Dear Concerto Preservation Society Director

[goldentone]

Dear Concerto Preservation Society Director,

I have some questions.  The first, and essential one:  Does the CPS really exist?  I must admit, frankly, that I am not so naive as to unreservedly take it upon the veracity of your signature alone to admit the reality of the CPS, owing to the confirmed existence of a certain Sorabji Archive connected with a certain member of our forum, of which it is not beyond your talent nor scruples to target for the sake of evoking humor.

However, the aforementioned bearing its acknowledged weight upon the question at hand, there remains the distinct possibility that the CPS is a real society, as said Director/Curator is an avid collector of Concerti, especially the rare and vaulted gems, to the extent of my conception of the nature of the interest.

Please enlighten us with the truth.

[thalbergmad]

It does exist.

It is a group of 32 individuals from all over the world. When Malcolm Ballan was asked to join recently and dramatically increased the quality and size of our holdings, I thought it wise to give the group of individuals a name and came up with the CPS.

It is my intent to start up a website to further encourage the digitalisation of out of copyright works and to stimulate discussion. I am also investigating the possibility of modern editions being produced for 18th and 19th century concerti and have approached a couple of typesetters as a costing exercise.

The CPS is probably not a completely accurate description as many works not titled thus are collected and preserved. However, I thought Works for Orchestra & Piano Society (WOPS), did not have the same ring about it.

Thal

[gep]

The Piano and Orchestra Musical Masterworks (Etcetera) League (POMMEL)?

Friendly League for Orchestra with Piano (FLOP)?

But no kidding, very well done and doing indeed!

[weissenberg2]

How do you join 

[retrouvailles]

Am I considered a member? I've done a lot of concerto scanning and preserving (not as much as you, but I cover a different era than you), but I think I am worthy of it.

[goldentone]

It does exist.

It is a group of 32 individuals from all over the world. When Malcolm Ballan was asked to join recently and dramatically increased the quality and size of our holdings, I thought it wise to give the group of individuals a name and came up with the CPS.

It is my intent to start up a website to further encourage the digitalisation of out of copyright works and to stimulate discussion. I am also investigating the possibility of modern editions being produced for 18th and 19th century concerti and have approached a couple of typesetters as a costing exercise.

The CPS is probably not a completely accurate description as many works not titled thus are collected and preserved. However, I thought Works for Orchestra & Piano Society (WOPS), did not have the same ring about it.

Thal

Very good.  How long have you all been meeting?  I do remember the picture you put up from a get-together in Amsterdam.  

[retrouvailles]

Ah yes, I remember those pictures. I really wish I could have been there. I would have come back with an innumerable amount of scores, especially Dutch music.

[gep]

Ah yes, I remember those pictures. I really wish I could have been there. I would have come back with an innumerable amount of scores, especially Dutch music.

May I ask, being Dutch myself, what it is that attracts you so (specifically) to Dutch music? Any favorite composers? They're a varied bunch, such as Vermeulen, Wagemans, Ten Holt and Franssens, to name just a few rather different composers.
I recently bought Hans Kox' "War Tryptich". An impressive work from a much neglected composer.

gep

[retrouvailles]

Yeah, incidentally I also got that Kox disk. His music has interested me quite a bit. Going back to Dutch music, there just seems to be a sort of really "honest" quality, if you know what I mean, about the various kinds of music that come from there. It seems like music that comes from there is really not afraid to be what it wants to be. I don't just see this in modern Dutch composers, but from even composers such as Sweelinck. I'm not Dutch, but I am just really attracted to it. I can't really say why else I am attracted to it. It's a shame a lot of Dutch concertos are hard to get outside of the Netherlands. I, myself, would love to get some by people like Pijper and Badings, to name a few.

[gep]

It's a shame a lot of Dutch concertos are hard to get outside of the Netherlands. I, myself, would love to get some by people like Pijper and Badings, to name a few.

They're pretty hard to get inside The Netherlands, too. Donemus has done quite a bit, but the interest in Dutch music from record companies seems to be even less that the interest of Dutch performers (think orchestras and such). Chandos has issued a number of Dutch composers, as is doing CPO (I think the latter intends to get a "complete Symphonies" series going of Badings, as they are doing with Röntgen).
I have a double LP with Pijper's Symphonies (1-3) Concerti (pf, vl, vcl) and 6 Epigrammen and 6 Adagios. I know I had a LP with String Quartets 2-5 too, but it's present whereabouts are a bit hazy.

As for the CPS, I trust they have Pijper's Piano Concerto(?).

gep

[retrouvailles]

These days, I have relied on private forums and such for procuring my Dutch music, for a lot of it has gone out of print, and sometimes Donemus cannot help you. I have even resorted to some interlibrary loans for some harder to find things. It's a real shame that a lot of people neglect to see the value of Dutch composers and performers alike (there are some really good Dutch performers, too, of course). I think those labels like Chandos and CPO are proof that Dutch music is reaching interest in other countries, which is a good step forward. If the CPS could have a bit more interest in Dutch concertos, that would be great, too.