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Nonet in F

Frederick Youens' sleeve-notes on this UK release of Louis (or Ludwig) Spohr's Nonet in F, op. 31, say of the composer that "he never attained profound depths or a wide range, but his undoubted gift for melody made him a much-loved composer during his lifetime" (rated ahead of Beethoven by some contemporaries). Such seems to be Spohr's legacy: to be half-damned by lukewarm praise. Youens reckons the Nonet "has much of the charm of the Schubert Octet" - when, to my mind, Spohr's is the more enjoyable piece of the two. 

Though not a musical revolutionary in the same vein as Beethoven, Spohr was also an innovator in his own way - credited with inventing the violin chin-rest, and of being the first to conduct an orchestra with a baton. And in his compositions, Spohr not infrequently "experimented with unusual combinations of instruments" (Youens again) with the Nonet a case in point. Similar instrumental groupings had been used in late-18th-Century serenades & divertimenti but the specific combination of violin, viola, cello, double bass, flute, clarinet, oboe, bassooon & horn isn't recorded before the first publication of this opus in 1813.

The piece was a big hit in its day, inspiring several other composers to write for the same line-up - from contemporaries like George Onslow to 20th-century figures such as Bohuslav Martinů. The performers here are the Fine Arts Quartet minus second violinist Abram Loft, the New York Woodwind Quintet and bassist Harold Siegel. The recording was made in 1958, and was seemingly first released in Canada. The music is a delight throughout.

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