Mieczysław Weinberg - Works for Flute (Claudia Stein)

Information

Composer: Mieczysław Weinberg

• Flute Concerto No. 1, Op. 75
• Flute Concerto No. 2, Op. 148b
• 12 Miniatures for Flute and Orchestra, Op. 29b
• Five Pieces for Flute and Piano

Claudia Stein, flute

Szczecin Philharmonic Orchestra

David Robert Coleman, conductor

Elisaveta Blumina, piano

Date: 2019

Label: Naxos

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Review

We have to thank Russian flautist Alexander Korneyev for inspiring Mieczysław Weinberg to compose a substantial number of works for his instrument. This enterprising release, featuring Claudia Stein, who plays in Daniel Barenboim’s Berlin Staatskapelle, brings almost all of them together on disc for the first time.

A sequence of miniatures, dating from 1947, covers almost half the programme. The Twelve Pieces for Flute and Piano, which Weinberg later orchestrated in 1983, is particularly attractive – a series of short and succinct character studies that cover a surprisingly wide range of moods, from the playful ‘Burleske’ and the technical high-jinks of the ‘Etude’ to the perfumed elegance of the ‘Waltz’ and the nostalgic warmth of the ‘Nocturne’. In contrast, the Five Pieces, only discovered relatively recently, are conceived on a more ambitious scale, featuring three rhythmically incisive dance movements, as well as touching allusions to Debussy’s La fille aux cheveux de lin in the opening movement, appropriately entitled ‘Landschaft’ (Landscape).

Of the two flute concertos, the First (1961) is undoubtedly the most direct, with rhythmically dynamic fast outer movements framing a reflective Largo, whereas the Second (1987) is largely restrained and austere, despite the unexpected quotations from the ‘Dance of the Blessed Spirits’ from Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice and the famous ‘Badinerie’ from Bach’s Suite No. 2 in B minor that find their way into the Finale.

Stein delivers charismatic and strongly expressive performances of all these works and despite a slightly thin sound in the upper registers of the strings, the Szczecin Philharmonic under David Robert Coleman offer sterling support throughout.

— Erik Levi

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Mieczysław Weinberg (8 December 1919 – 26 February 1996) was a Polish-born Soviet and Russian composer and pianist. Born in Warsaw to a family connected with Yiddish theatre, he fled Poland in 1939 following the German invasion and settled in the Soviet Union, where he gained the support of Dmitri Shostakovich. Weinberg became a prolific and respected composer, particularly during the 1960s, when his concert and film music achieved considerable recognition. His later years were marked by declining health and reduced official support. International appreciation of his music grew significantly in the 1990s.

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 Born in Dresden, German flutist Claudia Stein began studying piano at 5 and flute at 11, and completed her musical education in Dresden and Karlsruhe. At 23, she became principal flutist of the Staatskapelle Berlin under Daniel Barenboim and performed with the Bayreuth Festival Orchestra. As a soloist and chamber musician, she has collaborated with distinguished orchestras, conductors and artists worldwide, appearing at major international festivals. Her repertoire spans various musical periods, with particular emphasis on contemporary music. Stein teaches at the Barenboim-Said Academy since 2015.

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