BERWALD · STENHAMMAR · AULIN : Swedish Romantic Violin Concertos (Niklas Willén · Swedish Chamber Orchestra · Tobias Ringborg) (1999) Two Version | FLAC (image+tracks+.cue), lossless

For much of the nineteenth century in Sweden, music-making was confined to small-scale chamber music at home. Ambitious composers had to move abroad to seek acceptance of their work. Berwald’s Violin Concerto was performed only once in Sweden during his lifetime, and on that occasion the audience laughed. It was not until a century later, when Tor Aulin and Wilhelm Stenhammar led a Berwald revival, that this sparkling work was performed throughout Europe. Stenhammar’s two Romances were written during one of the most creative periods of his life. Full of feeling, they are models of the genre. The two Romances were given their first performance by Tor Aulin, whose own Violin Concerto No. 3 belongs firmly to the world of Brahms and the central European romantic tradition. naxos
FRANZ BERWALD (1796-1868)
1-3.    Violinkonsert I Ciss-Moll, Op 2    (21:38)
WILHELM STENHAMMAR (1871-1927)
4-5.    Två Sentimentala Romanser, Op 28
TOR AULIN (1866-1914)
4-8.    Violinkonsert Nr 3 I C-Moll, Op 14 (30:59)
Credits : 
Conductor – Niklas Willén
Cover [Omslagsbild - "Hoga-dal På Tjörn"] – Karl Nordström
Orchestra – Svenska Kammarorkestern
Violin – Tobias Ringborg

KULLAK : Piano Concerto In C Minor, Op 55 (First Recording) ♦ DREYSCHOCK : Piano Concerto In D Minor, Op 137 (First Recording) (Piers Lane · BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra · Niklas Willén) (1999) Serie The Romantic Piano Concerto – 21 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Dreyschock and Kullak are today only footnotes in the biographies of those who emerged from the nineteenth century as giants of the musical world, but in their time both artists were very significant indeed.

Both were pianists (and born in the same year) but had very different careers. Dreyschock seems to have been a bit of a showman and played loud and fast, he made a speciality of his left hand work and was one of the first to compose for this esoteric medium. His large output of compositions seem never to have made much impression and it is now purely as a performer that he is remembered. His only concerto (not to be confused with his Concertstück once recorded on LP) is rather Mendelssohnian and has a particularly energetic finale.

Although by all accounts also a superb virtuoso Kullak gravitated towards teaching and became perhaps the most prolific teacher of the nineteenth century century; he eventually founded his own Academy in Berlin which had a roll of around 1000 piano students at its peak.

His only concerto was published in 1855 and is quite conservative for its time, though it may have been written earlier. It clearly derives from the tradition of Hummel and contains much brilliant finger work interspersed with a lyricism very reminiscent of Chopin. It may not be profound, but it is both beautiful and entertaining and must surely be one of the most enjoyable 'lost' concertos around. Hyperion

Theodor Kullak (1818-1882)
                    
Piano Concerto in C minor Op 55 [34'47]

Alexander Dreyschock (1818-1869)     

Piano Concerto in D minor Op 137 [24'19]

Credits :
Conductor – Niklas Willén
Leader – Elizabeth Layton
Orchestra – BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
Piano – Piers Lane