Wen Ma: Chopin (arr. Glazunov), Franck

The Strad Issue: July 2026

Description: Two Romantic warhorses fail to take off

Musicians: Wen Ma (cello) Zijian Wei (piano)

Works: Chopin: Cello Sonata; Étude op.25 no.7 (arr. Glazunov). Franck: Violin Sonata (arr. cello)

Catalogue number: NAXOS 970410

Two stalwarts of the Romantic cello repertoire feature here, and naturally the catalogue boasts plenty of choice. The one rarity on this recording is Glazunov’s idiomatic arrangement of Chopin’s C sharp minor Etude, which is given a pleasing searingly intense and expressive rendition.

Wen Ma projects a clear and strong tone, and brings a lyrical sweep to the invention. But her range of timbres and dynamics is limited compared to some other performers. The main issue here, however, is the piano playing. With so many alternative versions featuring top international soloists, it’s easy to forget that the piano parts in both the Chopin and Franck are incredibly challenging and require clearly articulated and shaped passagework to make a real impact. Here, unfortunately, Zijian Wei tends to overuse the pedal, thereby causing some densely written passages, for example in the second movement of the Franck, to sound congested. A further hindrance is the recording quality, which is far too resonant.

Wen Ma displays impressive tonal strength, consistently shaping the melodic line persuasively, with a fluid conception of the varying moods explored in each sonata. But this could never be regarded as a benchmark recording, given the issues noted above.

JOANNE TALBOT