Search - Joachim Raff, Francesco D'Avalos, Philharmonia Orchestra :: Raff: Symphony 3/ Abends-Rhapsodie/ Romeo & Juliet

An exciting performance of one of Raff's best works

David Arenson | 10/24/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Overall, this is an excellent performance of an overlooked work that deserves a place in the repertory. (Indeed it had one -- until the start of the 20th century.) "Im Walde" is one of the first program symphonies, instrumental in making Raff famous in his day. Followed later by Raff's even more famous Lenore symphony (No. 5), it nonetheless remains the choice of some critics as Raff's most finely-wrought symphonic work.



D'Avalos provides an interpretation superior to that of Wetton, bringing out the excitement of the finale, which is based on a wild midnight hunt. At the end of the work, Raff brings back the opening theme of the first movement in a gentle and quiet reminiscense. While Brahms is often credited with inventing this technique in his third symphony, as Harold Schonberg points out in "The Lives of the Great Composers," it was Raff who did it first.



The shorter works on the disc are less inspired, but I'm giving it five stars for the main attraction."

Start in the forest

Luis de Orueta | Spain | 02/22/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you haven't heard any music by Raff, this symphony is seductive enough to make of you a new convert. Personally I much prefer this recording to the alternative available."

Joachim Raff

Fiddle-Faddle | Redlands, CA United States | 07/31/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Joachim Raff .... the first time I heard his melodies I was a boy listening to Mischa Elman play Raff's 'Cavatina'. I knew right away this man had a gift for beautiful melody. The truth is borne out in his symphonies 3 and 5. History has not been kind to Raff, but without cause. His music is wonderful and more conductors should reinsert him into their programs. He deserves to be placed up near the best instead of being forgotten."