Weigl: Cello Concerto, Cello Sonata & Other Works

The works for violoncello by Karl Weigl, a Viennese composer practically forgotten today, qualify as a twofold revelation. First, they offer us an opportunity once again to hear one of the musical voices that was the talk of the town in fin-de-siècle Vienna; second, the CD contains music for violoncello that in its »singability« is clearly modeled on Brahms but does not imitate him. And what is even more remarkable about this production is that its principal work – the Concerto – had never been heard at all until the present recording. In this monumental and expressive concerto Weigl sheds constantly new and impressive light on his melodic material. In contrast to the rather operatic "Love-Song," the "Wild Dance" is a theatrical piece making ample use of flageolets and sul ponticello. The Moderato in A major very simply offers time for a breather before the energetic beginning is repeated and the movement concludes with a fiery and forceful Presto con fuoco. Both works were dedicated to Arturo Toscanini.