Forthcoming Events

The Surrey Mozart Players under their Music Director Kenneth Woods, will perform Gál's Triptych op. 100 on Saturday 28th January, 2012, in the Electric Theatre, Guildford. at 7.30 p.m. Tickets: 01483 444789. Also in the programme are Mendelssohn's Symphony No 3 (Scottish) and Mahler's 'Rückert Lieder' (soioist Marcus Farnsworth, Baritone, Winner of the Kathleen Ferrier Song Prize)

The Festival Verfemte Musik ('Festival of Ostracised Music') in Schwerin (Germany) is planning to put Hans Gál at the centre of its event in October 2012 (probably from 1st to 7th), which will include a competition.

New and Recent Recordings

Out now! The première recordings of Gál's 1st Symphony, op.30, and his 2nd Symphony op. 53, performed by Northern Sinfonia under their conductor ThomasZehetmair, have now been released by Avie. The Gál symphonies are paired with Schubert symphonies under the banner Kindred Spirits: Gál's 1st with Schubert's 6th, and Gál's 2nd with Schubert's 9th. For further details of the recording of the First Symphony click here, and of the Second Symphony click here

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Out now! The première recording of Gál's 3rd Symphony, op. 62 by the Orchestra of the Swan, under their conductor Kenneth Woods, has now been released, paired with Schumann's 3rd (the Rhenish). More details here.

This CD is a recording of a concert in Stratford on Avon in 2010. The recording of the Gál symphony was played on American Public Media radio by 260 US radio stations on October 14th, 2011. Report here.

A new recording of Gál's songs op. 33, together with songs by other contempories, sung by Christian Immler accompanied by Helmut Deutsch, has been released. Details here.

Thomas Albertus Irberger has recently released a CD with the Israel Chamber Orchestra, devoted to Gál works, including the Violin Concerto, op. 39, the Violin Sonata op.17, and the Violin Sonata in D. Details here.

Hans Gál: The right tempo.A new CD issued by Exil.arte under the Austrian Gramola label devoted to works by Hans Gal, with Ulrike Anton (flute), Russell Ryan (piano), Cornelia Löscher (violin), Wolfhart Schuster (violin), playing Gál's Three Intermezzi for Flute and Piano, op. 103, Sonata for Two Violins and Piano, op. 96, Three Sketches for Piano, op. 7 and Huyton Suite for Flute and Two Violins, op. 92. The CD was discussed, and movements from these pieces played, on Austria's cultural radio programme, Oesterreich I, on 27th September and 19th November, 2010, as the 'CD of the day'. More . . .

Hans Gál: Violin Concerto, Violin Concertino, Triptych for Orchestra

A new CD featuring Annette-Barbara Vogel and the Northern Sinfonia Orchestra, conducted by Kenneth Woods, has just been released. It includes Gál's Violin Concerto, op. 39, his Violin Concertino, op. 52, and the orchestral work Triptych, op. 100 (Avie 2146). More . . .

The Vienna Connection

David Frühwirt (violin) & Florian Uhlig (piano) have released a new CD with this title, which includes Gál's Violin Sonata in B flat minor (op. 17), written in 1920, along with sonatas by Kornauth and Krenek (EDA 32, 2009). More . . .

Hans Gál: Works for Violin and Piano

This new CD by Annette-Barbara Vogel (violin) & Juhani Lagerspetz (piano) includes Gál's major works for violin and piano: Sonata in B flat minor, (Op.17) (1920), Suite in G major (Op.56) (1942), Sonata in D (op. posth.) (1933) (Avie 2182). More . . .

Impromptu for Viola and Piano

This recently published Impromptu is a little piece composed in 1940 for Gál’s son, Peter, when he had just ‘graduated’ from violin to viola. As the Preface to the work indicates: “The Impromptu for Viola and Piano, published here for the first time, with its tuneful lyricism and atmospheric piano part, so typical of Gál, enriches the viola repertoire with an original little work, full of character and at the same time playable; it is excellently suited to young players or those changing to the instrument, but also to every amateur viola player, as a repertoire, performance or competition piece.” The work is published by Schott (VAB69); ISMN 979-0-001-15437-6

Sonata in D for Violin and Piano (1933)

The Violin Sonata in D was composed in Vienna in 1933, immediately after Gál’s return to Vienna following his dismissal from his post in Mainz. It remained unpublished and unperformed in his lifetime, and was first performed at the Wigmore Hall in London on 5th November, 2001, by David Frühwirth (violin) and Henri Sigfridsson (piano). It is published by Boosey and Hawkes under the Simrock label (EE5318; ISMN 979-0-2211-2109-7).

Recent Events

The Orchestra of the Swan, conducted by Kenneth Woods, performed Gál's 4th Symphony op. 105 (Sinfonia concertante for flute, clarinet, violin, cello and orchestra) in the Civic Hall, Stratford-upon-Avon, on Tuesday, Dec. 6th, 2011.

The Artisan Trio performed Gál's Clarinet Trio op 93 on 29th November, 2011, at St. Andrew's and St. George's church, George Street, Edinburgh.

Leon McCawley played three of Gál's Preludes for piano op. 83 in the Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall, University of York, on 14th October, 2011.

The first concert in a planned "Entartete Musik" series took place in the Troldsalen, at Troldhaugen Bergen, Norway (Edvard Grieg's home) on Tuesday 4 October 2011, given by the Bergens Kammermusikkforening (The Chamber Music Society of Bergen). The programme included Hans Gál's Sonata in B flat minor for violin and piano, Op. 17 played by Angie Harley, violin, and Øyvind Aase, piano. Also on the programme were Erwin Schulhoff's Five Pieces for String Quartet and Korngold's Piano Quintet in E Major, Op. 15.

Marianne Olyver (violin) and Robert Schuck (piano ) played the Gal D Major violin sonata in two concerts in Scotland in August:
Friday 19th August, Hill Of Tarvit Mansion House, Cupar, and Sunday 21st. August, Dalmeny Parish Church, South Queensferry.

The Israel Chamber Orchestra under their conductor Roberto Paternostro performed Gál's Concerto for Violin and Small Orchestra op. 39, with the violinist Thomas Albertus Irnberger, in the Opening Season Concert in the Leon & Mathilda Recanati Auditorium, Tel Aviv, on 21st and 22nd September, 2011. Thomas Albertus recently released a CD with this orchestra, devoted to Gál works (see below).

Four Gál pieces were performed at the Musikalischer Sommer festival in East Friesland, Germany, in July and August, 2011. These are: Clarinet Trio, op.97 (26th July, performed by the group Ensemble Kaleidophonia at Detern), String Quartet No. 3, op.95 (3rd August), Cello Sonata, op.89 and Violin Suite, op.56 (8th August).

Lorna McGhee played Gál's Three Intermezzi for flute and piano, op. 103 on Friday 17th June at the Concert Hall of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music as part of their Friday lunchtime concert series, and again on Sunday June 19th at the Royal Academy of Music in London, in a recital for the British Flute Society.

Marianne Olyver (violin) and Robert Schuck (piano) played works by Gál, Gellhorn, Jeffery Wilson, Milhaud, Krein, Hubay, and Monti at the Cramphorn Theatre, Chelmsford, on June 15th, 2011.

Leon McCawley played 3 preludes from the 24 Preludes op. 83 at Arley Hall, Cheshire, on 24th May 2011 and at the Howard Aassembly Rooms, Leeds, on 26th May, 2011.

The Ensemble Epomeo played Gál's String Trio op. 104 at Chistchurch House in Rode, Frome, Somerset, on the 21st of May, 2011.

The Artisan Trio performed works by Hans Gál at a concert on Sunday, 27th March 2011 at 4 p.m., in Canongate Kirk, Edinburgh. The works included: Piano Trio in E major, op.18; 5 Songs for Middle Voice, op.33; Heurigen Variations, op.9.

Excerpts from Gal's opera Die Heilige Ente were performed in a form described as an "opera-collage" with piano, in the Festsaal of the Sophiensäle, Berlin, on 27th February, 2011

In February 2011, Annette-Barbara Vogel recorded works for violin and viola by Bach, Pleyel, Fuchs, Gál, and Laszlo Weiner.

The Choir and Orchestra of the University of Hamburg under their conductor Bruno de Greve performed Gál's Cantata De Profundis, op. 50 in Hamburg on 30th January, 2011.

The Austrian Cultural Forum in Warsaw had an entire Gál evening on January 20th, 2011. The programme included: the Serenade for clarinet, violin and cello op. 93 , the Huyton-Suite op. 92, the 2nd String Quartet, op. 35, the Three Preludes for piano, op. 65, and the Cello Suite, op. 6. They were performed by students and teachers of the Warsaw Music University.

Annette-Barbara Vogel and Daniel Sweaney performed Gál's Divertimento for Violin and Viola, op. 90 No.3, in Sarasota and Tampa, Florida, during January 2011.

The Orchestra of the Swan, conducted by Kenneth Woods, played Gál's 3rd symphony, op. 62, on 7th December, 2010, at the Civic Hall, Stratford on Avon.

The Ensemble Epomeo performed Gál’s Serenade for String Trio, op.41, at several venues in the United States and Canada during September and November, 2010.

Jessica Beeston played Gál's Viola Suite op. 102a, at Lockerbie Music Society (9th November, 2010), and at Glasgow and Edinburgh Universities (lunchtime recitals) on November 11th and 12th, 2010,respectively.

Annette-Barbara Vogel and Daniel Sweaney performed Gál's Divertimento for Violin and Viola, op. 90, 3 in the Van Kuster Recital Hall, London , Ontario, in September 2010, in the Moody Recital Hall, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, in October, 2010.

Suzanne Snizek gave a lecture recital on October 17th, 2010 at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, with performances of What a Life! and the Huyton Suite, op. 92. Forthcoming publications (2011-12) include: ‘Reizenstein and Gál: The Musical Heritage of Central Promenade Internment Camp.’ In Creativity Behind Barbed Wire: The Tangible and Intangible Heritage of Prisoners of War. New York: Routledge; and ‘Hans Gál and the Musical Culture of British Internment Camps of WWII.’ In Exil.arte Yearbook issue 1, Vienna: Böhlau Verlag.

Breslau (Wroclaw), Berlin, Eberswalde
Three concerts took place during September in which Armenian, Polish and German music students performed works by composers who were persecuted or murdered by the National-Socialists: Ernst Toch, Szymon Laks, Joachim Mendelsohn and Hans Gál. The concerts were organised by the German Raff-Forderreuther Foundation in co-operation with the Kreisau-Initiative Berlin and the Polish Kreisau Foundation for European Understanding.

The Trio Albonata played Gal's Piano Trio, op. 18, in September 2010 in Kitchener/Waterloo, ON (Canada), in the Kitchener-Waterloo Chamber Music Series, along with Beethoven's Gassenhauer Trio and Brahms's: Clarinet Trio (version for violin, cello and piano).

Gál's Piano Quartet in A, written in 1926 for the pianist Paul Wittgenstein, who had lost an arm in the First World War (and for whom Ravel wrote his concerto for the left hand), received its first performance in over 80 years, on June 18th in the German city of Heilbronn.

The Trio Rintonare played Gál's Clarinet Trio op. 97 on 13th June, 2010, in the Barocksaal, Aoyama Music Memorial Hall, Kyoto, Japan.

The American trio Ensemble Epomeo played Gál's Serenade op. 41 for string trio on Friday 16 April, 2010, at Birkenhead School, The Wirral, Cheshire as part of the Two Rivers Festival.

Yasuyuki Kono (clarinet) and Tasuku Shiomi (piano) played Gál's Clarinet Sonata op. 84 on 28th March, 2010, in the Barocksaal, Aoyama Music Memorial Hall, Kyoto, Japan.

Goldstone & Clemmow (Anthony Goldstone and Caroline Clemmow) played a programme of piano duos, including Gál's Serbian Dances (op. 3) and his Three Marionettes (op. 74), in Canongate Kirk, Edinburgh, on 24th February, 2010.

Christian Wilson played Gál's Organ Toccata (op. 29) in Southwark cathedral on 8th February, 2010

Ensemble K played Gál's Trio for Violin, Clarinet and Piano, Op.97, in the Auditorium du Mémorial de la Shoah, Paris, on 28th January 2010, as part of the 4th Festival international Voix étouffées.