Leo Blech was a famous and respected conductor in his day, known for his clarity 
and his expert interpretations of the operas of Mozart, Verdi, Wagner, Bizet, 
and Richard Strauss (he conducted the Berlin premiere of Elektra). Strauss was a 
strong supporter, helping him in 1893 with his first conducting job in his 
hometown of Aachen, then securing him a position at the Berlin Opera in 1906. 
Blech succeeded him as chief conductor in 1918. Despite his Jewish background, 
his popularity was such that high-ranking Nazi brass ensured that he could 
continue to conduct in Latvia and later allowed him to emigrate to Sweden. 
Still, his career never recovered after the war, and today he remains little 
known. His works (operas included) were held in high esteem by Strauss and 
Mengelberg, among others. In 2013 Berlin removed an honorary grave to him on 
grounds of obscurity, which sparked a concerted effort to keep his memory alive, 
culminating in this release. These are all first recordings of his complete 
orchestral music and songs under the baton of Christopher Ward, conducting the 
same orchestra that played under Blech almost 130 years earlier.

Blech's music reflects the influences of Wagner and his teacher Englebert 
Humperdinck, as well as Brahms and early Strauss. It is abundantly clear that he 
had a gift for melodic beauty and a mastery of orchestral color. Like Strauss, 
he was married to a soprano, and it shows in the mellifluous vocal writing in 
the seven songs presented here.

He composed the Six Children's Songs in his Berlin Opera years and orchestrated 
them later. These nursery-rhyme vignettes are often cheeky--naughty children and 
dancing fiddlers abound. The brief but lovely seventh song, 'How Beautiful Earth 
Is' (1913), was orchestrated by Bernd Alois Zimmermann in 1952 and evidently 
never performed.

The two choral songs were first sung in Aachen in 1897 and are substantial 
settings reminiscent of Schumann. 'On the Angels' is nearly a strophic setting; 
he takes a varied approach with 'Summer Night' moving from homophony in the 
first verse to a fugato in the second, and so on. Both songs are tranquil and 
cheerful, with atmospheric orchestration favoring harp and solo strings.

The real revelations, though, are the symphonic poems, where Blech's mastery of 
orchestration and thematic progression come to the fore. All three were composed 
in Aachen after the choral songs. Forest Walk (1901) is anchored by a tranquil, 
long-breathed melody, with delicate harp and wind murmurations of nature 
underneath. Comfort in Nature (190001) blossoms with swells of rich orchestral 
color in a blissful, rapturous atmosphere. By far the most engaging of the poems 
is The Nun (1898); it loosely follows an expressionist poem by Otto Bierbaum, 
where a nun vacillates between erotic pleasures and religious piety. The first 
section is some of the most unsettled and dramatic music on the album, calling 
to mind early Schoenberg and Schreker. Almost halfway thru the piece, the 
debauchery comes to an end and a brass chorale reminiscent of the horn call of 
his teacher's Hansel and Gretel ushers in lyrical, uplifting music depicting the 
moral and eternal gifts of religious devotion. You can guess which wins out in 
the end.

For anyone interested in German music of this era, Blech is a great find. The 
symphonic poems are especially fine, as good as early Strauss and Schreker. 
Christopher Ward gives sensitive and exciting readings of this music. The 
orchestra and choir are in top form, and Sonja Gornik gives delightful 
performances of the songs. A truly wonderful album--don't miss it.

  --Nathan Faro