Joseph Woelfl: Piano Music, Volume Two
Joseph Woelfl (1773–1812), a friend of the Mozart family from childhood, was one of the best-known musicians of his day: he was regarded as a rival of Beethoven in Vienna and a worthy successor to Haydn in the musical life of London. His late-Classical piano music sits between Mozart, Haydn and Clementi and looks forward to Schubert and Mendelssohn. This first-ever project to examine it in any detail hopes to rescue Woelfl’s once starry reputation from the folds of history. The three sonatas which open this second volume are dedicated ‘à Mr L. Van Beethoven’.
Adalberto Maria Riva, piano
Listen To This Recording:
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Trois Sonates, Op. 6 (1798)
- I Allegro
- II Adagio ma non troppo
- III Presto
- I Allegro
- II Andante
- III Rondo. I Allegro
- I Allegro
- II Largo
- III Rondo, Presto
- I Adagio – Allegro
- II Andante con varizioni –
- III Presto
No. 1: Sonata in A minor
No. 2: Sonata in D major
No. 3: Sonata in A major
Piano Sonata in D major, Op. 58 (c. 1811)*
* FIRST RECORDING
MusicWeb International :
‘[…] Riva is a most sensitive and highly-accomplished player, who crafts his melodic lines with flexibility, thereby allowing the music to breathe at all times. He is very much at one with the demands of Woelfl’s style, and while he has the power of a flagship 9’6” (ca. 290 cm) Bösendorfer Imperial Grand at his disposal, never once does he abuse this, nor does the equally-fine recording ever allow the instrument to exceed the dynamic range indicated in the score itself. As far as the present CD goes, I can only add that Riva has come up trumps yet again, and further endorsed everything I felt, the first time round, particularly here in terms of his abundant technical prowess and finger dexterity.
With Riva’s ongoing mission to get as much of Woelfl’s music known as possible, he certainly shouldn’t run out of repertoire, given that the composer actually wrote some sixty-eight piano sonatas. Coupled with the bold vision of Toccata Classics, I hope to be enjoying the next disc in the series as soon as possible. This Volume Two is certainly one not to be missed.’
—Philip R Buttall, MusicWeb International