Bratsche! It’s not often that the German word for ‘viola’ comes with an exclamation mark attached, but the cover of Antoine Tamestit’s new release heralds something worth celebrating. Among the latest of the new star violists to record Hindemith, Tamestit brings his wonderful musical intelligence to bear on some of the greatest music written for the instrument. Tamestit has selected four contrasting works that reflect that composer’s expressive range: one of the solo sonatas, one of the sonatas with piano, and two very different works for viola and orchestra.

The greatest strength of Oehms Classics' live recording of the Hamburg Staatsoper 2005 production of Mathis der Maler is the supple and dramatic conducting of Simone Young, the Australian general manager of the company. The score contains some of Hindemith's most overtly romantic and emotionally expressive music, as well as some extended passages that sound like academic note-spinning. Young is remarkably successful in accentuating the score's moments of sensuality, such as the opening "Concert of Angels," and manages to keep the dramatic momentum up during the more pedestrian passages. The sound is full, clean, and well balanced for a live opera performance.

Hindemith's writing combines the great contrapuntal sense of Bach with a mastery of modern harmony. These three pieces, with very unusual instrumental combinations, showcase some of his best writing with a fantastic performance from a world class ensemble.

Wie wundervoll, ja berauschend die Musik Paul Hindemiths sein kann, zeigen seine Kammermusikwerke auf dieser CD. Das Ausdruckspotential der Klarinette wird von dem in Hanau geborenen Komponisten in leidenschaftlicher, tief bewegender und humorvoller Art in jedem Stück mit diesem Soloinstrument ausgeschöpft. Hindemith, dessen Musik von den Nationalsozialisten als entartet verfemt wurde, verließ Deutschland 1938 und ging zunächst in die Schweiz, 1940 übersiedelte er in die USA. Trotz der überaus schwierigen Umstände gelang Hindemith auch in dieser Zeit ein in Quantität und Qualität beeindruckender Output.