Giuseppe Martucci (1856-1909)
Piano Quintet in C major, op. 45 (1877/1890s)
Notturno for Piano in G flat major, Op. 70 No. 1 (1891)
Violin Sonata in G minor, Op. 22 (1874)
Notturno for String Quartet in G flat major, Op. 70 No. 1 (transcr. Carlo Dumont)
Fabrizio Romano (piano)
Gagliano String Quartet
rec. 2025, DV Studio, Sala Musicale Giardino, Crema, Italy
Reviewed as lossless download
Da Vinci Classics C01124 [65]
This is the second recording that I’ve reviewed in the last month to include the music of Giuseppe Martucci, one of the relatively few Italian composers of the 19th century to work in the concert hall, rather than the opera house. He was known as “the Italian Brahms” for good reason: his music certainly has all the hallmarks of the great German, but without that final element that one might call genius.
His Piano Quintet was begun a decade or so after that of Brahms, and clearly aspires to that exalted level. My colleague Bob Stevenson, when reviewing a Brilliant Classics recording, described the quintet as “all a bit insipid”, commenting on the lack of variety across the first two movements. The first movement designation of Allegro giusto gives the impression of a faster tempo than is adopted (and the performers here are among the quicker of the four versions available), so the transition to Andante con moto in the second doesn’t make for such a great contrast as it might be. While I certainly felt that the first two movements – both in excess of ten minutes – could have been shorter, the slow-burning passion in each is impressive. The swirling rhythms of the Scherzo are enjoyable, but perhaps it needed a more distinctive Trio section for contrast. The closing Allegro con brio is the most Brahmsian of the four, especially the piano part. I will beg to differ from Bob’s appraisal, as I found the Quintet’s yearning Romanticism to be really appealing, whilst admitting that it is not close to the level of his idol’s.
The Notturno was originally composed for orchestra as well as piano, and receives an arrangement here for string quartet by the Gagliano’s first violin Carlo Dumont. Of the two, I actually prefer the latter, the piano version clearly looking back to Chopin, but overly pretty, and, bordering on insipid, to borrow my colleague’s adjective.
Violin sonatas aren’t among my favourite genres, and this one certainly doesn’t change that opinion, in fact, it only reinforces it. It is all a bit overheated and florid, and the very close recording of the violin meant I found it hard to listen to all the way through in one go. Carlo Dumont certainly met the virtuosic requirements admirably, but was bordering on shrill at times (again possibly the recording).
Normally, I make a rather standard comment about sound quality because modern recordings are almost always good, but here I need to be a little less generic. As mentioned above, it is very closely recorded, and the separation of instruments seems a little exaggerated, while the string tone is quite dry, not appropriate for this rich Romantic music. It made for a less than totally satisfactory listening experience. Having sampled the three other recordings of the Quintet, I think this probably goes to the top as a performance, but there is the sound issue to take into account. I was impressed by pianist Fabrizio Romano (the Notturno probably not his fault), and the sound of the piano was much better than accorded to his colleagues.
So this is a rather mixed bag, both musically and acoustically, but I certainly enjoyed the Quintet.
David Barker
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