Goldschmidt Schulhoff Œuvres orchestrales Jurowski - CPO999323 - Petits prix - par CPO

Berthold Goldschmidt and Erwin Schulhoff were two German composers whose fate illustrates with horrible clarity the extent to which Nazi rule impacted artist’s lives during an entire generation. Goldschmidt, who emigrated from Germany to England in 1935, fortunately survived and enjoyed his renown until his death in 1996. Erwin Schulhoff died in the Würzburg Concentration Camp in 1942. If Goldschmidt’s Comedy of Errors Overture may be termed a carefree and youthful stroke of genius, then his Greek Suite is a document of its times set against a gloomy background. He composed the Overture in 1926, and prior to 1933 it topped the performance charts for his early compositions. By contrast, the Greek Suite was composed as a commissioned work in 1940, while he was in exile. The melodies derived by Goldschmidt from the thirty Mélodies populaires de Grèce at the time might have symbolized Greek as well as English opposition to the Axis powers. Schulhoff’s ballet mystery based on Ogelala, an ancient Mexican original, dates from the same period as Goldschmidt’s genial comic overture. A score displaying more magnificent colors could simply not be imagined. These works, in this combination, clearly demonstrate the great richness of Germany’s music during the 1920s and the subsequent loss brought about by barbarism.