Septet in E flat Major
Franz Lachner (1803-1890) (completed by Franz Beyer)
Quintet in E flat major Opus 102
Robert Fuchs (1847-1927)
Franz Lachner was born at Rain am Lech in Upper Bavaria in
1803, the son of an organist and clock-maker whose other children also became
musicians. His step-brother Theodor, born in 1788, was court organist in Munich
and a composer of lieder, part-songs and choral works. Two sisters, Thekla and Christiane,
were organists, while Ignaz, born in 1807, a pupil of his brother Franz, had a
long and busy career as a composer and conductor, for fourteen years, up to his
retirement in 1875, as principal conductor in Frankfurt-am-Main. A younger
brother, Vinzenz, born in 1811 also worked as a conductor. The four brothers
enjoyed considerable longevity. Theodor died in 1877, at the age of 89, Franz
in 1890 at the age of 86, Ignaz in 1895 at the age of 87 and Vinzenz in 1893 at
the age of 82. In a remarkable way the Lachners link the age of Schubert and
Beethoven to that of Wagner, Liszt and Brahms.
Franz Lachner was taught at first by his father, and at his
father's death in 1822 moved to Munich, where he at first earned a living for
himself as a teacher and organist. In 1823 he became organist of the Lutheran
church in Vienna. He met Schubert soon after his arrival in the city, an event
he later recalled in old age. The two would take frequent long walks together
and there were convivial gatherings at the inn Zum Stern with other members of
Schubert's circle, of which he became an intimate member. At the same time he
continued his musical training with lessons from the court organist Simon Sechter,
with whom Schubert began lessons shortly before his death in 1828. Sechter, a
remarkably prolific composer, had a considerable academic reputation and
counted Bruckner among his many pupils. Lachner was also able to take lessons
from the learned Abbe Stadler. In 1827 he was appointed assistant conductor at
the Kärntnertor Theater and two years later principal conductor.
In 1836 Lachner moved back to Munich, where he won a
position of considerable importance, serving as a conductor at the court opera
and directing the royal Vokalkapelle and the concerts of the Musikalische Akademie.
His very successful activities in Munich only came to an end with the arrival
of Wagner in 1864, when he was forced into retirement by the royal favourite
and his men. Wagner's reign was transitory, and Lachner retained an honoured
position in the city, where he died in 1890.
Lachner's Septet was written in 1824, at the beginning of
his friendship with Schubert. The music is that of a young man of obvious
talent and coincides in date of composition with Schubert's Octet. The work is
in five movements and is scored for flute, clarinet, horn, violin, viola, cello
and double bass. The first movement opens with a slow introduction that must
remind us, however fleetingly, of Schubert, before moving on to a sonata
movement in the customary form, allowing subtle interplay between the
instruments in music that is worked out with absolute technical assurance, and
offers occasional opportunities for individual display. The Minuet is nearer
the dance itself than many more sophisticated examples of the period, its
second trio offering the horn a chance with the contrasting melody. In the slow
movement a simple theme is varied with ingenuity and charm, and this is
followed by a scherzo that seems at times ominously heavy-footed, while finding
room for contrapuntal contrast. The last movement provides a delightful
conclusion to a work that is redolent of Schubert's Vienna.
The distinction of Robert Fuchs may seem at first to lie
chiefly in his work as a teacher. His elder brother, Johann Nepomuk Fuchs, his
senior by five years, was a pupil of Simon Sechter and taught composition at
the Vienna Conservatory, of which he became director in 1893. Robert Fuchs was
on the staff of the Conservatory from 1875 until 1911, and served as organist
to the Hofkapelle in Vienna from 1894 to 1905. He was a friend of Brahms, who
gave him considerable encouragement as a composer, and counted among his pupils
composers such as Gustav Mahler, Franz Schreker, Sibelius, Zemlinsky and a
somewhat reluctant Franz Schmidt.
Fuchs was strongly influenced by the music of Schubert, a
composer in the editing of whose work his elder brother played a considerable
part. He coupled a lyrical gift with a sound grasp of harmonic and contrapuntal
technique and in every way continued a tradition that in other hands was to
undergo various distortions in the early twentieth century. His Clarinet
Quintet, Opus 102, was written in 1914 and formed part of the successful programme
for his seventieth birthday celebrations in 1917. The celebratory programmes
arranged for his 80th birthday in 1927 seem to have overtaxed his strength,
leading to his death four days later.
The music of the quintet speaks for itself. Its clearly
constructed first movement is followed by a scherzo and contrasting trio
section. A lyrical slow movement leads to a finale of fluent grace, ending a work
that is finely crafted, with moments, at least, of outstanding beauty. Fuchs'
handling of the strings - and he claimed particular pleasure in writing for
string quartet - is matched by his use of the clarinet, recalling at times, in
its modulations, the work of the composer's contemporary Richard Strauss.
Villa Musica
Jean Claude Gerard, Flute
Ulf Rodenhäuser, Clarinet
Marie-Luise Neunecker, Horn
Ernö Sebestyen, Albert Boesen, Violins
Enrique Santiago, Viola
Martin Ostertag, Cello
Wolfgang Güttier, Double Bass
The Villa Musica ensemble, based in Mainz, is a group with a
wide repertoire that ranges from Bach to the work of contemporary composers,
from solo music to music for nonet. The players that form the ensemble are of
considerable individual distinction, and the group has enjoyed considerable
success throughout Europe and in tours overseas.
