Over to Zurich for this 1967 performance of Othmar Schoeck’s Sommernacht, Pastorales for Orchestra with Edmond De Stoutz leading the Zurich Chamber Orchestra in this performance, recorded in concert on March 8, 1967.
Othmar Schoeck’s music was performed during his lifetime by leading conductors, from Wilhelm Furtwängler to Fritz Busch and Karl Böhm. His operas, beginning with Penthesilea in 1927, premiered at the Dresden and Berlin State Operas, and renowned singers of the 20th century championed his work, from Karl Erb to Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. Schoeck’s music has received increasing international recognition in recent years, not least in England and America—for example, Alex Ross, critic of The New Yorker, selected Christian Gerhaher’s recording of Nocturne as one of the ten best CDs of 2009.
The Othmar Schoeck Festival, which takes place partly in the family villa, is intended primarily to anchor his works in the Swiss and international public and to encourage a renewed engagement with his life and work here, in his birthplace.
Edmond De Stoutz began his career as cellist in various ensembles, imcluding two years as a cellist and a drummer in the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich; In 1945 he founded the Hausorchester-Vereinigung (House Orchestra Association). From 1951 this was the Zürcher Kammerorchester (Zurich Chamber Orchestra), with which he toures widely as a conductor, including New York’s prestigious Carnegie Hall. In 1962 he also founded the Zürcher Konzertchor (Zürich Concert Choir). In his progamms, he invariably included works by contemporary composers, especially Swiss. He was responsible for several Swiss premieres of works by Frank Martin, Peter Mieg, Paul Müller-Zürich or Rolf Urs Ringger, among others. In 1965 he was awarded the Hans-Georg-Nägeli-Medaille of the City of Zurich. He was also awarded the Prize of the Doron-Stiftung and in 1991 Freiheitspreis (Freedom Prize) of the Max Schmidheiny-Stiftung. He conducted the ZKO until 1996, a year before he died.
Another rarity from Swiss radio, and if you aren’t already familiar, a pleasant surprise.
Press play and sit back.
