Francisco Mignone (1897-1986)
Guitar Concerto (1975)
Clarinet Concertino (1957)
Bassoon Concertino (1957)
Violin Concerto (1960)
Emmanuele Baldini (violin), Fabio Zanon (guitar), Ovanir Buosi (clarinet), Alexandre Silvério (bassoon)
São Paulo Symphony Orchestra/Neil Thomson, Giancarlo Guerrero
rec. 2021/22, Sala São Paulo, Brazil
Naxos 8.574573 [72]
New releases in the Naxos “Music from Brazil” series continue apace and for those interested in Latin American music they are proving to be a treasure trove of excellence, as with these four attractive and interesting concertante works by Francisco Mignone. Mignone has to date not received the same attention on disc as some of his compatriots. Outside of Latin America, apart from an excellent BIS orchestral survey from the São Paulo Symphony Orchestra under John Neschling released in 2007 and a collection of his solo guitar and piano works, his name occasionally appears in mixed recital programmes. So this new disc is especially welcome, particularly if it is the start of a more extensive survey of this enjoyable and rewarding composer.
Mignone was born in São Paulo of musical Italian immigrant parents. The tie to Italy led to him spending nine years studying composition with Vincenzo Ferroni in Milan. On his return to Brazil – perhaps not surprisingly – his early works display an Italianate Romantic trait. However, he was soon introduced to musical nationalism and the integration of folk music into his work became an enduring and defining characteristic. That said, he was clearly comfortable writing in a range of idioms from populist through to serial. The Wikipedia entry on Mignone suggests that the period 1929 – 1960 represents his most overtly Nationalist phase, and it is interesting to note that the two Concertinos offered on this disc, which contain overtly Latin American rhythms and melodic shapes, fall within this phase, while the more modernist Violin Concerto sits on the cusp of change from 1960.
Several times while listening to this disc, I was struck by the similarity in musical ethos between Mignone and Malcolm Arnold. Clearly their musical vocabulary and personal styles are very different but both composers share a real knack for combining instantly attractive ‘popular’ melodies with passages of aggressive angularity often within a few bars of each other. Likewise, both have a keen ear for instrumental textures and effective vibrant orchestration. Of course, Arnold was also noted for writing an extensive series of concertante works often on a similar scale to these Mignone pieces. The disc opens with the world premiere recording of the Guitar Concerto of 1975. As with all the works here except for the two movement Bassoon Concertino, it is written in a traditional fast/slow/dance finale form. All four works, although recorded at different sessions over a year, are given close, colourful and dynamic recordings. I have no knowledge of guitar technique but this sounds like a very demanding work delivered with great technical aplomb and musical personality by Fabio Zanon. The proportions of this concerto are a little unusual, with a 12:39 opening Allegro Moderato rather dwarfing the 5:12 Lento e molto romantico and the closing 4:31 Allegro non troppo. The opening movement most exhibits the trait of abrupt stylistic and emotional change. One moment there will be a flamboyant display of flamenco-like bravura before passages of gentle melancholy appear. As I have limited familiarity with this music or its composer, I must admit that I have yet to make complete sense of this movement but what is not in doubt is the confident and secure performance it receives here. The liner suggests influences from Bartók to Gershwin in the central slow movement but for me it is the quality of gentle nocturnal musing that impresses most.
In all of the works presented here it is the final movements that most explicitly reference Brazilian and by extension Black African indigenous music with dance rhythms and melodic motifs jostling good naturedly together. There is a quotation online attributed to Mignone; “There is something in good music that somehow suggests dance. It has been so since the beginning of human history.” Certainly the spirit of the dance inhabits all these finales. Both the Concertinos for Clarinet and Bassoon were written in 1957 and premiered under the composer’s baton within a month of each other that same year. As the title suggests, these are works smaller in scale, orchestration and execution but both are absolute gems. The Clarinet Concerto [10:22] uses a smaller ‘classical’ orchestration of strings, wind and reduced brass while the even briefer two movement Bassoon Concertino [9:04] just strings and wind. As such both works richly deserve to feature in Chamber Orchestra concerts perhaps as contrasts to the respective Mozart concerti? The Clarinet Concertino is a winner in every respect with a beautifully simple central Toada [Song] contrasting with a riotous closing Allegro. The demands on the soloists again seem high but both are superbly played with bravura flair and real character. The second movement Allegro of the Bassoon Concertino sounds especially unforgiving but the principal bassoon of the OSP Alexandre Silvério clearly relishes the challenge. Again, this sounds like a really ‘fun’ piece to play and given the lack of concertante bassoon repertoire, I could imagine this becoming popular with players and concert programmers.
The disc is completed with the Violin Concerto of 1960. This is the most substantial and most serious work on the disc with its three movements running to 30:03. Again, the soloist comes from the ranks of the OSP – this time their concertmaster Emmanuele Baldini. I can say with some certainty this is a very demanding work for the soloist. It is not just a question of certain passagework but more the unrelenting nature of the writing. The soloist is playing for the vast majority of the work and rarely is the solo writing simple. That said, for the listener, the solo writing never feels like excessive “display for display’s sake” – the greater surprise for a work of this substance and quality is that it is the world premiere recording.
The central Lento is the longest movement [12:09] In this concerto, although this is in no small part due to the fact that this incorporates an extended – very hard! – cadenza. The outer movements are well balanced with a 9:55 Allegro Moderato first and a concluding 7:45 Allegro con brio. The latter movement includes an instantly memorable lyrical second subject that again had me thinking of Malcolm Arnold due to its style and function. The liner notes that a critic has considered this work “the greatest work of this challenging genre in the history of Brazilian music”. That is certainly a claim to make the curious sit up and take notice – I do not know enough of the other works in contention for that title to make a judgement but certainly on its own terms this is a wholly impressive and convincing work which receives an excellent performance.
Even though these four works were recorded at different sessions across eleven months there is a very consistent approach to the production. Soloists are prominent – possibly slightly more so than ideal but understandable especially in the guitar concerto. The benefit of this quite close and detailed sound is the way it reveals the brilliance of Mignone’s orchestration as well as the crisp ensemble of the OSP. Shockingly, Mignone is another Latin American composer never to have featured in a single concert at the BBC Proms. By any measure, all of these four works deserve to be heard on that stage with the Clarinet Concertino especially guaranteed to delight both players and audiences alike. Mignone was a prolific composer with a significant number of orchestral and choral works alongside five operas and eight ballets to his credit. The hope must be that the Naxos “Music of Brazil” series will be revisiting this rewarding composer soon.
Nick Barnard
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