Spanish Piano Quartets
Bartolomé Pérez Casas (1873–1956)
Piano Quartet in D minor (1902)
Vicente Zurrón (1871–1915)
Piano Quartet in D major (1902)
Josu de Solaun (piano), Trio Lirico
rec. live, 23 April 2025, Fundación Juan March, Madrid, Spain
First recordings
MarchVivo MV014 [72]

This recording is proof, if any was needed, that the well of unrecorded classical works is not about to run dry. In 1902, the recently formed Sociedad Filarmónica de Madrid ran a competition, asking for composers to submit new works for piano quartet. Twenty-two entries were received, including the two works presented here. Vicente Zurrón’s submission was awarded first prize, though not without controversy, as the judging panel was headed by Ruperto Chapí, who was Zurrón’s mentor. The Pérez Casas was among three others commended by the jury.

At his death in 1956, Bartolomé Pérez Casas was described in the press as “the highest and most senior figure in Spanish music”, but I’m afraid I have to plead complete ignorance of his name before now. Some Googling determined that this reputation was mostly established by his conducting and teaching careers. He was the first principal conductor of the Orquesta Nacional de España and founded the Orquesta Filarmónica de Madrid, and was Professor of Harmony at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Madrid. However, his most significant compositional achievement was to have his arrangement of the Spanish National Anthem accepted as the official one.

The four movements of his Quartet are unusually ordered, with the Scherzo being placed last. It does create somewhat of an imbalance with almost eighteen minutes of slowish music comprising the centre of the piece. Yet, it seems to work. There is sufficient contrast (just) between the Andantino Balada and the following Adagio. Both have some gorgeous melodies, as does the Trio section of the otherwise nervy Scherzo. At almost thirty-eight minutes, the work does overextend its material, most obviously in the Scherzo finale, which does rather struggle to get to the end of its almost nine minutes.

His relatively short life explains in part why Vicente Zurrón’s name is not well known. His compositional career comprises little more than a decade, with the Piano Quartet competition towards the end of that period; a 1904 work for piano and orchestra was highly commended in another competition, won by Granados. The booklet notes do not account for his early death.

Despite the controversy (and of course not having heard the other twenty entries), I can understand why Zurrón’s work was awarded top prize. It is more conventionally organised with an extended slow movement placed second, and a scherzo (titled Intermezzo) third. The influences heard by the critics at its 1903 premiere in a Sociedad Filarmónica concert (possibly its only performance before the one recorded here) are German, particularly Brahms. That’s certainly how it seems to me as well. I don’t think it is an exaggeration to say it does not lose much in comparison with his three piano quartets; I was that impressed. The first movement has great drama, the second a stately melancholy, the Intermezzo is probably the most Brahmsian with wonderful rhythms, and the finale (a hint of Schumann’s piano quintet) gives the four performers the chance to really demonstrate their virtuosity. The work is a real discovery.

The performances are committed and suitably intense, but I think a little more warmth in the violin’s tone would have been good. The recording places the piano forward of the strings, at times rather too much so. The booklet notes cover both the biographical and musicological aspects well. There is brief applause at the end of each work, but otherwise the audience is very quiet.

The artists are to be applauded for their decision to exhume these long-lost works. Neither has much that is obviously Spanish (to the outsider), even though presumably that was partly the intention of the competition committee, but in the Zurrón, they instigated the creation of an exceptionally fine piece of music.

David Barker

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