Wagenseil, Albrechtsberger, M Haydn & L Mozart; bonus tracks

COMPOSERS: Albrechtsberger,M Haydn & L Mozart; bonus tracks,Wagenseil
LABELS: BIS
ALBUM TITLE: Classical Trombone Concertos
WORKS: Works by Wagenseil, Albrechtsberger, M Haydn & L Mozart; bonus tracks
PERFORMER: Christian Lindberg (trombone); Australian CO/Richard Tognetti
CATALOGUE NO: CD-1248

During the Classical era the trombone, despite being technically capable of playing florid passages at least as well as the trumpet or horn, attracted only a small solo repertoire, and the four cornerstones of it are presented here. All the pieces were written between 1755 and 1780, a coincidence which points to one player, Thomas Gschladt, arguably being the inspiration for them all. The only conventional three-movement concerto is by Albrechtsberger, Beethoven’s teacher, the Wagenseil is a two-movement piece, possibly incomplete, while the Leopold Mozart and Michael Haydn works are taken from larger divertimenti where the trombone enjoys a concertante role in some of the movements. The provenance of the Mozart is assured, but that of the Haydn more clouded. Lindberg’s sudden and fortuitous discovery of a stunningly virtuosic new movement for this established work, and an untrailed first recording of it, rings some quiet alarm bells with me and might have been explained more fully in the notes. His performance is restless and insistent, taking lively tempi for everything. He displays his now familiar combination of brilliance and idiosyncrasy, the former manifested in his fearless mastery of the famously ‘impossible’ trills and elaborate cadenzas; the latter in his habit of making every detached note a staccato. Christopher Mowat