Inside Eroica (2020)

The Inside Eroica title and the presence of music by contemporary composer Gordon Williamson might lead the listener to expect an experimental program, but in fact, this release by the Flex Ensemble offers a 200-year-old composition, the transcription for piano quartet by Beethoven's student Ferdinand Ries of Beethoven's Symphony No. 3 in E flat major, Op. 55 ("Eroica"). Audiences of the 19th century, in the absence of recordings, often made music by using such transcriptions, and performers have been rediscovering these. ... Read More

The Inside Eroica title and the presence of music by contemporary composer Gordon Williamson might lead the listener to expect an experimental program, but in fact, this release by the Flex Ensemble offers a 200-year-old composition, the transcription for piano quartet by Beethoven's student Ferdinand Ries of Beethoven's Symphony No. 3 in E flat major, Op. 55 ("Eroica"). Audiences of the 19th century, in the absence of recordings, often made music by using such transcriptions, and performers have been rediscovering these. This said, this particular Ries transcription seems not to have been recorded often, and it's good to have in this lively reading. It might seem a tall order to reduce the "Eroica" to piano quartet dimensions, but Ries, who also made transcriptions of Beethoven symphonies for other media, approached his task with care, and the listener can approach the music on its terms. Ries was a fine pianist in his own right, and he did well to assign the piano the lion's share of the action,... Read Less