Felix and Fanny Mendelssohn: Both of them were very talented, both composed. But as he soon became famous, she remained in his shadow and was not allowed to publish his work. Composers had almost no chance in the 19th century. Felix, who esteemed his sister above all things, also stated: “Fanny, as I know her, does not have what it takes to be an author. She is too much of a woman for that ”. But is it really true? The Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective recorded the two brothers’ chamber music for Chandos. And Susanne Stähr, who listened to the new CD, says that Fanny has emerged as the winner of the summit.
Talented composer
When composer Fanny Hensel is mentioned, the suffix almost always follows: Felix Mendelssohn’s older sister. As if she couldn’t stand on her own. What a mistake, as her piano trio shows. The Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective recorded it.
This interpretation proves that Fanny Hensel was not an encapsulated salon existence, but she launched herself into the world with passion. Pianist Tom Poster, violinist Elena Urioste and cellist Laura van der Heijden interpret the Fanny trio with an orchestral trait, far from the dark and domestic: like music of large spaces and large strings.
Musical relation: Brahms
If you really want to compare, you shouldn’t think of Fanny’s brother Felix when you think of this trio, but rather Johannes Brahms. Fanny Hensel shares Brahms’ penchant for a certain melancholy and melancholy. This also comes into play in the second sentence.
This music casts a shadow, has an underlying sadness. Also because the Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective interprets them in such a non-sentimental way. The tone is cloudy and hazy, but this makes the cantilenas even more poignant. They seem to question the world: a world that has given Fanny and her art no chance of recognition.
confrontation with his brother
Without a doubt, this is deadly serious stuff. Fanny Hensel composes a radical monologue and she didn’t know if anyone would ever hear it. Perhaps this fundamental loneliness is the biggest difference from the music of her brother Felix Mendelssohn. In Felix’s first piano sextet, the slow movement has a completely different effect, despite all the soulmates.
Felix Mendelssohn also writes a melancholy adagio for his piano sextet. But with him there is always a turn towards forgiveness: melancholy is offset by beauty. The Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective designs this mood shift as a distinctive play of light and shadow, delicate in speech, delicate in intonation. But they play the Fanny trio like intense expressive music.
Fraternal unity in the final
In the finale of the piano trio, Fanny Hensel sometimes also throws herself into the future and finally meets her brother’s world of sound.
With this recording, the Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective offers a compelling appeal to composer Fanny Hensel. With its revealing juxtaposition of the two brothers, the CD proves that the long-underrated Fanny must not hide behind the much more famous Felix.