Mieczyslaw Weinberg (1919-1996): Trumpet Concerto, Op. 94 (1966-67)
Christoph Schönberger (b. 1961): Trumpet Concerto (2016, 2021-22)
Sergei Rachmaninov (1873-1943): Vocalise, Op. 34 No. 14 (1915)
Alexander Goedicke (1877-1957): Concert Étude, Op. 49 (1936)

Matilda Lloyd, winner of the 2014 BBC Young Musician of the Year Brass final, and a graduate Cambridge University of the Royal Academy of Music in London, is a very gifted soloist. Still early in her career, she has already released some interesting programs, including a wonderful set of opera arias arranged for trumpet (Casta Diva on Chandos) and the Trumpet Concerto by lesser-known British composer Arnold Griller on a release gathering some of the composer's orchestral music.

The current release deserves some plaudits for its selection of all 20th/21st century pieces, all off the normal beaten track. She has a wonderfully smooth legato tone, shown well here in the Rachmaninov and previously in the opera arias release, but what really caught my ear in this release was the Weinberg concerto. It has an immediate intensity and a sardonic wit and sarcasm the composer shared with his mentor Shostakovich compared to the other items. It is played with feeling by soloist and orchestra and rewards further listening.

The Schönberger concerto is a premiere recording and displays a keen ear for orchestral color, but a cooler emotional landscape. I enjoyed it, but it did not emotionally grab me in the way the Weinberg piece does. The Rachmaninov and Goedicke pieces are primarily short display pieces for the soloist, the latter being a favorite piece of the soloist when learning the instrument. They are played very well of course, but they do not count as essential in my mind.

So, for me, this release is worth it for the Weinberg concerto on its own. For anyone familiar with the composer there are some sure indications of his principal stylist approach, including snippets of other composers' tunes from the classical canon, but twisted into new forms and impact as was the case of his teacher Shostakovich. I am sure I will not be the first (or last) to look up with surprise as the opening tune of Mahler's 5th symphony kicks off the last movement ('Fanfares'). Elsewhere, tunes from Mendelssohn, Stravinsky, Rimsky-Korsakov and Bizet all get a little attention.

The titles of the movements imply more playfulness than the music itself shows, instead more focused on keeping the listener off balance in the first movement, and more introverted in the brooding second movement. The last movement, with the aforementioned musical quotations, also keeps the listener guessing, sometimes a waltz appears, then vanishes, and ends with the surprising and unexpected flourish that appears to end everything with another unanswered question. It's an impressive work.

As mentioned, Matilda Lloyd is an accomplished soloist, and the orchestra and conductor provide clean accompaniment, with a characteristically rich modern recording from Chandos. The soloist's strengths are best displayed in the Weinberg, enabling her to display a wider variety of sound types than the other pieces. A laudable and interesting release, particularly for revealing a little played, but excellent concerto by Weinberg.