As it happens, I've managed to obtain a copy of the set and have listened
so far to symphonies 3 and 4.

I've been a fan of Friedrich Gernsheim's music for several years now,
having pored over his chamber music in libraries with considerable
interest (and his symphonies and concerti with some, but not quite as much,
interest- though it would be nice to hear the violin concerto!).  The only
work of his recorded before this Arte Nova set was a cello sonata on a
Genesis LP (that also contained a Rubinstein cello sonata.) An unfortunate
lack of attention on the part of the record companies considering the high
quality of:

4 (5?) string quartets
3 (4?) piano quartets
1 (2?) piano quintets (Cobbett's claims 2; I've only seen 1)
1 string quintet
a violin concerto
a cello concerto (which I've heard)
a cello sonata (which I've heard)
and now these 4 symphonies; at least about #s 3 and 4 I can say, not
as stunning as I found the quartets to be in score, but .very.  good.
Middle- rather than late- Romantic in style despite the 1879-1890s dates
of composition (1880-1890s in the case of 3&4).  (Though 4 contains some
percussion writing that's definitely unusual to say the least!)

Very imaginative.  Tuneful.  Emotionally somewhat at a distance I think;
I've always tended to compare this composer to the pre-op.80 Mendelssohn
(or at least the Mendelssohn of stereotype if not necessarily the
Mendelssohn of reality!), though with much more advanced harmonic and
tonal strategies.  To .my.  ears worth a listen and a look; and a good
thing pricewise that Arte Nova got there rather than Hyperion, much as I
admire the latter label (which I do- extremely.  There's a place in the
world for both.) I .do.  wish they'd started with - say - a disk of

string quartet #4 and piano quartet #3 (e minor/major and F major) rather
than the symphonies, but someone contracted symphonyitis (for similar
reasons, we have a cycle of Stanford, a cycle of Parry, and are about to
have another cycle of both, symphony-wise, but .no. recordings of their
quartets- at least 6 in Stanford's case, 3 in Parry's; I've heard Parry's
fine 3rd...) - and decided, perhaps quite reasonably alas, that symphonies
would sell better.  My feeling is- the disks at hand are .very.  good; the
fact that a chamber music disk could have been better is not only not a
reason not to get them, but insufficient sales of the symphonies set could
lead to no Gernsheim ever being recorded again, and I wouldn't want that...
so my gripes would be counterproductive to say the least.  It's a very good
set (at least the 2nd disk is, and I'll report on the first disk when I
hear it soon- the tarantella of the 2nd symphony looks .fun.  in score, so
I expect good things)- and I recommend it, for what my opinion's worth!

Hope that (kind of?) answers your question.  His years? 1839-1916, if
memory serves.  His birthplace? According to the notes, Worms.  (Jewish,
like me...) Among his teachers? Moscheles (piano.) Among his students?
Humperdinck (no, not the rock star.)

-Eric Schissel
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