Copland`s Third Symphony is a tribute to Americanism

COPLAND: "Fanfare for the Common Man;" "Appalachian Spring Suite;" "Third Symphony." Minnesota Orchestra; Eiji Oue, conductor. Reference Recordings 93.

Conductor Eiji Oue and the Minnesota Orchestra continue to impress me with both the quality of their playing and the works selected to record. This is a fine disc of music of Aaron Copland (1900-1990), one of America`s most distinguished composers.

This disc opens with "Fanfare for the Common Man" (1944). And I think there has never been more stirring fanfare and one that became immediately popular and has retained that popularly all these years. A 3 1/2-minute work that is utterly thrilling.

Look at the listings for it in the current issue of OPUS, Schwann`s catalog of recordings. Take your pick from among 25 currently available recordings. Twenty-five recordings for a fanfare? That alone should be proof enough that it`s got to be good.

Starting with a single trumpet, Copland skillfully adds additional brass until he is using a full standard complement of a brass section for a modern symphony orchestra plus its battery: four horns, three trumpets, three trombones, one bass and the percussion section. In a splendid progression of increasing dynamics, the fanfare increases in strength until you`ve got power that can blast right through your speakers and pound on your heart. And it does.

If you are looking for a recording of Copland`s "Fanfare," you simply cannot beat this one.

"Appalachian Spring" was written as a ballet, specifically for the great choreographer Martha Graham. In its original form, it was written for 13 instruments. Later the music was arranged as a ballet and as a concert suite, both with full orchestra. The notes to this disc quote Copland as saying that all the time he was writing the ballet, "I was thinking of Martha and her unique choreographic style."

We can always welcome another good recording of "Appalachian Spring" (1943-44). This work fairly breathes the essence of the American adventure. It never seems to grow old. Perhaps that`s because there are depths to it that reveal themselves only upon repeated hearings. Oue proves himself a master at exploring those depths.

However, the prize work on this disc is Copland`s "Third Symphony." It is one of the finest symphonies ever written by an American.

If I were asked to name the greatest symphonies by American composers, I should, chronologically name the "Fourth Symphony," Charles Ives (1916); the "Third Symphony," Roy Harris (1937); the "Third Symphony," Aaron Copland (1944-46).

If I were asked to name three more symphonies of comparable caliber by American composers, I should have to demur.

The three I have mentioned are that good.

And in each of the three, there is that element that typifies basic Americanism. What is it? I can`t write what it is. I can only feel it when I hear it.

With Copland, it has a lot to do with his "American sounding" harmonics, the intervals he uses - unusually long leaps - and the way he structures his harmony. And certainly it is in his choice of instruments in his orchestration. His music simply "sounds" like Copland, not just in this work but in so much of his other music.

And indeed, in the case of his third symphony, it is, to a considerable degree, some of his other music: The composer builds much of his symphony on his "Fanfare for the Common Man."

Oue is the complete master of the score of Copland`s "Third Symphony." This probably shouldn`t be surprising. Oue was Leonard Bernstein`s protege. The late conductor`s recordings of Copland stand among the finest ever made. It was to be expected that the student, Oue, should learn from his teacher, Bernstein.

The respect Bernstein had for Oue`s talent was shown in this extraordinary event: The family of the maestro presented Oue with the baton and concert jacket Bernstein used and wore at his last concert.

A splendid disc of Copland`s works. You simply cannot go wrong on this one.

HANDEL: Violin Sonata No. 4 in D Major, Op.1. MOZART: Violin Sonatas in C Major, K. 295; E Minor, K. 304; G Major, K. 301. PROKOFIEV: Violin Sonata No. 2 in D Major, Op. 94A. Milton Milstein, violin. Arthur Balsam, Leon Pommers, piano. EMI Classics 67316; mono/ADD.

The artistry of Nathan Milstein was purity itself.

He played with what might best be described as a quiet authority.

Above everything else to admire about his playing was his beauty of tone. But not this alone. His technical virtuosity was obvious to anybody who ever heard him play. So was his allegiance to a composer`s music. There was not a hint of anything ostentatious, nothing at all theatrical, in Milstein`s playing. You heard exactly what the composer wrote, nothing more.

This is a particularly good disc on which to hear and appreciate the total musicianship of the violinist. In all, he plays five sonatas; one by Handel, three by Mozart and one by Prokofiev. The wide range of styles of the composers, writing as they did over an expanse of some 2 1/2 centuries, enables the soloist to demonstrate his own broad capabilities in adapting his playing to the requirements of the periods.

If you collect recordings by artists of earlier times, Milstein should by all means be in your collection. If you particularly collect works for violin, Milstein is a violinist whose work you should not pass up.

These recordings were made and originally issued by Capitol Classics in 1955, 1957 and 1958. The quality of sound on the remastered recordings is very good.

TELEMANN: Seven String Concertos. Musica Antiqua Koln; Reinhard Goebel, concertmaster and director. Archiv Produktion 463 074.

Any time we are fortunate enough to get a new recording from Musica Antique Koln, we can expect something quite special. And so it is with these seven string concertos by Georg Frideric Telemann.

Telemann (1681-1767), Georg Frideric Handel (1687-1759) and Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) were contemporaries. The difference among the three today is that Bach and Handel are considered to be the two giants of the Baroque Period - with Bach being judged one of the, if not the, greatest musical geniuses in the entire history of music.

Telemann, today, is ranked a number of notches down on the scale on which his two great contemporaries place so high. But it was not always so. Telemann had a time of popularity. And if that popularity has long since waned, it has by no means disappeared. Indeed, it could be argued that, in the last half of the century just past, the music of Telemann enjoyed a modest increase in popularity.

Musica Antiqua Koln was founded by Goebel in 1974 from among his fellow students at the Cologne Musikhochshule. The ensemble began first as a group to play Baroque chamber music and in 1984 was expanded to become a Baroque orchestra.

Their recordings date back to 1978 when they signed an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon`s Archiv Produktion. Since then they have produced an impressive discography of music of the Baroque. The seven-string concertos recorded on this disc are delightful works of the period. Musica Antiqua Koln plays them with vigor and in great style.

If it happens that you are not acquainted with the music of Telemann, here is a great place to start. If you favor his music, you`ll enjoy having this CD in your library.

(c) Copley News Service

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Author: King Durkee