Volkmann: Orchestral Works (2CD)

Our commitment to the music of Robert Volkmann reaches a new peak with the release of his complete orchestral works on 2CDs. Volkmann upheld the classical tradition with his two Beethoven-oriented symphonies from 1862 and 1864. The heroically weighty first symphony is contrasted with the consistently cheerful second. The symphonies were preceded by Volkmann's cello concerto, one of the best ever for this instrument: It can certainly compete with Dvorak's concerto, which was written 40 years later. Formally and technically accomplished, it presents itself particularly in the simultaneous development of three themes. The overture to Shakespeare's tragedy "Richard III" is program music, which he himself described as a "tone painting" and wanted to convey "the total impression of the tragedy". Volkmann's least traditional work is brilliantly orchestrated and has occasionally bold harmonies. Volkmann wrote the overture in C major in 1863. The mature work is skillfully orchestrated and, after a short introduction, follows the individually designed sonata form. Johannes Wohlmacher on the cello and the Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie under the direction of Werner Andreas Albert provide artistic testimony to the mastery of the greatest German symphonist between Schumann and Brahms.