During his lifetime Antonio Rosetti (1750-92) achieved fame nearly equivalent to his contemporaries Haydn and Mozart. Born in Bohemia (and given the name Anton Rössler), his career would take him to the great capitals of Europe, including Prague, Berlin, Paris, and London, where his symphonies were performed as frequently as Haydn’s. Rosetti was commissioned to compose a requiem for Mozart in 1791, just a year before his own death. The disc begins with the overwhelmingly Haydnesque D major Symphony (1782), from the bold and brisk first movement and playful finale, right down to the minuet, with its novel trio based on a 2-note pizzicato theme. The Oboe Concerto (1781) follows Mozart’s model, with a flowingly virtuoso solo part (handsomely realized by Christian Specht) built around long-spun themes. Most memorable is the Adagio, its beautiful melody accented by Italianate turns. Next comes the brief Sinfonia Concertante (1773) showcasing Rosetti’s highly effective juxtaposition of the two solo violins (the stylish duo of Stefan Czernak and Akiko Tanaka) with the orchestra.
So far so good, but it’s in the three-movement Symphony in D major (1792) that we encounter the real Rosetti. Here he moves beyond Haydn’s model with his own distinctive melodic and harmonic style that looks forward to Mendelssohn and the Romantic era. Most intriguing is the central Andante, which anticipates the exact pattern of the first movement exposition of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. Johannes Moesus and the Hamburg Symphony provide strikingly lively performances in the concertos–and especially in the symphonies–making you wonder why we haven’t been hearing this music all along. The MDG recording is up to the label’s usual audiophile standard.
