Search - Carl Nielsen, John Frandsen, Copenhagen Opera Orchestra :: Nielsen: The First Recordings : Clarinet Concerto op 57, Seranata in Vano, Quintet for Wind Instruments (Clarinet Classics) (The Historic Recordings)

Classic Recordings - Excellent Transfers

Snorri Sturluson | Cambridge, MA USA | 03/27/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"All three of the recordings on this disc are first recordings of their respective pieces. The Serenata in vano and Wind Quintet are from the late 1930's and the Clarinet concerto from 1947. The two chamber pieces are performed by the artists for whom Nielsen wrote the music. Aage Oxenvad, the irascible clarinettist of the Royal Chapel Wind Quintet, was supposed to have recorded the concerto written for him, but death intervened in 1944 and it fell to the French clarinettist Louis Cahuzac to make the premier recording. In the event his rendition is as fine as any that has subsequently been issued. The Wind Quintet has been recorded many times since this 1936 account, but there are few that can match it and none that really surpass it. The Serenata in vano, a very gentle musical joke of great charm, is a rarity on disc, and again this performance is as fine as any available. The transfers on this disc are very good, but listeners who are expecting the total background silence of digital recordings will not find it here. Like all pre-tape recordings, there is some surface noise from the 78s used in the transfer. The producers of the CD have resisted the temptation to remove too much of this with computer noise-reduction tools, leaving the musical information intact. I find that the mind filters the remaining noise out readily after a few seconds of listening, especially when the music is as fascinating as this. Enjoy!"