Charles Wakefield Cadman (1881-1946) was one of the earliest North American composers to receive musical training not based on orthodox European precepts. His music, derived almost exclusively from indigenous influences, once enjoyed considerable popularity. Indeed, several of the works for violin and piano heard on this excellent new recording were included in the repertoire of no less a violinist than Fritz Kreisler. Cadman’s style tends toward the lighter, salonesque genre, but each of the works included here more than warrants an occasional hearing. Perhaps the best known piece is the 1920 miniature The Legend of the Canyon, which was widely featured as an encore in Kreisler’s recital programs. His recording, made in 1925 with pianist Carl Lamson, has been included on a useful historical reissue on the Biddulph label, and the same performance also appeared on the 1996 RCA retrospective. The performers on this new Naxos issue ably recreate the nostalgic atmosphere the piece ideally demands, with Peter Zazofsky’s approach closely mirroring Kreisler’s own, exemplified in his occasional use of glissando, a pleasingly “old fashioned” use of vibrato, and some effectively-nuanced finger substitutions.
Zazofsky and pianist Paul Posnak also deliver a fine rendition of Cadman’s sonata for violin and piano, written in 1930 for Sol Cohen, but the most significant discoveries on this disc arguably are the larger scale chamber works involving strings and piano–the Piano Trio in D major (1914) and the G minor Piano Quintet (1937). The trio aims to be everything–and isn’t quite the sum of its parts. There’s a big, romantically infused opening maestoso, a lyrically simple slow movement, and a finale with ragtime effects. The quintet is a better work, filled with strongly contoured ideas (the influence of Brahms is clear in the slow movement) constructed with great flair, the best sections being the racy outer movements. Both receive accomplished performances, highlighted by the tremendously assured partnership involving the Bergonzi Quartet and Posnak in the quintet. The disc ends with another effective salon miniature (also recorded by Kreisler) From the land of the Sky-Blue Water, again movingly played by Zazofsky and Posnak. This is a further valuable inclusion in Naxos’ “American Classics” series, and the excellence of the performances and sound reminds me that it would also be good to have a commercial recording of Cadman’s Pennsylvania Symphony of 1940. Any takers?
