David Geringas - Pfitzner: Cello Concertos 1-3 (1993)

Pfitzner’s music is generally recognized as being rather conservative, but he was surely a master of the craft and many of his works exhibit genuine inspiration – moreover, his musical language is sufficiently personal for his works to be (at least often) quickly recognizable. Despite being relatively conservative, his music is not always “easy”, however, being often introvert in character and harmonically rather dense, yet his best works are easily worth any efforts they may require. I am not sure his three cello concertos belong among his very best works, but there are surely things on the disc at hand that is worth one’s attention.

Pfitzner’s first cello concerto (presented last) is a very early work (1888) – indeed, a student work – and was not published until after the composer’s death (the complex background story is related in the booklet notes). Cast in two movements, the music, clearly indebted to Wagner (and Schumann), exhibits Pfitzner’s sure hand at orchestration and generally skillful handling of the material. The material itself, however, is variable and the best elements were recycled in the second concerto. The work is also quite overlong, and not even the excellent advocacy it receives here can convince me that it is of more than specialist interest.

The second concerto, dating from 1935, is a rather brief work (less than fifteen minutes) in one movement of deeply lyrical character. Introverted and lyrical rather than a virtuoso vehicle, it opens with stirring melodic material in the solo cello accompanied by soaring upper strings. After a while the character changes as the music picks up speed, gradually evolving from lyricism to drama before sinking back into wistful lyricism and a quiet ending. As a concerto it is unconvincing – its character is rather that of an extended Romanse for cello and orchestra, and there is, frankly, too little happening here for it to be completely convincing even as that. It is nevertheless an appealing piece of faded romanticism, and worth a listen now and then.

The third concerto is a completely different matter. Dating from 1943, it is cast in four movements titled “restful”, “not too fast”, “solemn” and “Allegretto” and lasts for a total of 19 minutes. But this is an absolutely captivating work, and despite the designations there is far more going on here than in either of the other works; strikingly memorable themes (some of them picked from earlier songs), shifting colors and a general, evocative atmosphere of will-o’-wisps, fairy fires, wistful memories and a barely-grasped, phantasmagorical fairy-tale world just beyond our grasp. No, it is not a work of wuthering heights, existential abysses or grand epic designs, but it is a wonderful work nonetheless and worth the price of the disc alone.

David Geringas is impressive in the solo parts and he receives generally excellent support from the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra under Werner Andreas Albert. The sound is fairly good, too. In short, I encourage anyone to check out the superb third concerto – surely a five-star work - but it is over in less than twenty minutes, and the other works do not quite merit similar accolade – the second concerto is pleasant enough, but I am really not sure the first concerto is worth the effort. Overall a very much recommendable release nonetheless.