What are you listening to now?

[Michael]

Yes, I read about WoO 2b in the liner notes - I was just wondering about it the other day, actually. Sadly, it is not included in that recording.

I don't have any liner notes for the Blomstedt recording as it came as part of the Brilliant complete set, but I am wondering what they said about WoO2b. This is not included in your disc as they used the familiar march from Fidelio instead.
I am open to correction on this, but I don't think WoO2b has been entirely established as being part of any of the Leonore versions. John Eliot Gardiner uses it, but the piece also appears in Vol 3 of the DGG Complete Edition, under music for the stage. The notes refer to it as follows:

"In 1813 the Vienna Burgtheater commissioned a piece from Beethoven, a Triumphal March, (WoO2a) which fully deserves to be classified as incidental music. It was written for a now totally forgotten tragedy, "Tarpeja" by Christoph Kuffner. A second piece has survived, described in the autograph score as an "Introduzione de ildo atto" (WoO2b) but without any further indication as to the play to which this "second act" belongs."

[Chris]

I don't have any liner notes for the Blomstedt recording as it came as part of the Brilliant complete set, but I am wondering what they said about WoO2b. This is not included in your disc as they used the familiar march from Fidelio instead.
I am open to correction on this, but I don't think WoO2b has been entirely established as being part of any of the Leonore versions. John Eliot Gardiner uses it, but the piece also appears in Vol 3 of the DGG Complete Edition, under music for the stage. The notes refer to it as follows:

"In 1813 the Vienna Burgtheater commissioned a piece from Beethoven, a Triumphal March, (WoO2a) which fully deserves to be classified as incidental music. It was written for a now totally forgotten tragedy, "Tarpeja" by Christoph Kuffner. A second piece has survived, described in the autograph score as an "Introduzione de ildo atto" (WoO2b) but without any further indication as to the play to which this "second act" belongs."

I don't have it with me right now, but I believe it said WoO 2b was only identified as being from Leonore in the 80s or 90s; the Blomstedt recording was made in the 70s, so they wouldn't have thought to use it.

Unfortunate, because I don't have a recording of WoO 2b. I have WoO 2a on a CD called "Dance," which has WoO 1, WoO 3, WoO 7, WoO 14, and those type pieces. WoO 2b, shall you elude me forever!?

In any case, today I am listening to Beethoven's folksong settings. Hopefully I'll have time to get through all of them at work. I love these works. I've sometimes thought some of these might make a good introduction to Beethoven or classical music in general for people familiar only with popular music, being in English and having very catchy tunes. "Wine, wine, wine! Come bring me wine to cheer me!" Indeed!

[Hofrat]

Recent scholarship has determined that W.o.O 2b "Introduction to act II" was intended for "Leonore" and not "Tarpeja."

[Michael]

Recent scholarship has determined that W.o.O 2b "Introduction to act II" was intended for "Leonore" and not "Tarpeja."

Thanks, Hofrat, that has cleared up that little mystery. Even though Gardiner included it in his nineties recording of "Leonore", the DGG edition seemed to be in two minds about it. And, as Chris says, it's an elusive piece; neither the Brilliant edition or the cheaper Amadeo set have included it - and it's only about two minutes long.

[Hofrat]

WoO 2a "Victory March" from Tarpeja was recorded by Naxos in their 2nd volume of Beethoven's overtures and the DG's complete Beethoven collection. WoO 2b "Introduction to act II" was recorded by someone other than Gardiner. I just can not remember who.

[Michael]

In any case, today I am listening to Beethoven's folksong settings. Hopefully I'll have time to get through all of them at work. I love these works. I've sometimes thought some of these might make a good introduction to Beethoven or classical music in general for people familiar only with popular music, being in English and having very catchy tunes. "Wine, wine, wine! Come bring me wine to cheer me!" Indeed!

Now, if we could only convince PDG !

[Hofrat]

I have the score of both WoO 2a and WoO2b.

[Michael]

WoO 2a "Victory March" from Tarpeja was recorded by Naxos in their 2nd volume of Beethoven's overtures and the DG's complete Beethoven collection. WoO 2b "Introduction to act II" was recorded by someone other than Gardiner. I just can not remember who.

I had forgotten about the Naxos. Chris, if you really can't live without
WoO2b, it's on Naxos 8.553431 (or was some years back) played by the Nicolaus Esterhazy Sinfonia, cond. Bela Drahos. You also get WoO 1, the Ritterballet and the Funeral March from Leonore Prohaska plus overtures.
On the DGG set, apart from Gardiner, the WoO2b is by the Gothenburg SO, cond. Neeme Jarvi.

[Chris]

I had forgotten about the Naxos. Chris, if you really can't live without
WoO2b, it's on Naxos 8.553431 (or was some years back) played by the Nicolaus Esterhazy Sinfonia, cond. Bela Drahos. You also get WoO 1, the Ritterballet and the Funeral March from Leonore Prohaska plus overtures.
On the DGG set, apart from Gardiner, the WoO2b is by the Gothenburg SO, cond. Neeme Jarvi.

8.553431 seems to have 2a, but not 2b. I'm not sure I'm willing to buy DGG set, considering the cost at this point, and how much of that music I already have. There are some pieces that are just going to elude me without shelling out for something too expensive to justify it, I think. For example, I have the complete music for winds and brass by...I forget, but it has a couple of pieces even missing from the DGG volume, but it is missing ONE (WoO 26, maybe?) that the DGG has. And it even mentions it in the liner notes!

Thankfully we have the Unheard Beethoven site, so we can at least hear what those missing pieces sound like in MIDI.

[Michael]

8.553431 seems to have 2a, but not 2b. I'm not sure I'm willing to buy DGG set, considering the cost at this point, and how much of that music I already have. There are some pieces that are just going to elude me without shelling out for something too expensive to justify it, I think. For example, I have the complete music for winds and brass by...I forget, but it has a couple of pieces even missing from the DGG volume, but it is missing ONE (WoO 26, maybe?) that the DGG has. And it even mentions it in the liner notes!

Thankfully we have the Unheard Beethoven site, so we can at least hear what those missing pieces sound like in MIDI.

Sorry, I didn't look at the Naxos CD properly. It does contain WoO2a but not
2b. What is it with that piece? The only place it seems to have surfaced is on the DGG set.

[PDG]

Now, if we could only convince PDG !

Careful, Michael, else I might ask those Amazonian ladies to point their weapons at you...

[Quijote]

Ah, yes, the HMV tribe. I've heard of them. Didn't they torture dogs by plonking them down in front of gramophone speakers?

No Michael, you're confusing them with the Virginal Bovver Girls Tribe (they have beards and launch start up companies in phone boxes whilst consuming vast quantities of a certain brand of "pickles").

[Quijote]

Did they not consider the crossbow?

I had thought of that, too. Women, huh?

[Quijote]

Careful, Michael, else I might ask those Amazonian ladies to point their weapons at you...

Ladies, fire away !!

[Quijote]

Well, my 'significant other' has just returned from work (she's a TV journalist working for the culture section and hence receives many promotional CDs, books etc) and has presented me with a new CD (a freebie, so to speak) : David Bismuth (piano) : Johann Sebastian B.A.C.H. ianas & transcriptions. An interesting title, I feel you will agree.

I haven't even taken off the cellophane yet, but some of the contents are :

Bach / Liszt : Prelude and Fugue BWV 543;
Bach / Saint-Saëns : Ouverture, Cantata BWV 29;
Bach / Kempff : Siciliano BWV 1031;
Schumann : Fugue N° 2 on the theme of B.A.C.H. op. 60 Vif (for organ);
Bach / Busoni : Adagio from the Toccata Adagio and Fugue BWV 564;

And five other titles I can't be bothered to type out. Anyone know of this release before I listen to it?

For balance, the second CD she has just given me is : Poni Hoax, "Images of Sigrid". From the jacket cover, it looks like pop. I apply a label to myself : eclectic.