Recording reviews – Page 157
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ReviewVanhal: Cello Concertos in C major, A major & C major
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Generally solid accounts of newly rediscovered Classical concertosMusicians: Péter Szabó (cello/conductor) Sinfonietta PannonicaComposer: VanhalPéter Szabó here disseminates more outcomes from his enterprising explorations of library and museum shelves, presenting three world premiere recordings of cello concertos by Vanhal, based on manuscript sources. ...
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ReviewBeethoven: Cello Sonatas op.5 no.1 in F major & no.2 in G minor, Variations on Mozart’s ‘Ein Mädchen oder Weibchen’ op.66, Variations on Handel’s ‘See the conqu’ring hero comes’ WoO45
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Imaginative period-instrument accounts of familiar musicMusicians: Rainer Zipperling (cello) Boyan Vodenitcharov (fortepiano)Composer: Beethoven These performances are infused with tremendous spirit and vivid dynamic colour, lending genuine excitement to some of the most frequently recorded music in the cello repertoire. ...
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ReviewBeethoven: String Quartet in F minor op.95 ‘Serioso’. Schubert: String Quartet in D minor D810 ‘Death and the Maiden’
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Blistering playing from a young Italian ensembleMusicians: Prometeo QuartetComposer: Beethoven & SchubertThe DVD version of this two-in-one release has the quartet surrounded by columns and microphones, attended by a small Classical torso. It also has short interviews with the composer Salvatore Sciarrino ...
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ReviewSchubert: Violin Sonatas in D major D384, A minor D385, G minor D408 & A major D574
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A successful start to a historically informed Schubert cycleMusicians: Jacqueline Ross (violin) Maggie Cole (fortepiano)Composer: Schubert Schubert’s three op.137 sonatas were downgraded to sonatinas after his death. Here they have their dignity restored, but are performed with a lighter touch than many ...
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ReviewBrahms By Arrangement Vol.1. Brahms: String Quintet in F minor op.34, String Quintet in B minor op.115
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Mixed results on a disc of familiar Brahms in rarer guisesMusicians: Zebra Trio, Krysia Osostowicz (violin) James Boyd (viola) Richard Lester (cello)Composer: Brahms For Brahms enthusiasts, the major draw of this release will be Finnish cellist Anssi Karttunen’s ...
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ReviewBrahms: Violin Sonatas nos.1–3
THE STRAD RECOMMENDSThe Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Refreshingly intimate Brahms from a refined playerMusicians: Anthony Marwood (violin) Aleksandar Madžar (piano)Composer: BrahmsAnthony Marwood’s Brahms is like no other. The centralist viewpoint, familiar from countless recordings, is that these sonatas are chamber music writ large, requiring generous quantities of ...
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ReviewBruch: Violin Concerto no.1 in G minor op.26. Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E minor op.64. Beethoven: Romances nos.1 & 2
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A revitalising take on a classic concerto couplingMusicians: Philippe Quint (violin) Orquesta Sinfónica de Mineria/Carlos Miguel PrietoComposer: Bruch, Mendelssohn, Beethoven Bruch’s G minor Concerto cries out for espressivo intensity and Philippe Quint delivers it in spades. Like Isaac Stern ...
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ReviewBy Footpath and Stile. Finzi: By Footpath and Stile op.2, Romance op.11, Prelude, Interlude op.21, Elegy op.22, Five Bagatelles op.23
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A notable recording debut for a young British string quartetMusicians: Finzi Quartet, Marcus Farnsworth (baritone) Robert Plane (clarinet) Ruth Bolister (oboe)Composer: Finzi Prizewinner at the 2010 Royal Over-Seas League Competition, the Finzi Quartet has turned to its namesake for ...
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ReviewConcertos for Strings with Percussion Orchestra. Sekhon: Lou*. Saunders Smith: Nightshade† . Liptak Concerto for viola and percussion‡. Timpson: Dongxidongxi¶. D. Adams: Camouflage**
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Beautifully crafted accounts of new string concertosMusicians: Carolyn Stuart* (violin) John Graham† (viola) Scott Kluksdahl‡ (cello) Dee Moses¶ (double bass) Haiqiong Deng** (zheng) McCormick Percussion Group/Robert McCormickComposer: Sekhon, Saunders Smith, Liptak, Timpson, D. Adams There’s a small ...
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ReviewChausson: Concert in D major op.21, Poème op.25
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A highlight of French Romanticism that could benefit from deeper insightMusicians: Bruno Monteiro (violin) Jõao Paulo Santos (piano) Lopes-Graça QuartetComposer: ChaussonCompleted in 1892, Chausson’s Concert is a unique attempt at creating a score of symphonic proportions for just six musicians, with its ...
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ReviewSchubert: String Quartets in A minor D804 ‘Rosamunde’, D minor D810 ‘Death and the Maiden’ & G major D887
THE STRAD RECOMMENDSThe Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Benchmark recordings of Schubert masterpiecesMusicians: Artemis QuartetComposer: SchubertThese are remarkable performances, constantly gripping, seductive, strong and satisfying. The Artemis palette is vast, and the players can turn from raw power to silky tenderness in an instant. Melodic lines are vividly ...
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ReviewSilence, on joue! A Time For Us. Film themes by Rota, Williams, Barry, Morricone, Shore, Horner, Iglesias, Gardel/Rodríguez, Hisaishi, Korngold, Arlen, Chaplin, Dompierre & Myers
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Limited ambition in a collection of film themes arranged for stringsMusicians: Angèle Dubeau (violin) La PietÁ Composer: Rota, Williams, Barry, Morricone, Shore, Horner, Iglesias, Gardel/Rodríguez, Hisaishi, Korngold, Arlen, Chaplin, Dompierre & MyersThere’s a hint of self-indulgence in ...
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ReviewTchaikovsky: Violin Concerto. Nielsen: Violin Concerto
The Strad Issue: Sepember 2012Description: Nimbleness and muscularity from a rising Norwegian star of the violinMusicians: Vilde Frang (violin) Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra/Eivind Gullberg JensenComposer: Tchaikovsky, Nielsen The concertos of Tchaikovsky and Nielsen are not an obvious coupling, but the young Norwegian violinist Vilde Frang has established ...
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ReviewTelemann: 12 Fantasies for solo viola TWV40:14—25 (transcr. Kam)
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Historically aware account of a collection for solo violaMusicians: Ori Kam (viola)Composer: Telemann (transcr. Kam) Telemann’s Fantasies, published in 1735, are sometimes thought of as poor cousins to Bach’s slightly earlier unaccompanied violin and cello works, but – although admittedly less ambitious ...
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ReviewThe French Album. Franck: Violin Sonata in A major op.14. Debussy: Cello Sonata in D minor. Fauré: Élégie op.24, Sicilienne op.78, Après un rêve. Offenbach: Les larmes de Jacqueline op.76 no.2
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A promising debut from a young Dutch cellistMusicians: Harriet Krijgh (cello) Kamilla Isanbaeva (piano)Composer: Franck, Debussy, Fauré, OffenbachIn this tried and tested repertoire, Harriet Krijgh gives a fervent account of the Franck Violin Sonata in its cello guise, entirely appropriate to the ...
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ReviewVivaldi: La cetra op.9
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Convincing performance of Vivaldi’s set of twelve violin concertosMusicians: Rachel Podger (violin) Holland Baroque SocietyComposer: Vivaldi The undisputed prowess of this album’s personnel sets up high expectations, and these performances do not disappoint. Here, we have lively and animated ...
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ReviewVoyage musical. Stravinsky: Suite italienne (arr. Dushkin). Bloch: Nigun. Hindemith: Solo Violin Sonata op.31 no.2. Schoenberg: Phantasy. Prokofiev: Cinq mélodies op.35b. Ravel: Tzigane
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: An enjoyable collection of short 20th-century piecesMusicians: Noah Bendix-Balgley (violin) Reiko Hozu (piano)Composer: Stravinsky (arr. Dushkin), Bloch, Hindemith, Schoenberg, Prokofiev, Ravel Concertmaster of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, 28-year-old US violinist Noah Bendix-Balgley here offers a thoughtfully chosen selection of ...
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ReviewDedications... A Life in Music. Works by various composers
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A treasure trove of interesting repertoire from a veteran cellistMusicians: Keith Harvey (cello) Linn Hendry, Peter Pettinger, Meralyn Knight (piano)Composer: Various During his professional career as an orchestral soloist with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, English Chamber Orchestra and ...
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ReviewHaydn: String Quartets op.64 nos.3, 4 & 5
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A disc for those who prefer a light touch in HaydnMusicians: Leipzig QuartetComposer: Haydn The Leipzig Quartet is working its way through Haydn’s quartets in idiosyncratic fashion. It started in 2009 with the Seven Last Words and has since ...
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ReviewJones: ?Chamber Airs for a Violin (and Thorough Bass)
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Well-characterised performance of a mid-17th-century English collectionMusicians: Kreeta-Maria Kentala (violin) Lauri Pulakka (cello) Mitzi Meyerson (harpsichord)Composer: Jones Richard Jones’s eight Chamber Airs are strikingly inventive. Comprising three or four movements, they are essentially Italianate in style, but also incorporate French dance elements ...
