Recording reviews – Page 135
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ReviewRietz: Cello Concerto op.16, Fantaisie op.2. Gross: Cello Concerto in B minor
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: No long-forgotten gems, but useful additions to the catalogueMusicians: Klaus-Dieter Brandt (cello) L’Arpa Festante/ Riccardo MinasiComposer: Rietz, GrossThis well-recorded and adeptly conducted CD is a historical ‘filler’, in that it provides the context for the works that were being forged by Mendelssohn ...
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ReviewMendelssohn: String Quintets in A major op.18 & B fl at major op.87, Pieces for string quartet op.81 nos.3 & 4
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: A recording that brings out the neo-Classical side of the composer’s characterMusicians: Mandelring Quartet, Gunter Teuffel (viola)Composer: MendelssohnThis is another fine release (the fourth volume) in the Mandelring Quartet’s ongoing survey of Mendelssohn’s chamber music for strings, one that points up the ...
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ReviewMinstrels. Debussy: Minstrels, La plus que lente (arr. Roques), Violin Sonata, Sérénade (compl. Orledge). Pierné: Violin Sonata in D minor op.36. Fauré: Violin Sonata no.1 in A major op.13
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: An enterprising collection of French violin repertoireMusicians: Christophe Giovaninetti (violin) Izumiko Aoyagi (piano)Composer: Debussy, Pierné, FauréThis well-chosen programme of French pieces opens with Debussy’s rarely heard arrangement for violin and piano of ‘Minstrels’, played by former Ysaÿe Quartet and Elysée member Christophe ...
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ReviewCarter: Four Lauds, Figment I, Figment II, Tre duetti
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: Elegance and precision win over expressiveness in modern classics for solo and duo stringsMusicians: Caroline Chin (violin) Brian Snow (cello)Composer: CarterFirst things first: at just 38 minutes, this is an extremely short disc. But by the end of its thoughtful, jewel-like accounts ...
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ReviewHomecoming — A Scottish Fantasy. Bruch: Scottish Fantasy. Burns: Songs (arr. Campbell). Skinner: The Hurricane. Cunningham: The Gentle Light That Wakes Me, Aberlady. Traditional: Folk arrangements
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: A violinist’s exploration of different aspects of Scotland’s music heritageMusicians: Nicola Benedetti (violin) Julie Fowlis (vocalist) Phil Cunningham (keyboards) etc, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra/Rory MacdonaldComposer: Bruch, Burns, Skinner, Cunningham Without a violin concerto as its usual coupling, it would be unfortunate if ...
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ReviewBrahms: Piano Trio no.3 in C minor op.101. Vasks: Episodie Canto perpetuo
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: Two contrasting trios from a young Swiss ensembleMusicians: Rafale TrioComposer: Brahms, VasksThe Zurich-based Rafale Trio offers sumptuous ensemble sound led from Flurin Cuonz’s cello, ideal for the bearded Brahms of the Third Piano Trio. The expressive kinship with the ‘Double’ Concerto has ...
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ReviewBeethoven: Piano Trios op.70 no.1 in D major ‘Ghost’ & no.2 in E flat major, Variations op.121a
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: Lively accounts of Beethoven’s multifaceted music for piano trioMusicians: Vienna Piano TrioComposer: BeethovenThe impact and vivacity that the Vienna Piano Trio brings to the opening bars of the D major Trio set the scene for a performance characterised by the urgency of ...
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ReviewPrecious Refuge. Bach: Solo Violin Sonatas in A minor BWV1003 & C major BWV1005, Violin Concertos in A minor BWV1041 & G minor BWV1056
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: Freewheeling accounts that would benefit from greater self-controlMusicians: Iskandar Widjaja (violin/director) Berlin CamerataComposer: BachHailed as ‘a true force of nature’ for his debut disc (reviewed in The Strad, December 2011), Iskandar Widjaja extends his beguiling sense of fantasy to two of Bach’s ...
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ReviewAchron: Music for Violin and Piano
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: Mellifluous advocacy for the music of a neglected Russian—US composerMusicians: Michael Ludwig (violin) Alison d’Amato (piano)Composer: AchronAchron: Hebrew Melody op.33, Hebrew Dance op.35 no.1, Hebrew Lullaby op.35 no.2, Prelude op.13, Les sylphides op.18, Zwei Stimmungen op.32, Zwei Stimmungen op.36, Dance Improvisation on ...
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ReviewRavel: String Quartet in F major. Tchaikovsky: String Quartet no.1 in D major. Rachmaninoff: Romance
THE STRAD RECOMMENDSThe Strad Issue: January 2014Description: Fresh, invigorating takes on stalwarts of the quartet repertoireMusicians: Puertas QuartetComposer: Ravel, Tchaikovsky, RachmaninoffThe Puertas Quartet – formed by two married couples in London in 2009 – plays Ravel with a sense of enchantment. The musicians are good at caressing ...
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ReviewJanácek: Pohádka, Presto. Kodály: Solo Cello Sonata op.8. Grieg: Cello Sonata in A minor op.36
THE STRAD RECOMMENDSThe Strad Issue: January 2014Description: A stunning disc dominated by a showstopping performance of KodályMusicians: Danjulo Ishizaka (cello) Shai Wosner (piano)Composer: Janácek, Kodály, GriegDanjulo Ishizaka and Shai Wosner are mesmerisingly brilliant in this superbly recorded and imaginatively programmed recital. In Janácek’s Pohádka, the fantasy element ...
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ReviewBrahms: Violin Concerto in D major op.771. Paganini: Violin Concerto no.2 in B minor op.72. Bach: Gavotte en rondeau, from Partita no.3 in E major BWV10063
THE STRAD RECOMMENDSThe Strad Issue: January 2014Description: Rare recordings from a forgotten violin voice of the earlier 20th centuryMusicians: Henry Merckel (violin) Association des Concerts Symphoniques de Toulouse / Jean Fournet; Orchestre Radio Symphonique de Paris / Manuel RosenthalComposer: Brahms, Paganini, BachBorn in 1897, Henry Merckel belongs ...
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ReviewMängleik Jo
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: A playful selection of music celebrating two styles of fiddle traditionMusicians: Einar Jansen, Johanna-Adele Jüssi (violin/octave fiddle)Composer: Folk, TraditionalThe opening, declarative fiddle phrase of ‘Mängleik’ (which translates as ‘game’), sets the tone for this album: simple, vigorous and playful. The fiddle is ...
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ReviewTickle the Minikin. Works for lyra viol by Mace, S. Ives, Coleman, Taylor, Jenkins, Young, Steffkins, Esto & Anon
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: An exemplary showcase for the music of a forgotten member of the English viol consortMusicians: Robert Smith (viola da gamba)Composer: Mace, S. Ives, Coleman, Taylor, Jenkins, Young, Steffkins, EstoThis 35-track disc features accounts of 17th-century English solo lyra viol music, sourced from two ...
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ReviewStradivarius in Rio. Works by Nucci, Vogeler, Costa, Monte, Veloso, Azevedo, Jobim, Baptista, De Abreu & Pixinguinha
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: A topical, crossover release from an ever-adventurous violinist and cellistMusicians: Viktoria Mullova (violin) Matthew Barley (cello) Paul Clarvis, Luis Guello (percussion) Carioca Freitas (guitar)Composer: Nucci, Vogeler, Costa, Monte, Veloso, Azevedo, Jobim, Baptista, De Abreu, PixinguinhaCould it be that Viktoria Mullova’s idea of ...
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ReviewTchaikovsky: Violin Concerto in D major op.35. Arensky: String Quartet no.2 in A minor op.35
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: A classic concerto and rare quartet make fascinating companion piecesMusicians: Philippe Quint (violin) Lily Francis (viola) Claudio Bohórquez, Nicolas Altstaedt (cello) Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra/MartinuPanteleevComposer: Tchaikovsky, ArenskyTchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto thrives on an espressivo intensity full of fast vibrato and generous portamento – distinctive qualities that Philippe Quint ...
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ReviewSchubert: String Quartet in D minor D810 ‘Death and the Maiden’. Janácek: String Quartet no.1 ‘Kreutzer Sonata’
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: Anguish and intensity characterise a potent couplingMusicians: Debussy QuartetComposer: Schubert, JanácekWomen and death seem to be the rather morbid connection between the two works on this disc. The Debussy Quartet takes an attacking approach to Schubert’s ‘Death and the Maiden’, driving through ...
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ReviewLocatelli: 24 Caprices (L’arte del violino op.3)
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: A remarkably successful collection of the caprices from Locatelli’s op.3 concertosMusicians: Gabriel Tchalik (violin)Composer: LocatelliGabriel Tchalik here tackles Locatelli’s caprices, totally divorced from the concertos they adorn. He reproduces their unprecedented sonorities and meets their formidable technical challenges not only with breathtaking vigour ...
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ReviewGrundman: A mortuis resurgere (The Resurrection of Christ)
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: Neither work nor performance make a convincing case for themselvesMusicians: Brodsky Quartet, Susana Cordón (soprano)Composer: GrundmanA little of Jorge Grundman’s The Resurrection of Christ goes a long way, at least on this disc. Based on St John’s Gospel, it is a chamber oratorio for soprano ...
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ReviewLalo: Piano Trio, Piano Quintet, Violin Sonata, Guitare, Chanson villageoise, Sérénade, Arlequin
The Strad Issue: January 2014Description: A valuable survey of Lalo’s work for piano and stringsMusicians: Dorian Lamotte, Agnès Reverdy (violin) Marc Desmons (viola) Florent Audibert (cello) François Dumont (piano)Composer: LaloThis disc interlaces serious works such as the experimental two-movement Piano Quintet of 1862–3 (reconstructed by Dorian Lamotte and here ...
