Program 112
"Romantic Reinecke"

PLAY LIST:

All the music in this hour of Compact Discoveries is from Naxos 8.557404: Carl Reinecke: Harp Concerto; Flute Concerto; Ballade.

SCRIPT:

MUSIC: clip from the finale of Reinecke’s Flute Concerto. [under the following]

Welcome to Compact Discoveries. I’m your guide, Fred Flaxman, and the theme for this hour is “Romantic Reinecke.”

The German composer, Carl Reinecke (his name is spelled r-e-i-n-e-c-k-e), is remembered today mainly as an educator, pianist, and conductor of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. But he has a long and varied list of compositions to his name, including operatic, vocal and choral works, three symphonies, and concertos for piano, harp and flute.

Stay with me for the next hour and you’ll hear both the beautiful harp and flute concertos, which are my very latest compact discoveries.

MUSIC: up and fade out


Carl Reinecke, who lived from 1824 until 1910, was the teacher of Sullivan of Gilbert and Sullivan, as well as of Weingartner and Grieg. He was the son of a musician who, in turn, was the son of a shoemaker who was also a self-taught musician.

Carl Reinecke showed early musical ability and made his debut as a pianist at the age of 11. A decade later he toured widely in Europe and accepted the position of court pianist in Copenhagen. He spent some time in Leipzig, where he was well received by Mendelssohn and Clara and Robert Schumann. He also spent time in Weimar, where he met Franz Liszt, who was also impressed by him. Later, when Reinecke was in Paris, he gave piano lessons to one of Liszt’s daughters.

Well, I’ll tell you more about Carl Reinecke later on. But first, let’s hear his beautifully orchestrated, charming harp concerto. In this Naxos recording, Fabrice Pierre is the harpist with the Swedish Chamber Orchestra conducted by Patrick Gallois.

MUSIC: Reinecke: Harp Concerto [24:09]

Carl Reinecke’s Harp Concerto in E Minor, Opus 182. Fabrice Pierre was the harpist with the Swedish Chamber Orchestra conducted by Patrick Gallois in this Naxos recording.

You are listening to an hour of music by Carl Reinecke on Compact Discoveries. I’m your guide, Fred Flaxman.

[optional one-minute break not included in total timing of the program]

Starting in 1851, Carl Reinecke taught at the Cologne Conservatory. After a period in Breslau as director of music at the university, he returned to Leipzig in 1860 as conductor of the famous Gewandhaus Orchestra and professor at the Conservatory there, which was founded by Mendelssohn. In 1869 Reinecke conducted the first complete performance of Brahms’s German Requiem, and was the pianist in the first performance of Brahms’s Cello Sonata. When Brahms died in 1897, Reinecke wrote his own Cello Sonata in memory of Brahms.

Reinecke’s Flute Concerto in D Major, Opus 283, dates from the last years of his life. It was writen in 1908 and he died two years later. As you’ll hear, the piece offers considerable scope for virtuoso flute playing, colorful orchestration, and beautiful melodies. We hear flutist Patrick Gallois with the Swedish Chamber Orchestra conducted by Fabrice Pierre, who was the harpist in our first selection.

MUSIC: Reinecke: Flute Concerto in D Major, Op. 283 [21:19]

Carl Reinecke’s Flute Concerto in D Major, Op. 283, performed by Patrick Gallois with the Swedish Chamber Orchestra conducted by Fabrice Pierre.

You are listening to Compact Discoveries. I’m your guide, Fred Flaxman, and I am devoting this hour to the music of “Romantic Reinecke.”

MUSIC: Reinecke: Ballade, Op. 288 [under the following]

Reinecke’s Ballade, Op 288, is his last opus. It is also written for flute and orchestra. We’ll go out with this piece from the same Naxos recording with the same performers as the Flute Concerto.

I hope you’ve enjoyed these selections and that you agree with me that this recording is a true compact discovery.

Please contact me to let me have your reaction to this and other Compact Discoveries programs. I can be reached via the Compact Discoveries website: compactdiscoveries.com. There you can see a list of future themes I am working on. Perhaps you have suggestions for music that will fit some of those themes, or maybe you have an idea for another theme that I have yet to explore. You’ll find a complete list of Compact Discoveries programs on the website. Feel free to e-mail me with your suggestions and comments.

The website also is the place to go for Compact Discoveries articles, a list of stations carrying the program, listener comments, and information on underwriting our very modest production costs.

I would like to thank Jim MacKenzie for audio editing this hour.

You can stream this and other Compact Discoveries programs on demand at prx.org. Compact Discoveries is distributed internationally by the Public Radio Exchange.

MUSIC: ends

ANNOUNCER: Compact Discoveries is made possible in part by Story Books, publishers of The Timeless Tales of Reginald Bretnor, selected and edited by Fred Flaxman. Samples and ordering available at bretnor dot com, b-r-e-t-n-o-r dot com.

PROGRAM ENDS AT 58:00