LOUIS SPOHR
Violin Concertos 1-15; Violin Concerto in A. Ulf Hoelscher, Violin; The Radio Symphony Orchestra of Berlin conducted by Christian Frölich. cpo 999 657-2 Six Discs; 5:52:55 [DDD]
Reviewed by Robert Cummings

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I always admire projects like this: any label willing to invest so much in mostly little known fare must be given the proverbial pat on the back. True, not all of these works are neglected, since Heifetz and Spalding made impressive recordings of No. 8, and the Seventh also has had some currency. Of course, there have been recordings of the other concertos, as well, some recently released on Marco Polo with young violinist Christiane Edinger. An older Marco Polo disc with Takako Nishizaki playing Nos. 7 and 12 is also available and considered a classic. Still, for most this will be largely unfamiliar repertory. So what's Spohr like? At his best his violinistic personality approaches the spirit of Mendelssohn, without actually sounding like him. Much of his orchestration is at about the same level of advancement as that of late Beethoven, though his music sounds very little like his, although one might notice it bears a remote resemblance to the Second Piano Concerto. It is generally lighter than Beethoven's music, like Mendelssohn's, but seemingly not quite as distinctive. That's not to say that Spohr lacks the strong compositional profile of his better contemporaries; quite the contrary, he had as distinctive a style as anyone. But when a composer writes so many works in one genre they tend to detract from one another's individuality, much the way the prolific Vivaldi did in the concerto genre.

As far as the individual concertos here go, No. 7 certainly is a worthwhile piece, even a masterpiece. But Nos. 8 and 10 are also fine works, as are most of the later ones. No. 2's Adagio has some interesting quotations from Bach's St. Matthew's Passion and this whole work I found quite compelling. Considering the fact that Spohr was only twenty-one years old when he completed it, it is a remarkable achievement. No. 5 is another gem here, but I suppose there's something, more than something really, that you can find attractive in each one of these sixteen concertos. All are well crafted and I doubt you can find an instance of note-spinning in any one of them. By the way, sources reveal there are two other Spohr violin concertos, and I'm not referring here to the two he wrote for two violins and orchestra. In any event, I don't mention this to suggest you're being shortchanged with this mammoth and well played set. Quite the contrary, if you're a Spohr maven, this boxed set, at a reduced price is essential.

As I suggested above these are fine performances, though I do find there are times that Ulf Hoelscher's technique may be stretched a bit here and there. Still, the playing is committed and the orchestral support by the Radio Symphony Orchestra of Berlin under the baton of Christian Frölich is splendid. The sound offered by cpo is excellent throughout and the copious notes are informative and very scholarly. This set will obviously will appeal not only to Spohr admirers but to those seeking a solid composer from the first half of the 18th century.

© 1999 - Robert Cummings

Robert Cummings is the author of Opposites Detract, a novel which can be read online at www.puzzlesbyshar.com/adventurebooks/.