All Review articles – Page 157
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ReviewMendelssohn: Piano Trios no.1 in D minor op.49 & no.2 in C minor op.66. Schumann: Studien für den Pedal-Flügel op.56 (arr. Kirchner)
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Fire and lyricism characterise performances of Mendelssohn’s triosMusicians: Shaham–Erez–Wallfisch TrioComposer: Mendelssohn, Schumann (arr. Kirchner)For their recording debut as a trio, the cellist Raphael Wallfisch joins the long-established duo partnership of violinist Hagai Shaham and pianist Aron Erez in two of Mendelssohn’s most ...
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ReviewThe Soviet Experience Vol.2. Shostakovich: String Quartets nos.1–4. Prokofiev: String Quartet no.2
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A rewarding second volume in an ongoing Shostakovich cycleMusicians: Pacifica QuartetComposer: Shostakovich, Prokofiev The Pacifica Quartet launched its Soviet Experience series, a sort of complete-Shostakovich-plus-one, with the fifth to eighth quartets and Miaskovsky’s 13th. In this second ...
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ReviewFive-Stringed Tenor Viola. Schubert: Sonata A minor D821 ‘Arpeggione’. Bach: Cello Suite no.6 BWV1012. Taneyev: Trio op.31
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A largely successful experiment in recreating a niche instrumentMusicians: Thomas Riebl (tenor viola) Erich Höbarth (violin) Predrag Katanic (viola) Mari Kato (piano)Composer: Schubert, Bach, Taneyev Thomas Riebl, viola professor at the Universität Mozarteum Salzburg, loves Schubert’s ‘Arpeggione’ Sonata so ...
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ReviewVirtuoso Cello. Paganini: Moses Variations. Brahms: Hungarian Dance no.5. Sarasate: Zigeunerweisen op.20, Carmen Fantasy op.25. Wieniawski: Scherzo–tarantelle op.16. Monti: Czardas. Bazzini: The Round
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A disappointing recital of violin showpieces transferred to celloMusicians: Seeli Toivio (cello) Kalle Toivio (Piano)Composer: Paganini, Brahms, Sarasate, Wieniawski, Monti, BazziniThere is every reason for cellists to look towards the violin repertoire as a means of expanding their musical horizons, but some ...
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ReviewNeapolitan Cello Concertos. Leo: Cello Concerto in D minor. Fiorenza: Cello Concerto in B flat major, Sinfonia. Majo: Cello Concerto in F major. Sollima: Fecit Neap. 17..
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Techniques old and new come together on a disc of Baroque concertosMusicians: Giovanni Sollima (cello) I Turchini/Antonio FlorioComposer: Leo, Fiorenza, Majo, Sollima Giovanni Sollima is the spirited, dexterous soloist in three Baroque Neapolitan cello concertos, in performances that unashamedly ...
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ReviewChopin: Cello Sonata in G minor op.65. Rachmaninoff: Cello Sonata in G minor op.19
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Chalk and cheese in a coupling of Romantic warhorsesMusicians: Jeffrey Noel Lastrapes (cello) Constance Carroll (piano) Composer: Chopin, Rachmaninoff Rachmaninoff fares better in the hands of Jeffrey Noel Lastrapes than Chopin, whose elegant phrases sound overloaded with emotion in ...
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ReviewSprezzatura. Chihara: Viola Sonata. Siskind: Etwas für Bratsche (etwas rasch!). Britten: Lachrymae op.48. Hindemith: Viola Sonata (1939)
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A disc that lives up to its name in making everything sound effortlessMusicians: Shelly Tramposh (viola) Cullan Bryant (piano)Composer: Chihara, Siskind, Britten, HindemithA term taken from Renaissance Italy’s courtly etiquette, sprezzatura is the art of making whatever you do appear easy. I ...
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ReviewBuxtehude: Trio Sonatas op.2 BuxWV259—65
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Spontaneous-sounding accounts of a varied set of trio sonatasMusicians: Catherine Manson (violin) Paolo Pandolfo (viola da gamba) Ton Koopman (harpsichord/organ) Mike Fentross (lute)Composer: Buxtehude This latest release in Challenge Classics’s Buxtehude Opera Omnia project comprises the seven trio sonatas ...
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ReviewViolin Concertos from Dresden. Pisendel: Concerto in G major. J.F. Fasch: Concerto in D major FWV L:D8. Handel: Trio Sonata in F major HWV392 (arr. Pisendel). Telemann: Concerto in B flat major TWV51:
THE STRAD RECOMMENDSThe Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Athletic accounts of Baroque concertosMusicians: Johannes Pramsohler (violin) International Baroque PlayersComposer: Pisendel, J.F. Fasch, Handel (arr. Pisendel), Telemann, HeinichenThis debut disc for both violinist Johannes Pramsohler and the period-instrument International Baroque Players explores concertos by 17th-century German composers associated with ...
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ReviewRococo Cello Variations. Beethoven: Variations on ‘Bei Männern’ WoO46, Variations on ‘Ein Mädchen oder Weibchen’ op.66. Gemrot: Ludwigsgruss, Variations on a Theme of Dvorák. Martinu: Variations on a
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A worthwhile exploration of cello variations let down by poor soundMusicians: Jeremy Findlay (cello) Per Rundberg (piano)Composer: Beethoven, Gemrot, MartinuThe concept of recording cello variations written across three centuries makes for interesting listening, and reveals the extent to which composers have progressively ...
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ReviewWright: Violin Concerto (‘And then there was silence…’)*, Momentum*. Vaughan Williams: Symphony no.5 in D major†
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A sensitive account of a new, commemorative concertoMusicians: Fenella Humphreys* (violin) Christopher Wilson* (tenor) Royal Scottish National Orchestra*, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra† /MartinuYatesComposer: Wright, Vaughan Williams Composed in memory of his violinist wife Ruth, who died of cancer in 2009, ...
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ReviewSchubert: String Quartets in A minor D804 ‘Rosamunde’ and D minor D810 ‘Death and the Maiden’
THE STRAD RECOMMENDSThe Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Compelling coupling of two of Schubert’s best-known quartetsMusicians: Wihan QuartetComposer: Schubert Schubert remains one of the most elusive of pre-Romantic composers, not least in his mature string quartets. Emphasise the Classicist side of his nature and you ...
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ReviewFratres. Stravinsky: Suite d’après des thèmes, fragments et morecaux de Giambattista Pergolesi. Dallapiccola: Tartiniana seconda. Reger: Suite in the Old Style op.93. Pärt: Fratres. Schnittke: Suite i
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A recital of new-meets-old music that needs more gutsinessMusicians: Szymon Krzeszowiec (violin) Niklas Sivelöv (piano)Composer: Stravinsky, Dallapiccola, Reger, Pärt, SchnittkeIt might have been a mistake for Polish violinist Szymon Krzeszowiec, leader of the Silesian Quartet and professor at Katowice’s Szymanowski Academy, to ...
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ReviewReverie. Bottesini: Tarantella, Melodia, Allegretto capriccio, Elegia in D major, Capriccio di bravura, Introduzione e Gavotta, Grande allegro di concerto alla Mendelssohn, Reverie
THE STRAD RECOMMENDSThe Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Subtlety and fireworks from a master bassistMusicians: Knut Erik Sundquist (double bass) Nils Anders Mortensen (piano)Composer: Bottesini This disc’s booklet relates how in 1978 the 16-year-old Norwegian Knut Erik Sundquist bought a Bottesini LP featuring Ludwig Streicher ...
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ReviewWarning: May Cause Mood Swings
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A rather too uptight collection of string arrangementsMusicians: Saint Michael TrioComposer: Various Covers of everything from Ennio Morricone and Led Zeppelin to Gershwin via Stevie Wonder explain the album title here. But despite the variety of repertoire, the mood doesn’t ...
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ReviewPfitzner: Cello Concerto in G major. Mayer: Probhanda, Ragamalas
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: An unusual coupling of late Romanticism and Indian ragas has mixed resultsMusicians: Rohan de Saram (cello) Druvi de Saram (piano) John Mayer (tanpura) Netherlands Radio Orchestra/Bohumil GregorComposer: Pfitzner, Mayer If there’s a link between the diverse works on this ...
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ReviewBrahms: Cello Sonatas no.1 in E minor op.38 & no.1 in F major op.99
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A disappointing coupling of two key works from a young cellistMusicians: Laura Buruiana (cello) Matei Varga (piano)Composer: Brahms Performers who record such well-known repertoire as the Brahms cello sonatas at the start of their career should be certain that ...
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ReviewBall: Cello Concerto no.1*, Song Without Words† , Roundelay† , Close of the Day† , Folksong Arrangements† , For Stjepan
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Unashamedly tuneful music played by a young star of the celloMusicians: Stjepan Hauser (cello) Yoko Misumi† (piano) Emerald Concert Orchestra/Christopher Ball*Composer: Ball The Croatian cellist Stjepan Hauser has become something of a celebrity, appearing as one half ...
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ReviewDe Machy: Suites no.1 in D minor, no.4 in G major, no.5 in D minor & no.8 in A major from Pièces de violle (1685)
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: Vindication for the work of a 17th-century French viol player and composerMusicians: Paolo Pandolfo (viola da gamba)Composer: De MachyPaolo Pandolfo believes that scholars have grossly underestimated de Machy’s influence on his contemporaries and successors. He aims to set the record straight with ...
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ReviewAffettuoso. Piani: Violin Sonatas op.1 no.2 in E minor, no.4 in G major, no.8 in B minor & no.10 in D major. Geminiani: Violin Sonatas op.1 no.7 in C minor & no.8 in B minor. Handel: Violin Sonata in
The Strad Issue: January 2012Description: A fast and furious approach to Baroque sonatas has gains and lossesMusicians: Emilio Percan (Baroque violin) Oriol Aymat Fusté (Baroque cello) Luca Quintavalle (harpsichord)Composer: Piani, Geminiani, HandelCaptured in a clear and resonant recording, Emilio Percan’s programme of Baroque repertoire is loosely connected ...
