Beethoven: Music For Winds

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Review So too [arrived yesterday] did a recording of Beethoven from the wind soloists from the SCO. It's tempting to head straight to the famous Beethoven Octet but that would mean skipping over the E flat sextet and you really mustn't. Just listen to the character they bring to the middle movements, starting with Peter Whelan bassoon.Plays: Sextet in E flat Op. 71, 2nd mvt: Adagio & Sextet in E flat Op. 71, 3rd mvt: Menuetto.All the wit and character of all the individual players coming through but yet still at the service of the whole ensemble. Something close to a perfect balance of individuality and team spirit.It works just as well in Beethoven's more celebrated Octet. Between them you have clarinettist Maximiliano Martin joining Peter Whelan for the clarinet & bassoon making it a considerably entertaining inter-mezzo than I ever suspected it was before. Recorded in a church acoustic and attractively resonant. You'll find Beethoven's Music for Winds on Linn Records new this week. --BBC Radio Three Record Review There is something unquestionably operatic about Beethoven's Sextet in E flat major for wind instruments. The themes sigh, dance, laugh and bicker like colourful characters on the stage. Some performances miss the point, others simply take it for granted, but this one by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra Wind Soloists is a showstopper, where the very stuff of theatre its tensions and releases, its compelling narrative vitality and emotional nuances is played out in scintillating musical terms. Take the wit and bounce of the bassoons, the languid teasing of the clarinets, or the poignant knowingness of the horns. All have biting relevance in this delightful opener to a treasure trove of Music for Winds by Beethoven. The ensemble playing throughout is a magical mix of homogeneity and individuality. When the oboes enter for the Octet in E flat, the sound world both brightens and thickens: another delicious and virtuosic musical adventure. --The Scotsman Product Description All around the world, critics cheered the SCO Wind Soloists previous album of Mozart Divertimenti: superb in every way (Fanfare), a joy from start to finish (Europadisc), sparkles with joy and chuckles with good humour (BBC Radio 3 Record Review ). Continuing to explore the Harmoniemusik repertoire, the Wind Soloists new recording features youthful, entertaining and brilliant music by a young man who took Vienna by storm in the 1790s:Ludwig van Beethoven. The underrated Octet is a technically challenging concert piece in the Mozart tradition, but with the flair and unpredictability of the young Beethoven. In the Sextet, Beethoven exploits the differing characteristics of each instrument to great effect with the SCO's legendary interplay on full display. Another gem is the short but sweet Rondino, which is full of subtle details, exquisite melodies and exhilaratingly high-speed horn playing. About the Artist Comprising pairs of clarinets,bassoons, oboes and natural horns, the players are dedicated to performing each work in a stylish and informed way, from the masterpieces of Mozart, Beethoven and Weber to twentieth-century works and contemporary commissions. The SCO Wind Soloists are: Maximiliano Martín and William Stafford (clarinet), Peter Whelan and Alison Green (bassoon), Alec Frank- Gemmill and Harry Johnstone (horn), Robin Williams and Rosie Staniforth (oboe). The SCO Wind Soloists have appeared in chamber concerts throughout Scotland. They have also performed at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in the presence of HRH The Prince Charles. The SCO is a world-renowned orchestra with an outstanding reputation; its extensive discography features Robin Ticciati, Charles Mackerras, Elizabeth Watts, Francesco Piemontesi and Ingrid Fliter.