Stratigou’s 3rd Album of Farrenc’s Piano Works

courtesy of Naxos of America

Towards the end of last month, as a result of some idle browsing through Amazon.com, I happened to learn, entirely by accident, that the third volume in pianist Maria Stratigou’s project to record the complete piano works of nineteenth-century composer Louise Farrenc would be released this Friday, September 13. Obviously, I learned this only because Amazon.com had already created the Web page. I had originally learned about the project through Naxos of America, which manages distributions of the Grand Piano label; but, in the wake of the pandemic, such news from Naxos has become a sometime thing.

Those that have followed this site for some time may recall that Stratigou’s project was launched in the fall of 2022 with a two-CD release of all of the 87 études that Farrenc had composed. This was followed a little less than a year later by the second volume, which was entitled Theme and Variations – Part I. Rather than continuing with this genre, the title of the new volume is simply Rondeaux.

The album consists of sixteen pieces in rondo form, which were published between 1827 and 1838. The tracks are ordered chronologically, based, for the most part, on publication dates. Many of the pieces draw upon themes by familiar composers, such as Vincenzo Bellini, Carl Maria von Weber, and Gioachino Rossini. However, the last set of four rondos (Opus 21) begins with one based on a theme from Zampa, an opera composed by Ferdinand Hérold, whose overture used to be a pops favorite.

Most readers probably know that a rondo is based on a repeated theme with the repetitions alternating with a second (or even third) “alternative” theme. Thus, this new release is sort of a “cousin” of the variations-on-a-theme genre. My guess is that most of the “appropriated” themes will not be any more familiar to most listers than are the original ones. The opera source that is probably most likely to be familiar to many listeners will be Carl Maria von Weber’s Euryanthe. However, this is best known for its overture, which gets only a passing (and rapid) reference prior to the themes incorporated into the rondo.

In other words, most listeners are unlikely to encounter very much familiarity. Nevertheless, as was the case with the variations album, what matters most is Farrenc’s command of embellishment. This makes for no end of challenging keyboard work, but Stratigou consistently rises to those challenges. Once again, however, I find I must return to the issue of the “sit back and listen” experience.

Every rondo on this album has its own virtues. Listening to all of them, one after the other, will inevitably lead to fatigue, if not exasperation. As was the case with the Theme and Variations album, each selection has its own virtues. These are best appreciated when they are isolated from the other selections! Thus, like its predecessors, this new release is not meant for a “sit back and listen” experience; and current technology should facilitate the efforts of the curious listener to appreciate the virtues of each of the tracks.