The eleventh volume of the complete Haydn symphony cycle moves its focus to Paris: "Every day one perceives more clearly, and consequently admires more, the productions of this great genius, who, in every one of his works, knows so well how to draw rich and varied developments from a single subject", wrote the "Mercure de France" in April 1788, adding that Haydn was "quite different from those sterile composers who constantly move from one idea to another...". The symphonies presented here are No. 2 (the first to be published in France), No. 24 (the first to be performed there) and the so-called "Paris" Symphonies No. 87 and No. 82 "L'Ours", with its references to fairground atmosphere and its famous contredanse finale. © Alpha Classics

Physical album buyers will get a clue as to the intentions of conductor Ádám Fischer on this 2023 release, the second in a Danish Chamber Orchestra series devoted to Haydn's 12 London symphonies. For Haydn's audiences, Fischer writes, "there was an atmosphere at his concerts that is only felt at rock concerts today." This is a good point, but Fischer's methods for achieving this atmosphere will be a matter of taste. In place of rock concert amplification, he uses really loud timpani, seemingly hit with a hard mallet. Paired with this are unusual string attacks, with a great variety of articulation and an overall punchy sound. It might seem busy, or it might be just the ticket, depending on one's perspective. Sample the outer movements to decide; Fischer is a bit more straightforward in the slow movements and minuets. Finally, as they were on Fischer's first album in the series, tempos are quick, raising the overall tension level. That first album was greeted with a variety of critical opinions, and this one probably will be similarly received. This is all to the good; these are genuinely adventurous Haydn recordings from the septuagenarian Fischer, and they made classical best-seller lists in the autumn of 2023. The sound from the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen is clear; it is a great improvement on the murky acoustic of Fischer's earlier recordings of these works on the Nimbus label with the Austro-Hungarian Haydn Orchestra.© James Manheim /TiVo

The new Trio Ernest attempts to make a splash here with its cheeky buried-in-the-score graphics and unconventional Haydn All-Stars title, which doesn't make more than a little bit of sense, but the program and playing can stand on their own. Trio Ernest offers some late Haydn trios, all hanging right at the point where the piano trio was emerging as an independent genre, along with works that show the lasting influence of Haydn's chamber music. The players are right that this influence is a bit overlooked, showing up in works as diverse as a Brahms song (here transcribed for piano trio) and Ravel's little Menuet sur le nom de Haydn, with its musical realization of the letters of Haydn's name. Also included is Lieber Joseph! by composer Jacqueline Fonteyn, a work composed in a modernist idiom in which Haydn's melodic shapes and motifs are nevertheless easily recognizable. Trio Ernest has committed to including a work by a female composer in each concert, and this one bodes well for their ability to find interesting material and perform it convincingly. The Haydn trios themselves are imbued with the high spirits that are essential to a successful Haydn performance. With clear sound from the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in Waterloo, this release announces an important new presence in the crowded piano trio scene.© James Manheim /TiVo

Haydn's piano trios aren't terribly often played in comparison with his instrumental works in other genres, and the general line on them has been that they are simple Hausmusik with violin and cello lines that may be omitted if desired. The Gaspard Trio, which has embarked on a complete cycle of Haydn's trios (this is the second installment), strenuously disputes this idea, and the group's playing seems designed to bring out the independence of the stringed instruments where it occurs. Perhaps the best way to look at the question is that Haydn is the true creator of the keyboard trio, and his output in the genre offers a fascinating look into his mind as he realized its possibilities. Rather than plow through the trios chronologically, the Gaspard Trio, playing modern instruments, chooses to make each volume in the series an independent release, containing music from various phases of Haydn's career, and here the group lands on three works from the mid-1790s. In these works, which Beethoven certainly would have known, the trio is indeed made up of three equal instruments, and the Piano Trio in E flat major, Hob. 15/29, is one of those Haydn works that seem to look forward to Romanticism. The Gaspard Trio gives it a warm, relaxed performance that's quite appealing, and in general, the group's Haydn is sympathetic and alert to little turns of humor or unexpected formal detail, although they apply improvised, non-notated ornaments that will be to the taste of some listeners but not others. Despite the Gaspard's belief in the importance of these works, the group does not try to put them on the plane of Haydn's quartets, which is all to the good; there is a lightness in the performances that is just right. The early Piano Trio in G major, Hob. 15/41, only occasionally assigns primary material to the violin; by the middle-period Piano Trio in B flat major, Hob. 15/8, Haydn was experimenting all over the place with the emancipation of the violin and cello. Another intriguing feature of the Gaspard Trio's series is that each volume has (and apparently will have) a newly commissioned work that comments on Haydn in some way; the one here, by the cellist-composer, Leonid Gorokhov, is intriguing. There is plenty here to make listeners look forward to what is going to be a substantial series; Haydn composed 45 piano trios. © James Manheim /TiVo

After recently terminating his career as a pianist, Ilja Hurník has gained more scope for devoting to composing and writing. Hurník studied the piano with pedagogues of such renown as V. Kurz, I. Štěpánová-Kurzová and V. Novák and has given numerous concerts abroad (including a four-hand performance with Pavel Štěpán), with his interpretations of Debussy and Janáček being particularly captivating. He has given back to Janáček the earthiness and crispness resulting from the Lachian dialect and purged Debussy of the "Impressionistic mist" and accumulated layers of brush strokes, turning the audience's attention to the compositions' subtle drawing and structure. When listening to the presented recordings, one will be hard pressed indeed to believe that they were made a full half-century ago. Hurník's ninetieth birthday is an appropriate opportunity to recall them: this reissue in a carefully remastered version will certainly be welcomed not only by his contemporaries. © Supraphon

In 1765, Johann Christian Bach, who had settled in London, established with his friend Carl Friedrich Abel the prestigious "Bach Abel Concerts". Surrounded by some of the most talented artists of their generation, Margaux Blanchard and Sylvain Sartre invite us to rediscover the music that enlivened the luxurious London salons of the late 18th century. A chance to be admitted, for a moment's listening, into the very select Bach Abel Society. © Mirare