Catalogue | Orchestra

With this orchestral recording we are proud to present a further CD from the series of works of the Francks, father and son. Eduard Franck was one of Mendelssohn's very few private pupils. The latter thought very highly of his young protégé and friend as a pianist as well; they frequently performed together in public. Eduard Franck was unusually productive as a composer, especially in the area of instrumental music. He wrote numerous piano pieces, chamber music for a variety of combinations, several symphonies, a concerto for two pianos and orchestra, two violin concertos as well as several overtures. A large portion of his oeuvre remained unpublished, and some of it was lost after his death. Eduard Franck worked out his ideas on the basis of very solid musical and technical knowledge to produce works with a remarkable independence which frequently speak an entirely individual language.

Christiane Edinger performed as soloist with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra already at the age of 19. Her recordings range from the complete solo works of Bach to works of the Romantic Period to Penderecki's Violin Concerto, which she has already recorded twice under the composer's direction. Since 1994 Christiane Edinger has been a Professor of Violin at the Music Academy in Lübeck. Her artistic achievements have been honoured with the Music Prize of the City of Berlin and the German Critics' Prize.

Hans-Peter Frank was first a pianist (prize winner in the 1955 Schumann Competition) and regular accompanist of Peter Schreier. He completed his years of assistance in conducting under Kurt Masur and Othmar Suitner at the Dresden State Opera. He worked at the German National Theatre in Weimar as an opera Kapellmeister, then taking over the artistic directorship of the Berlin Symphony Orchestra for fifteen years at the side of Kurt Sanderling following his Weimar period. He worked in Sweden for ten years as Principal Conductor of the Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra, then serving as Music Director and Principal Conductor of the German National Theatre in Weimar for seven years.

• ABC – Blanco y negro Cultural | Juan Manuel Viana | March 22, 2003

  Amigo de Schumann y alumno privado de Mendelssohn -también como éste, hijo de banquero- Eduard Franck (1817-1893) pertenece a esa prolífica...

• Bayernkurier | Wolfgang Johannes Müller | June 9, 2001

  NEUER ROMANTIKER
  Ein Meister namens Eduard Franck
  Über einen vergessenenen Komponisten noch so begeistert zu reden, ist allemal weniger effektiv, als ihn zu spielen - und, um ihn wieder bekannt zu...

• Crescendo | Jakob Buhre | January 7, 2000

  "Die großen und kleinen Geiger unserer Zeit spielen fast nichts mehr als Beethovens und Mendelssohns Konzert...

• Fono Forum | Giselher Schubert | January 10, 1998

  Eduard Franck (1817-1893) mag man ein wenig abschätzig als typischen Kleinmeister des 19. Jahrhunderts charakterisieren, vergißt darüber aber allzu...

• Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung | Werner M. Grimmel | August 17, 2001

  Pflicht zur Romantik
  Da ist Platz neben den Gipsbüsten: Eduard Franck hat ihn verdient
  Daß er "auf diesem Wege weiter und vorwärts arbeiten" möge, wünschte...

• Neue Musikzeitung | Hanspeter Krellmann | January 7, 2004

  Schatten-Dasein – Komponisten, die aus dem Raster fallen
  Unser musikgeschichtliches Verständnis orientiert sich an Eckdaten: Sie sind an bedeutenden, zumindest bekannten Komponisten und deren Werk...

• Neue Musikzeitung | Mátyás Kiss | January 5, 2002

  Der in Breslau geborene Mendelssohn-Schüler Eduard Franck (1817-1893) hat Werke in nahezu allen instrumentalen Besetzungen hinterlassen. Das 1855...

• www.musicweb-international.com | Rob Barnett | January 11, 2003

  Eduard was the brother of Hermann (1802-1855) who, as a writer on music, had contact with Wagner, Goethe and Heine. The other brother, Albert, had a...