Made in Germany presents the Olmos Ensemble (Eric Gratz, violin; Mark Teplitsky, flute; Ilya Shterenberg, clarinet, Jeff Garza, horn; Julian Schwarz, cello), a Texas-based chamber group founded in 1994 by San Antonio Symphony players. Pianist Elizabeth Dorman and violist Colin Brookes are also featured. Among the recording’s trio of works by German-born composers, Strauss’s tone poem Don Quixote takes center stage. Here, Don Quixote is heard in an arrangement for clarinet, French horn, violin, viola, cello, and piano by Laszlo Varga. In 1951–62, Varga was principal cellist of the New York Philharmonic, during the music director tenures of Dmitri Mitropoulos and Leonard Bernstein. A brief footnote: on January 2–5, 1958, at Carnegie Hall, Varga was soloist in NY Phil performances of Don Quixote, conducted by Bernstein. And Don Quixote was the penultimate work on a November 14, 1943 nationally broadcast NY Phil concert, in which Bernstein, as a last-second substitute for Bruno Walter, made his triumphant conducting debut with the Orchestra. 

Strauss’s Don Quixote fares quite well in Varga’s arrangement. Although originally scored for solo cello and large orchestra, Don Quixote is perhaps the most intimate of the Strauss tone poems, featuring numerous solo opportunities—and not just for the cello, the musical embodiment of Cervantes’s “Knight of the Sorrowful Countenance.” Varga’s arrangement is quite colorful, and often gives the impression of involving larger performing forces than the designated sextet. Of course, the piano is always a trusted aid in such enterprises. The transparency of the reduced forces also brings into relief the moments when Strauss anticipates avant-garde harmonic expression; “The battle with the sheep” is the most obvious, but not only example. There have been many superb recordings of Don Quixote in its original version, with famous cellists, orchestras, and conductors. A comparison of this recording with such predecessors is beside the point. Varga created his arrangement of Don Quixote to allow chamber ensembles and their audiences to enjoy Strauss’s masterpiece in a more intimate setting. The Olmos Ensemble admirably fulfills that mission, with a performance that is stylish, smartly executed, and brimming with affection for Strauss’s creation. This is the world premiere recording of Varga’s Don Quixote arrangement, and it is welcome, indeed. 

Two brief works round out the program. The Theme and Variations for Solo Flute (2004) by Ruth Schonthal, is a tonal, neo-Romantic piece that also lightly employs some extended techniques. In her six variations on the “concise, evocate, chant-like theme,” Schonthal at times suggests famous flute solos from iconic orchestral works. It’s a lovely piece, and flutist Mark Teplitsky performs it admirably. The Nocturne for Flute, Horn, and Piano (1898) by Rudolf Tillmetz provides all the lyricism and delicate interplay between instruments the title suggests. Here, Teplitsky is joined by Garza and Dorman for a lovely rendition, the work’s first professional recording. The recorded sound is fine. A most attractive recital. Recommended.