Martin Helmchen, Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, Gordan Nikolic – Mozart: Piano Concertos Nos. 15 & 27 (2013)
DSF Stereo DSD64/2.82MHz | Time – 55:29 minutes | 2,18 GB | Genre: Classical
Source: ISO SACD | © Pentatone Music B.V.
For the sequel to his first Mozart CD with the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, pianist Martin Helmchen has once again chosen two strongly contrasting piano concertos in one and the same key: this time B flat major. The works are from two entirely different periods in Mozart’s life. Piano Concerto no. 15, K. 450 is one of six composed in 1784, three of which were written for two other pianists, Barbara von Player and Maria Theresia van Paradis. Together with the Clarinet Concerto, K. 622, Piano concerto no. 27, K 595, composed in the same year, 1791, forms Mozart’s swansong in the genre and was written in a period when the good old days of his Akademien (or concerts) had been consigned to the past.
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Martin Helmchen, Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, Gordan Nikolic – Mozart: Piano Concertos Nos. 13 & 24 (2007)
DSF Stereo DSD64/2.82MHz | Time – 01:00:13 minutes | 2,38 GB | Genre: Classical
Source: ISO SACD | © Pentatone Music B.V.
This is the debut album of Martin Helmchen, prize-winning 25-year old German pianist whose career received a boost when he won the 2001 Clara Haskil Competition. Though opening salvos fired by so many young pianists today often come in the form of Mozart, it can be a risky business; bad Mozart-playing can signal the quick end to a career because the nature of the music exposes so many strengths and flaws. Even now we see so many album released by “name” piano-players who really don’t have a clue as to how to handle the composer. Helmchen, I am happy to report, has found the key to the puzzle, and acquits himself very well indeed.
“The sound on this issue is sumptuous; you will not hear finer, more articulate clarity in the orchestra on any other recording that I know of and the piano sounds simply marvellous, clean, bold and rich … well worth hearing for those just building a collection or those with 5,000 Mozart concerto discs already in their collection. Unreservedly recommended.” –Fanfare
Gordan Nikolic, Netherlands Chamber Orchestra – Mozart: March in D & Serenade in D (2008)
DSF Stereo DSD64/2.82MHz | Time – 57:25 minutes | 2,28 GB | Genre: Classical
Source: ISO SACD | © Pentatone Music B.V.
It is a shame that the tradition of the open-air performances no longer plays a distinctive role in modern concert life. At least, not in classical music. Whereas pop and rock superstars world-wide fill gigantic sport arenas without any problem, classical open-air events remain the exception. Admittedly, megastars such as Pavarotti, Domingo and Carreras also achieved this almost without effort. Although it is true that the “learned” concert audience rather turned up its nose at the programme they presented; to say nothing of the price it demanded, as all sense of intimacy was somewhat lost, considering the 10,000 spectators and enormous amplifiers. The open-air concerts of the Classical period were certainly not bothered by these problems. Making music in the open air had played an important role since the end of the Middle Ages, especially in the cultural life of southern Germany. These concerts took place mostly during the evening and night. As he did in many musical genres, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart also wrote numerous works which took this “society-associated light music” (Gruber) to undreamt-of heights. Mozart, a composer of light music? Yes. After all, neither the composers, nor the audiences of the 18th century were confronted with the problem of the later division between “light” and “serious” music, which even now is adhered to in German-speaking countries with almost pompous gravity. Quite the opposite, in the Classical period, it was much more a self-evident goal to link popularity to eruditeness in an elegant manner, and to offer a piece of music which would appeal to all levels of the audience. At the same time, serenades had been considered from time immemorial a refined genre of light music, which was certainly always worth acknowledging. The title already indicates the ephemeral function of this music; thus, the word “serenade” can be more or less derived from the Italian “sera” (evening) and “sereno” (clear, cheerful).
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Julia Fischer, Gordan Nikolić, Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, Yakov Kreizberg – Mozart: Works for Violins and Orchestra (2007)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:03:33 minutes | 1,16 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © PentaTone
German violinist Julia Fischer, 24 years old when this recording was released, is surely a bright new star, all charisma as her diminutive self stands between conductor and collaborator Yakov Kreizberg and violist Gordan Nikolic on the cover of this disc. She has a steely technique that she brings to Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante in E flat, K. 364 — not a steely work, but the musicianship here is superb. Fischer and Nikolic make an attractive pair in the work, her razor-sharp tone set against his gutsier sound production, all the contrasts held together by Kreizberg’s brisk tempos and no-nonsense forward drive. There are recordings of the Sinfonia Concertante that play more directly to sentiment, but the work’s intricate architecture breathes in this interpretation. An additional bonus is the inclusion of the rarely heard Concertone in C major for two violins and orchestra, K. 190, a work that also has solo oboe and cello parts and seems to hang in the balance between the concerto and sinfonia concerante (multiple-soloist) genres. The performers bring a nice lilting quality to the first two movements, rather sprawling creations of the young Mozart that demand really compelling soloists of the sort on display here. The only complaint is over-resonant sound, the result of PentaTone’s decision to record in a Haarlem church — the wrong place for music intended for a medium-sized, crowded, well-upholstered room. It destroys the intimate scale of the performance and causes the soloists and the harpsichord continuo of the Concertone, especially, to sound a bit like they are swimming in a watery chamber. The clarity of Fischer’s playing, however, is not compromised, and it’s a real wonder. She has also recorded two of Mozart’s solo violin concertos with the same forces, but this disc in a way suggests even greater talents. –James Manheim, AllMusic
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Gordan Nikolic, Netherlands Chamber Orchestra – Haydn: Sinfonia Concertante In B Flat Major; Symphony No. 100, Military (2007)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 51:06 minutes | 934 MB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © PentaTone Classics
This album from PentaTone Classics features Gordan Nikolic as both solist and conductor with the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra. The recording opens with the overture “L’isola disabitata,” which Nikolic conducts from the harpsichord. The Sinfonia Concertante features Nikolic on violin, Herre-Jan Stegenga on cello, Toon Durville on oboe, and Margreet Bongers on bassoon. The performances are bright and brisk, and the recording quality is top-notch.
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Gordan Nikolić, Netherlands Chamber Orchestra – Mozart: Symphonies Nos. 41 & 39 (2021)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:15:53 minutes | 1,30 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Digital Booklet, Front Cover | © TACET Musikproduktion
The Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, with Gordan Nikolic, puts down a spicy performance of two of Mozart’s bubbliest symphonies: the “Haffner” and the “Linz”. “Both symphonies swoop and swerve at sprightly tempos where needed, which is different from being just fast. They virtually tremble with life. The engineers have succeeded admirably with a transparent soundstage.” (Fanfare)
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