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Off to War
Die Weise von Liebe und Tod des Cornets Christoph Rilke (The Lay of the
Love and Death of the Cornet Christoph Rilke) is one of the Swiss composer
Frank Martin's central works and a splendid musical setting of the popular
poem of the same name by Rainer Maria Rilke. The story of Cornet Rilke,
from the command to march until his death, is its subject. With this suite
consisting of more than twenty songs, heard here for the first time on
a multichannel Super Audio CD, the Orchestra of the Musikkollegium Winterthur
under Jac van Steen continues its Martin series on MDG.
Musical Recruitment
For Frank Martin it was love at first sight. When the composer was looking
for a text for a song cycle in 1942, his wife showed him this Rilke poem
from 1899. The action is set at the time of the Turkish Wars, depicts
the hard and wild life of army camps, the tumult of battle, noble military
commanders, and splendid castle feasts with amorous adventures, and culminates
in Cornet Rilke's dream. "It is my most fervent wish that a few people
may find in my music something of what Rilke has given me."
Military Scenarios
Martin keeps the twenty-three songs in their original form and has the
compact chamber orchestra, together with winds, harp, celesta, piano,
and percussion, interpret the various tone-painting levels with sophistication.
His use of Basel drums stands out and supplies a historic, menacing sound
in the military scenarios. Rilke's text long was criticized for its pathos,
but the music conveys just the opposite - which is why Rilke, who adamantly
opposed the various settings of the poem known to him, certainly would
have valued Frank Martin's version.
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On to Victory
Christianne Stotijn was initially trained as a violinist before embarking
on a career as a vocalist. Ever since Echo distinguished her as a "Rising
Star," the Dutch mezzo-soprano has been at home in all the leading
concert halls. This second recording featuring works by Martin again shows
the Musikkollegium Winterthur in brilliant form; it conjures up the necessary
musical magic for the complex and often so fleeting nuances in Stotijn's
rendering of the text. What fascinating emotional worlds open up in this
interpretation!
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