Search - Karl Amadeus Hartmann, Karl Anton Rickenbacher, Siegmund Nimsgern (Baritone) :: Karl Amadeus Hartmann: Symphony No. 2 Adagio / Gesangsszene to words from Jean Giraudoux' "Sodom and Gomorrha" / Sinfonia Tragica - Siegmund Nimsgern / Bamberger Symphoniker / Karl Anton Rickenbacher

Hartmann was the great German symphonist of the post-war period, but his music has been slow to penetrate the musical consciousness of other countries. One of the reasons was that he was morally opposed to the Third Reich, and withdrew all of his music from performance as a form of protest until after the war, when he had to completely rebuild his career from scratch. His symphonies are also very intense, moody works--though not long or all that difficult to listen to-- and they are quite difficult to play. Although his music isn't conventionally tonal, it is highly melodic and very well put together structurally. This means that you never get lost in it, as these performances eloquently demonstrate. If you enjoy, say, late Stravinsky, Bartók, or Berg, you'll like this too. --David Hurwitz