VICTOR HERBERT (1859-1924): Cello Concertos No. 1 in D, Op. 8 and No. 2 in E Minor, Op. 30, Irish Rhapsody for Orchestra.

Catalogue Number: 04R048
Label: Naxos
Reference: 8.573517
Format: CD
Price: $11.98
Description: The second concerto was rescued from oblivion by Julian Lloyd Webber in the mid 80s and has been recorded a few times since, likely because of its imposing and memorable first movement main theme and also because it seems to have inspired Dvorák to write his only cello concerto not long afterward (he was Herbert’s boss at the National Conservatory in New York at the time) but the first, from ten years earlier, in 1884 and before Herbert moved from Germany to the U.S., remains little heard. The themes may not be as dramatically gripping but Herbert was unable to write forgettable tunes and the graceful melodies of its first two movements and the polonaise finale are nothing to sneeze at either. The Irish Rhapsody of 1892 is a 16-minute feast of a one well-known and several more obscure (at least today) Irish popular tunes colorfully orchestrated. Mark Kosower (cello), Ulster Orchestra; JoAnn Falletta.