HEINRICH VON HERZOGENBERG

‘...The present disc lends additional credence to Goldstone’s propensity for bringing to our attention music that lurks just beyond the gate of the shining citadel on the hill. And in this case, thanks be to him for it. [Goldstone and Clemmow] have done Herzogenberg and us an important service with this release. […] This is an important addition to the catalog, and a most rewarding listen as well. Add to that excellent playing and recording for a strong recommendation.’

Jerry Dubins
 

‘...This must be one of the best, and most valuable, of [Goldstone & Clemmow’s] many discs. They make a very strong case for Herzogenberg… It is a terrific disc, played with flair and the unanimity which can only be achieved in a sympathetic partnership. […] recommended very warmly’

Peter Grahame Woolf
 

‘...this is a marvellous disc. The music is a revelation, the playing of the highest class, the enjoyment unbounded.’

Christopher Fifield

‘...The music of Herzogenberg is still relatively little known; yet there is work of real quality admirably showcased by this disc [...] The playing is of a very high standard, imaginative and temperamentally strongly attuned to the composer. There is a commendable warmth to the sound and a variety of tone-colour that renders the effect persuasive and convincing. Goldstone’s solo playing is distinguished in its approach both to the technical and intellectual demands of the music; he convinces us that we are encountering something of genuine importance that is ripe for reappraisal as well as being a highly enjoyable listening experience.’

John Kersey
 

‘...Goldstone and Clemmow deliver entertaining performances that are also heartfelt, and Toccata has served up a fine production with pleasantly resonant sound, so the Herzogenberg coterie can at least revel in a fine recording that does him justice.’

Blair Sanderson

‘...the ideal interpretation! ... gloriously unbuttoned jeu d’esprit ... [...] Herzogenberg has to share the honours with Anthony Goldstone who knows so well how to extract pure gold from such promising ore. [In the Allotria there were] many ingratiating touches highlighted by the peerless pianism of the Goldtone/Clemmow Duo, to the golden quality of the whose sound this recording does ample justice’

Malcolm Troup

‘...Congratulations: in every respect a successful product! [...] Also the interpretation by the Goldstone and Clemmow duo is outstanding. A joy to hear them both! Toccata Classics has earned itself great merit with the release of this CD of Herzogenberg piano works... Once again: a fine thing, this CD’

Andres Stehli
 

‘...I find myself warming to this music more and more. It does have its own identity, and that identity is a strong affecting one, whether Herzogenberg is being serious and substantive or more light-hearted. […] The playing throughout shows much more than dedication to an obscure cause. Goldstone and Clemmow are a formidable team, unanimous both in attack and in interpretative ideals. Their conviction that this is far from second-rate music is infectious, and they make a warm, resonant, beautifully coloured sound that serves Herzogenberg’s art admirably.’

Stephen Pettitt

 

‘...eloquent performances that bring out the excellence of Herzogenberg’s keyboard writing and in beautifully natural sound. Warmly recommended for intrinsic interest, not just as an act of restitution.’

Calum MacDonald

                        Performance *****      Sound *****

"If Heinrich von Herzogenberg’s name seems strangely familiar, it’s almost certainly because he was not only one of Brahms’s most devoted champions, but he was also a prime force in establishing modern Bach scholarship, alongside Philip Spitta. As can be gathered from this fine recital, he was additionally a fine composer in the Brahmsian mould.
This is one of the first releases on the new Toccata Classics label, and if the exemplary standards of this collection are anything to go by collectors are in for a treat. Anthony Goldstone contributes a lengthy and insightful essay on the music, and with his wife, Caroline Clemmow, plays these unfairly neglected scores (four are premiere recordings) with a majestic command that suggests far greater familiarity with these rare gems than can surely have been the case.
In their inspired hands the almost symphonic weight of the Op. 13 Variations possess an emotional depth and power that sweeps the listener along in its wake, while the six Op. 53 Waltzes turn out to be enchanting miniatures that leave one thirsting for more once their allotted ten minutes is up. The recording, made in a Lincolnshire church last year, combines warmth and detail to perfection, with an impressive weight and depth to the sound."

                    

Julian Haylock