Farrenc: Symphony No. 2 - Overtures Nos. 1 & 2

Chronique

At odds with bourgeois Parisian tastes for opera and parlor music, Louise Farrenc pursued instead the ideals of German absolute music, as exemplified by Beethoven. The three works presented here were remarkable achievements for a woman composing in an antipathetic environment, though French aversion to German forms mattered more at the time than Farrenc's gender. Indeed, it is worth pointing out that her works were performed widely in Europe, and that Farrenc's reputation did not fade until after she stopped composing in 1859. The Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 35, composed in 1846, openly refers to Beethoven's Symphony No. 2, and Farrenc's music almost functions as a commentary on the master's work. There is no dread of Beethoven's shadow, as felt by Brahms, and Farrenc's music is blithe and comic, as if she understood Beethoven's humor long before her contemporaries. The Overture No. 1, Op. 23, and the Overture No. 2, Op. 24, were composed in 1834, perhaps in response to debates in the press over Mendelssohn's overtures. Farrenc's overtures, though, are more abstractly conceived, after Beethoven's models, and have no picturesque titles or extramusical associations. The Radio-Philharmonie Hannover de NDR, conducted by Johannes Goritzki, is robust and dynamic in these performances, and CPO's recording is excellent.

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