Search - Mosonyi, Kormendi, Stankovsky :: Piano Concerto / Symphony 1

Worthwhile, but hardly essential

G.D. | Norway | 01/29/2010

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I guess one might even quarrel with the name of the composer on this disc. Mihaly Mosonyi was born `Michael Brand' and took his Hungarian name in 1859, some years after he had settled in Pest and adopted a distinctly Hungarian manner of composition. The works on this disc, however, predates his move to Hungary and is written in a post-classical mode inspired by Beethoven and his followers - stylistically the music should appeal to those who enjoy the music of, say, Krommer or Onslow, perhaps, even if Mosonyi, on the evidence of this disc, isn't quite in that league.



The symphony dates from 1844 and is very Beethovenian, both in terms of structure and orchestration (e.g. use of figurations, tensions, etc.); the comparison doesn't really serve Mosonyi very well, for the thematic material is (obviously) less distinguished - although less Beethovenian than the other elements - and he is hardly Beethoven's equal in terms of structure, development, figuration or orchestration either. That said there are some fine things in here; the Adagio is nicely amiable, the Scherzo aptly energetic, and the finale in particular is bouncy, zestful and even quite memorable.



The piano concerto was composed around the same time, but it is more romantic in mood (Chopin and Weber, perhaps), but not overly so (maybe Moscheles is a closer comparison). The first two movements are piano-lead and the whole thing is charming enough, but again the music isn't particularly original or memorable, nor is it very interestingly developed. In any case, both the symphony and the concerto are worth hearing, at least once, and the performances are pretty good, although a little heavy at times, though lead with commitment by Stankovsky. Klara Körmendi is a more than adequate soloists clearly devoted to making the most of what she has to work with. Sound quality is usual Marco Polo quality; not perfectly clear and not ideally balanced, but not really a big obstacle. A qualified recommendation, then - worth seeking out for fans of music of the period and sure to bring an hour of appealing pleasantry to everyone, but not anything more than that."