Night of Classics" was recorded live at Saint John's Smith Square, London, on 6 May 2004. The soloists were Fabio Zanon (guitar), Linda Bustani (piano), Claudia Ricitelli (soprano) and David Curry (tenor). You can listen in MP3 format.

New CDs from Brana Records

I've just received three new CDs from Mark Walmsley, Executive Producer at Brana Records. Most exciting is Villa-Lobos Live!, which includes two major works for piano and orchestra played by the legendary pianist Felicja Blumental.



Though I've only had the chance for a quick listen, it's clear that this is an important issue, on musical as well as historical grounds. The 5th Piano Concerto was dedicated to Felicja Blumental (1908-1991), who was born in Poland but who lived in Brazil from 1942. This splendid pianist played the work at its premiere in London in 1955 with the composer at the podium. An version of of the work with Blumental and Villa-Lobos playing with the Orchestre National de la Radiodiffusion Française has long been available as part of the 6-CD set Villa-Lobos par lui-meme. I'm anxious to hear these two works side by side.

The other major work is the excellent but underplayed Bachianas Brasileiras no. 3, written in 1938. This work matches Blumental with the Filarmonica Triestina. There's a trade-off here: this is a less accomplished orchestra, and certainly the work is less authoritatively interpreted by conductor Luigi Toffolo. However, I would argue this is a much greater work than the later, more flashy 5th Piano Concerto. More on this CD soon...

The other two CDs are interesting as well, and sound great. Felicja Blumental also plays piano in the CD Brazilian Forms. The big work here is Hekel Tavares Concerto in Brazilian Forms for Piano and Orchestra, a piece that sounds on first hearing surprisingly unlike Villa-Lobos. With conductor Anatole Fistoulari and the London Symphony Orchestra providing excellent support, the work is given the best possible presentation. Also on this CD are two works by Albeniz with Blumental accompanied by Italian orchestras.

On another CD soprano Annette Celine (Felicja Blumental's daughter) sings Cantigas - Brazilian Songs: music by Waldemar Henrique and Villa-Lobos, along with a sampling of the best South American composers of art songs. The three Villa-Lobos songs are all well-known, and among the composer's best: Cançâo Do Poeta Século XVIII, Nesta Rua, and Vióla Quebrada (one of my favourites, from the Chansons typiques bresiliennes, published in Paris in 1929). This is a marvellous recital - Celine's still strong voice combines with a completely solid grasp of the phrasing and rhythms of this music. Young pianist Christopher Gould provides excellent support, which is so important, since nearly every song has a piano accompaniment of some importance, and in some cases of distinction.

All three of these new CDs are warmly recommended.