Book reviews – Page 185
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ArticleDohnányi: Violin Sonata in C sharp minor op.21, Ruralia hungarica op.32c, Romanza (arr. Heifetz) Janácek: Violin Sonata, Dumka, Romance, Allegro, Lístek odvanutý (arr. Š tedron)
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Hagai Shaham (violin) Arnon Erez (piano)Composer: Dohnányi, Janácek (arr. Š t?dro?)Hagai Shaham gives a?deliciously rich and eloquent account of Dohnányi’s Violin Sonata, positively old-fashioned in?its generous vibrato and abundance of portamentos. He is adept at combining broad-spanned lyricism with narrative drama, driving ...
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ArticleDvorák: Piano Quintets no.1 in A major op.5 & no.2 in A major op.81
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Goldner String Quartet, Piers Lane (piano)Composer: DvorákThis coupling of Dvo?ák’s two piano quintets contrasts the composer’s somewhat discursive apprentice work with its?richly acclaimed successor. Australians Piers?Lane and the Goldner Quartet provide musically sensitive and carefully determined readings. They capture the moods and ...
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ArticleElgar: Violin Concerto in B minor op.61, Prelude to The Kingdom op.51, Prelude? & ?Angel’s Farewell from The?Dream of?Gerontius
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Thomas Zehetmair (violin) Alice Coote (mezzo-soprano) Hallé/Mark ElderComposer: Elgar ‘It’s good! Awfully emotional! Too emotional… but I love it,’ enthused Elgar about his?Violin Concerto. Delius,?not one of Elgar’s greatest admirers at the best of times, dryly commented: ‘I?found it a bit ...
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ArticleFauré: Piano Quartets no.1 in C minor op.15 & no.2 in G minor op.45, Nocturne no.4 in E flat major op.36
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Hermitage String Trio, Kathryn Stott (piano)Composer: FauréGabriel Fauré was an emotionally reserved figure of exquisite taste and eloquence, and always insisted that his music should be played absolutely straight if his immaculately crafted scores were to achieve their maximum effect. This is ...
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ArticleFor David and Wu Han. Jalbert: Cello Sonata. Auerbach: Cello?Sonata. Adolphe: Couple. Tsontakis: Mirror Image
THE STRAD RECOMMENDSThe Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: David Finckel (cello) Wu Han (piano)Composer: Jalbert, Auerbach, Adolphe, TsontakisFollowing in the tradition of his teacher Rostropovich, David Finckel and his?wife Wu Han have?over the years commissioned a?number of established composers to enrich the repertoire for cello and piano, the ...
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ArticleHaydn: Violin Concertos no.1 in C major Hob.XVIIa:1 & no.4 in G major Hob.XVIIa:4 Mendelssohn Octet in E flat major for strings op.20
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Gil Shaham (violin) Sejong SoloistsComposer: Haydn Gil Shaham can do what he likes with his own record label, but a decent?A&R man might have warned him off this unsuccessful coupling. We start with the two most popular Joseph Haydn violin concertos, ...
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ArticleJanácek: Violin Sonata. ?Messiaen: Thème et variations. Stravinsky: The Soldier’s Tale Suite. Shostakovich: Violin Sonata op.134
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Victor Danchenko (violin) ?Hugh Sung, Patricia Parr (piano) ?Joaquin Valdepenas (clarinet) Composer: Janácek, ?Messiaen, Stravinsky, ShostakovichThe Peabody Institute’s proofreader was clearly on holiday when this CD was prepared – ‘Sutie’ rather than ‘Suite’ appears on the cover, among other slips, and ...
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ArticleMendelssohn: Trios no.1 in D ?minor op.49 & no.2 in C minor op.66
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Itzhak Perlman (violin) Yo-Yo Ma (cello) Emanuel Ax (piano)Composer: MendelssohnThis grouping of ?three star?names ?offers performances ?with an exuberant ?sweep in playing of glowing warmth and purposeful strength.?There is an abundance of detail?brought about by the immaculate balance between instruments, and the ...
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ArticlePeacocks/Pink Monsters
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Judgement Day: Anton Patzner (violin) Lewis Patzner (cello) John Bush (drums)Composer: Various Don’t be beguiled by the artsy cardboard-picture-book CD case: there’s nothing wholemeal here. This is thrashy, high-voltage ‘string metal’, music feasting on E-numbers and electricity with a result ...
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ArticleBeethoven: String Quartets in G major op.18 no.2, C major op.59 no.3 (Rasumovsky), C?sharp minor op.131 & A minor op.132
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Artemis QuartetComposer: BeethovenThough dating from 1998?and 2002, these are?‘historical’ recordings, as two members of the ensemble have since departed. Virgin is issuing the whole series taped for West German Radio, no doubt reasoning that it gains a Beethoven cycle on the cheap, ...
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ArticleBeethoven: String Quintets in E flat major op.4 & C major op.29, Fugue in D major op.137, Prelude and Fugue Fragment in D minor H40
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Endellion Quartet, David Adams (viola)Composer: BeethovenThese performances have been somewhat closely but?well caught by the engineers, and they demonstrate technical assurance, rhythmic drive and elegant shaping of the phrase alongside exemplary balance and blend. The players often bring orchestral sonorities to the ...
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ArticleBeethoven: Triple Concerto in C major for violin, cello and piano op.56. Brahms: Double Concerto in A minor ?for violin and?cello op.102
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Trio Poseidon, Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra/Neeme Järvi Composer: Beethoven, BrahmsThis ‘Triple’ Concerto has the immediate benefit of?soloists – violinist Sara Trobäck Hesselink, cellist Claes Gunnarsson and pianist Per Lundberg – who appear on a regular basis as the Trio Poseidon alongside their individual ...
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ArticleConversations for violin and piano. Rosing-Schow: E Rigidis. Nørgård: Fragment V, Diptychon. Ruders: Three Tiny Pieces for Great Friends, Bel Canto. Nordentoft: Two Movements. Koppel: Ternio
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Elisabeth Zeuthen Schneider (violin) Ulrich Staerk (piano)Composer: Rosing-Schow, Nørgård, Ruders, Nordentoft, KoppelElisabeth Zeuthen Schneider presents an interesting trawl of works from Danish composers after the Second World War, including some earlyish Per Nørgård and recent pieces by Poul Ruders.I found the order ...
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ArticleReal Vocal String Quartet
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Real Vocal String QuartetComposer: VariousRVSQ presents originals and arrangements from various world folk traditions, its four members combining string playing and singing in an imaginative and charming way.Right from the opening moments, the articulation of the violin pizzicato and viola tune transport ...
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ArticleRebel: Les éléments. Vivaldi: Le quattro stagione
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Midori Seiler (violin) Akademie für Alte Musik BerlinComposer: Rebel, VivaldiIt is fashionable now to emphasise the pictorial elements of The Four Seasons, which is fair enough up to a point: Vivaldi is quite clear about the chattering teeth and hailstorms. But these ...
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ArticleRuehr: String Quartets nos.1, 3 & 4
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Cypress QuartetComposer: Ruehr It’s a brave move by the San Francisco-based Cypress Quartet to devote its new disc entirely to a contemporary composer, and a little-known name at that. But the music of Elena Ruehr, raised in Michigan and ...
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ArticleScott: Piano Trios nos.1 & 2, Clarinet Quintet, Clarinet Trio, Cornish Boat Song
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Gould Piano Trio, Mia Cooper (violin) David Adams (viola) Robert Plane (clarinet) Composer: ScottThe fact that Cyril Scott (1879–1970) was musically educated in Germany from the age of twelve, and there enjoyed his first success as a major composer, did much to ...
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ArticleStrings and Isobars. Waxman: Carmen Fantasy. MacMillan: After the Tryst, Knock on Wood. Copland: Violin Sonata. Russell Bennett: A Song Sonata. Bolcom: Sonatina
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Yuko Uchiyama (violin) Dina Vainshtein (piano)Composer: Waxman, MacMillan, Copland, Russell Bennett, BolcomThis disc’s label – University of Hertfordshire Recordings – didn’t initially promise much, so I was very pleasantly surprised by its content. Yuko Uchiyama, soloist and also a member of the ...
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ArticleTchaikovsky: Souvenir de Florence op.70 (transcr. Turovsky), String Quartet no.1 in D op.11 (arr. string orchestra)
The Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: I Musici de Montréal/Yuli Turovsky Composer: TchaikovskyThe tantalisingly balance between Tchaikovsky’s natural propensity for music fired by extra-musical sources and his veneration of the absolute music of the Viennese Classical masters (exemplified by his life-long admiration of Mozart) is everywhere evident here. ...
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ArticleElgar: Violin Concerto in B minor op.61
THE STRAD RECOMMENDSThe Strad Issue: January 2010Musicians: Nikolaj Znaider (violin) Staatskapelle Dresden/Colin Davis Composer: ElgarThere is a certain pedigree to this recording of Elgar’s Violin Concerto. Nikolaj Znaider plays the Guarneri ‘del Gesù’ instrument of 1741 on which Kreisler, the work’s dedicatee, gave ...
