Document

  1986
    September 1986
        Orchestral
                Mozart Flute Works.

Mozart Flute Works. Peter-Lukas Graf (fl); English Chamber Orchestra / Raymond Leppard.

Claves digital (Full price) (LP) D8505 (Cassette) MC8505 (CD) CD50-805.

[Concerto] Concertos—No. 1 in G major; No. 2 in D major. Rondo in D major, KAnh184/K373. Andante in C major, K315/285e.

[Concerto] Concertos—selected comparisons

Galway, New Irish CO, Prieur (1/76) (11/79R) NR3010 (8/85) PCD807

Galway, Lucerne Fest Strings, Baumgartn (3/76) LRLI5109 (8/85) 610 130-231

One advantage this new issue has over the two with James Galway as soloist is that it has an extra item on it, the Rondo in D, KAnh184. Otherwise I find Galway and the Lucerne Strings (Eurodisc), which does include tha Andante in C, K315, has the edge over Galway's bargain label perofrmance with the New Irish Chamber Orchestra which simply carries only the two concertos (IMP Red Label). That is a factual statement. But when I compare the two soloists as artists there is also no doubt about Galway's superiority. Take the slow movement of K313, for instance. Peter-Lukas Graf is indeed a good flautist but I found his account of it well played but prosaic, with the result that I thought it too slow and found my attention wandering. But Galway, who also takes it slowly, makes a far more beautiful thing of it. His variety of tone and dynamics for one thing is of considerably greater range than Frag's and not only is his soft playing particularly beautiful but his shading of phrases is marvellous. He plays, as you might expect, with remarkable subtlety.

There is one criticism of the recording of the orchestra on this new disc—the first violins are often not strong enough for their line to be telling. For considerable patches they may contribute little of interest, for Mozart's writing is not particularly adventurous; but when a cantabile phrase that wants to be more expressively heard does come, then it wants to be more audible than it is here. Perhaps the soloist's playing is also not soft enough to allow the firsts to be heard. This is much better on either of Galway's versions. You notice it again in the Adagio in C in those pizzicato chords, where their top line is weaker than the lower one. I found this true of both the LP and CD versions, though the latter is brighter in orchestral texture.

As between the two performances Galway has recorded, the soloist so sets the style that either pleases me but perhaps the extra item of the Lucerne version would just tilt the scale, for he plays it exquisitely.

TH



		One advantage this new issue has over the two with James Galway as soloist is that it has an extra item on it, the Rondo in D, KAnh184. Otherwise I find Galway and the Lucerne Strings (Eurodisc), which does include tha Andante in C, K315, has the edge over Galway's bargain label perofrmance with the New Irish Chamber Orchestra which simply carries only the two concertos (IMP Red Label). That is a factual statement. But when I compare the two soloists as artists there is also no doubt about Galway's superiority. Take the slow movement of K313, for instance. Peter-Lukas Graf is indeed a good flautist but I found his account of it well played but prosaic, with the result that I thought it too slow and found my attention wandering. But Galway, who also takes it slowly, makes a far more beautiful thing of it. His variety of tone and dynamics for one thing is of considerably greater range than Frag's and not only is his soft playing particularly beautiful but his shading of phrases is marvellous. He plays, as you might expect, with remarkable subtlety.



		There is one criticism of the recording of the orchestra on this new disc—the first violins are often not strong enough for their line to be telling. For considerable patches they may contribute little of interest, for Mozart's writing is not particularly adventurous; but when a cantabile phrase that wants to be more expressively heard does come, then it wants to be more audible than it is here. Perhaps the soloist's playing is also not soft enough to allow the firsts to be heard. This is much better on either of Galway's versions. You notice it again in the Adagio in C in those pizzicato chords, where their top line is weaker than the lower one. I found this true of both the LP and CD versions, though the latter is brighter in orchestral texture.



		As between the two performances Galway has recorded, the soloist so sets the style that either pleases me but perhaps the extra item of the Lucerne version would just tilt the scale, for he plays it exquisitely.