Book reviews – Page 146
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ReviewAn American in Paris. Poulenc: Violin Sonata op.119. Ives: Decoration Day. Gershwin: An American in Paris (transc. Heifetz), Five selections from ‘Porgy and Bess’ (transc. Heifetz). Ravel: Violin Sona
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: A worthy celebration of Franco–American musical relationshipsMusicians: Tamsin Waley-Cohen (violin) Huw Watkins (piano)Composer: Poulenc, Ives, Gershwin, RavelTamsin Waley-Cohen celebrates her joint American and European heritage on this CD, most obviously with the title track, of which more later. She opens with Poulenc’s ...
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ReviewChaconne. Works by Saint-Saëns, Lalo, Brahms, Wieniawski, Bach, Sarasate & Mozart
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: Inimitable playing from a veteran violinistMusicians: Ida Haendel (violin) Yukari Arai, Walter Delahunt (piano)Composer: Saint-Saëns, Lalo, Brahms, Wieniawski, Bach, Sarasate & MozartThis CD has taken a while to reach us. It was recorded in 2008 when the great fiddler was a mere ...
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ReviewSaariaho: Chamber works for strings vol.1: Tocar, Vent nocturne, Calices, Spins and Spells, Nocturne, Nymphéa
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: Individual quartet members come to the fore in a disc of contemporary soundsMusicians: Meta4, Anna Laakso (piano) Marko Myöhänen (electronics)Composer: SaariahoIt’s hard to imagine more passionate, committed or meticulously crafted accounts of Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho’s exquisitely strange chamber music for strings ...
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ReviewPart Two
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: A successful follow-up to a jazz–classical group’s disc debutMusicians: Basquiat Strings: Emma Smith, Vicky Fifield (violin) Jennymay Logan (viola) Ben Davis (cello) Richard Pryce (double bass) Seb Rochford (drums)Composer: VariousLed by London-based improvisatory cellist Ben Davis, Basquiat Strings caused a stir in ...
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ReviewEnescu: Complete Works for Violin and Piano vol.1: Violin Sonatas in A minor ‘Torso’, no.2 in F minor op.6 & no.3 in A minor op.25 ‘dans le caractère populaire roumain’, Impromptu concertant
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: Highly successful performances of music from Enescu’s youth and maturityMusicians: Axel Strauss (violin) Ilya Poletaev (piano)Composer: EnescuIn common with many composers working in a post-Romantic idiom, George Enescu struggled initially to find his own stylistic niche, as is exemplified by the early ...
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ReviewGhedini: Violin Sonatas in A major & E flat major, Bizzarria, Due poemi
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: Welcome complete recording of an Italian composer’s violin musicMusicians: Emy Bernecoli (violin) Massimo Giuseppe Bianchi (piano)Composer: GhediniGiorgio Federico Ghedini (1892–1965) was one of a large number of composers active during the first half of the last century whose music is so poetically ...
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ReviewDvorák: Cello Concerto in A major (orch. Burghauser), Serenade for Strings
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: A brave attempt to revive the composer’s abandoned first concertoMusicians: Musica Viva/Alexander Rudin (director/cello)Composer: DvorákListening to this early concerto, one can almost hear Dvorák asking ‘Why?’ Why, when he left it unorchestrated and unperformed, and told his students that he regretted its ...
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ReviewBritten: Cello Suites no.1 in G major op.72, no.2 in D major op.80 & no.3 in C minor op.87
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: Mixed results in a centenary tribute to BrittenMusicians: Antoine Pierlot (cello)Composer: BrittenFrench cellist Antoine Pierlot offers persuasive accounts of Britten’s three solo suites in a clear recording taken from a live concert. There are some movements, however, in which a more discernible line ...
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ReviewBrahms: Violin Sonatas no.1 in G major op.78, no.2 in A major op.100 and no.3 in D minor op.108
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: Brahms playing that is perhaps too self-regarding for comfortMusicians: Sergey Khachatryan (violin) Lusine Khachatryan (piano)Composer: BrahmsSergey and Lusine Khachatryan present Brahms’s First Sonata as seen through the eyes of the daydreaming Schumann, with the music often wistful, frequently sad, and on occasion ...
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ReviewBeethoven: String Quartets op.59 nos.1—3 ‘Rasumovsky’
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: Imposing and fleet-footed Beethoven from a leading US quartetMusicians: Miró QuartetComposer: Beethoven If you are looking for recordings of the three ‘Rasumovsky’ Quartets in a single package, then these two discs from the University of Texas at Austin Center for American ...
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ReviewBach: Violin Sonatas BWV1014–19
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: A fascinating mixture of playing traditions revealed in Bach’s accompanied sonatasMusicians: Michelle Makarski (violin) Keith Jarrett (piano)Composer: BachVersatile violinist Michelle Makarski renews her fruitful association with legendary jazz pianist Keith Jarrett in these strikingly individual accounts. Jarrett emerges as the stronger personality ...
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ReviewBach: Cello Suites BWV1007–12. Casals: Song of the Birds
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: A few caveats fail to detract from a generally successful traversal of Bach’s SuitesMusicians: Peter Martens (cello)Composer: Bach, CasalsPeter Martens’s interpretations are thoughtfully prepared and generally commendably executed, balancing modern performance practices with the simple clarity of period style. However, the South ...
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ReviewRavel: Piano Trio. Debussy: Cello Sonata, Violin Sonata. Fauré: Piano Trio op.120
THE STRAD RECOMMENDSThe Strad Issue: January 2013Description: A superbly played collection of French duos and triosMusicians: Shaham–Erez–Wallfisch TrioComposer: Ravel, Debussy, Fauré This delightful tranche of French chamber music opens with an exquisite account of Ravel’s 1914 Piano Trio. The first movement is delicate and precious, the staccato ...
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ReviewElgar: Cello Concerto op.85. Tchaikovsky: Variations on a Rococo Theme op.33. Dvorák: Rondo op.94, Silent Woods op.68 no.5
THE STRAD RECOMMENDSThe Strad Issue: January 2013Description: Spellbinding Elgar and more from a master of the celloMusicians: Jean-Guihen Queyras (cello) BBC Symphony Orchestra/Ji?í B?lohlávekComposer: Elgar, Tchaikovsky, DvorákJean-Guihen Queyras is a remarkable artist who breathes new life into well-worn repertoire. Even the salon pieces by Dvorák in this ...
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ReviewCorelli: Chamber Sonatas opp.2 & 4
THE STRAD RECOMMENDSThe Strad Issue: January 2013Description: A masterclass in Baroque string playingMusicians: Avison Ensemble/Pavlo Beznosiuk (director/Baroque violin)Composer: CorelliVolume 3 of the Avison Ensemble’s chamber music extravaganza commemorating the 300th anniversary of Corelli’s death focuses on the 24 Chamber Sonatas opp.2 and 4. These works demonstrate the ...
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ReviewTrio
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: An intriguing disc of cello-led fusionMusicians: Jacob Szekely TrioComposer: VariousThis trio took me by surprise. Maybe it’s that the ‘piano’ of the booklet notes actually extends into synth and organ, or that the drums are heavy without drowning out the cello. Whatever, ...
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ReviewThe Art of the Violin. Saint-Saëns: Violin Sonata no.1 in D minor op.75. Pierné: Violin Sonata in D minor op.36. Franck: Violin Sonata in A major. Massenet: ‘Méditation’ from Thaïs
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: A warm-hearted exploration of Franco–Belgian violin sonatasMusicians: Solenne Païdassi (violin) Laurent Wagschal (piano)Composer: Saint-Saëns, Pierné, Franck, MassenetThe ‘Art of the Violin’ indeed. Specifically the Art of the Franco–Belgian Violin at the end of the 19th century. The composers are a cosy group, ...
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ReviewReicha: Complete String Quartets vol.1: Quartets in C major op.48 no.1 & G major op.48 no.2
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: An important if flawed release of music by a Beethoven contemporaryMusicians: Kreutzer QuartetComposer: ReichaWhen considering the works of Anton Reicha (1770–1836), one finds that comparisons with Beethoven are inevitable. These quartets come out of this rather well: they are experimental in conception, ...
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ReviewA Century of Russian Colours. Rachmaninoff: Cello Sonata in G minor op.19. Kabalevsky: Cello Sonata in B flat major op.71. Auerbach: 24 Preludes op.47 (selection)
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: A celebration of 100 years of typically Russian emotionsMusicians: Camille Thomas (cello) Beatrice Berrut (piano)Composer: Rachmaninoff, Kabalevsky, AuerbachAs a student of both Philippe Muller and Frans Helmerson it is clear that award-winning French cellist Camille Thomas has benefited from excellent tutoring. It’s ...
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ReviewProkofiev: Symphony–Concerto in E minor op.125. Britten: Cello Symphony op.68
The Strad Issue: January 2013Description: Impassioned readings of two 20th-century cello symphoniesMusicians: Daniel Müller-Schott (cello) WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne/Jukka-Pekka SarasteComposer: Prokofiev, BrittenTwo works indebted to Rostropovich and premiered by him in Moscow are paired here by top German cellist Daniel Müller-Schott. Prokofiev’s Symphony–Concerto opens arrestingly, the sound ...
