Hummel: Piano Concertos Nos. 2 & 3

The Unbreakable Hummel

Posterity has been pretty cruel to Johann Nepomuk Hummel (1778-1837). In his own time Hummel was regarded as a titan of performance and composition. A pupil of Mozart, he held his own despite being a direct contemporary (and therefore competitor) of Beethoven. Retrospectively, there are several reasons, fair on unfair, why his name is largely forgotten today. First of all, he had the monumental misfortune of being compositionally sandwiched between Mozart and Beethoven, plus Haydn was somewhere in there too. What can you really do with that? Considering such circumstances, it is testament to Hummel's skill that he avoided being completely obliterated by posterity. Many composers of "greater quality" who we listen to today probably would have sunk far more rapidly than Hummel, if given his position.

Hummel was also what I call an "On the Cusp" composer. I have listened to a lot of Hummel, and with so many of his compositions (not necessarily these) he was literally on the line between good and great. In a few, he does in fact cross that line into brilliance. Most notable among these pieces would be his Trumpet Concerto, his two septets, and Missa Solemnis. Easily comparable to Beethoven, had I not known it was Hummel, I would have assumed it was the former.

Also Hummel whether we like it or not, was confined to the classical idiom, despite living beyond it. He was not adaptive to the rising virtuoso styles of Liszt and Paganini. He lived until 1837, he knew what was coming. He saw the future and rejected it. This is not bad. It just means that a piano concerto from him can be a tad predictable. You have the extended orchestral opening, some pretty melodies, some basic up/down scale work, then a quicki larghetto, and finally finishing off with a festive finale. And this is fine. It's not necessarily atypical of the idiom. But it is among the best from within that idiom. Hummel was no mere imitator. These are not the compositions of a musical curiosity the likes of Ries or Thalberg. Hummel's pieces are charming works, and excellent examples of solidly composed and competently orchestrated classical piano concertos.

The concertos are outstandingly played by Hae-won Chang, and the Budapest Chamber orchestra led by Tamas Pal provides admirable accompaniment. The recording and sonic quality, (always something of a toss up with Naxos) comes through quite well.

This CD, by a criminally underrated composer, should be included in the collection of any fan of the concerto, or anyone desirous of expanding their musical pallet.


Highly Recommended

Rembrandt Q. Einstein June 3, 2006

More reviews at Amazon.com ...