Anja Thauer (1945-1973)

[Barbirollians]

It is a very interesting programme . She appears to indeed to have had a domineering mother and rather than the doctor breaking off the relationship her mother may have interfered. Fairly, the programme also makes the point that her parents lost their only child and rather hid her memory . Her mother also appears to have been more of a successful violinist before the war than first thought.

The anecdotes from Neville Dilkes and Claude Francaix are interesting.

Also interesting is that the representative from DG suggests that the signing of Rostropovich and the Karajan recording may indeed have led to a loss of interest in Anja Thauer’s recording career. DG may well be making late amends - they are releasing the Dvorak on vinyl later this month.

[Cockney Sparrow]

DG may well be making late amends - they are releasing the Dvorak on vinyl later this month.

Checked the date of the post here - vinyl? (I see now, also, I made the previous post....).
Really - vinyl?. Has she now got a "following" sufficient to support a vinyl issue. Has she a bigger profile elsewhere in the world - or will DG get a publicity drive into gear I wonder. Maybe the Eloquence re-issue, or some media interest has built up interest in her recordings.

There is the Eloquence re-issue but trying to find a trace on the streaming services (Qobuz, Naxos Music Library, others) is frustrating - the label only has a random availabiity and in NML crops up under "Decca" and as I say no trace of Thauer there. No trace searching in Gramophone (including Reviews).

The only place I found it is in Google Play Music and Spotify and the Dvorak comes up in a compilation "The World's Greatest Orchestras - the Czech P_ O_" which seems to be a compilation for streaming - I haven't found a CD equivalent, anyway.

However, I should stop searching and listen to her recording again on YT Music and form my own conclusion.

I'm not sure I can listen to many others in comparison but maybe I'll check out the Weilerstein, and the BAL for versions.

[bluestateprommer]

Reprise today of this Sunday Feature program(me) on Anja Thauer: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000pm8v

[kernelbogey]

Martin has just played the slow movement of the Dvorak cello concerto recorded by Anja Thauer on Sunday Breakfast. This is the first time I have heard of her, and her tragic story, and I am pleased to find that we have a thread about her here.

[kernelbogey]

A Guradian article by Peter Hebblethwaite about Anja Thauer is available here, and the R3 programme he made, referenced in posts #30 and #33 above, is still available.

[Barbirollians]

I rather played this version to death when it first was reissued on that small German label in 2013 so I was pleased to revisit the performance tonight . Trevor Harvey was right in his original Gramophone review about the care given to the woodwind playing and to ensure it can be heard as well as the solo cello and the strings. It is an urgent , characterful performance but with poetry in spades too . It remains very much at my top table of recordings with Rostropovich /Boult, Tortelier/Previn,Wallfisch/Mackerras , the Casals and du Pre live with Sir Charles Groves