As adjectives go,
a word like "best" can be particularly unforgiving. Webster's
tells us that it means "excelling all others," which by definition
makes the "others," well, not quite good enough. Still, end-of-the-year
best-of-the-year lists do help to spotlight those things—in this
case, recordings of string music—that prove especially noteworthy.
But let's clarify one thing: The recording industry issues nearly 26,000
titles each year, including hundreds of string-related CDs—orchestral,
chamber music, jazz, experimental, world, blues, pop, rock, bluegrass,
and heck, even hip-hop—that receive review consideration. Many of
those "others" are well-deserving of praise, yet sometimes remain
unsung for lack of space in
these pages.
Given the opportunity this
year, I would have included in-depth reviews of such stunning
recent releases as the Harmonie Ensemble/New York's fine recordings
of Aaron Copland's obscure Two Ballads for Violin & Piano, and Elegies
for Violin & Viola (Bridge, 9145), featuring violinist Eugene Drucker
and violist Lawrence Dutton of the Emerson Quartet. Or Eleni Karaindrou's
absolutely haunting score to the film The Weeping Meadow (ECM,
1855), with La Camerata, Athens, and soloists Renato Ripo (cello), Sergiu
Natasa (violin), and Angelos Repapis (bass). Or the frisky fiddling
of Carolyn Dutton, who can be heard on the Hot Club of Naptown's alluring
All Swings Considered (www.hotclubofnaptown.com).
So just look at the best
of list as a way for frequent Strings contributors to share a few of
the many outstanding recordings that stood the test of time, so to speak,
throughout a yearlong deluge of shiny little discs into which many talented
and creative string players poured their hearts and souls.
—The
Editor
GREG
CAHILL
The Russian Seasons
Gidon Kremer, violin
and music director; Julia Korpacheva, soprano; Kremerata Baltica, string
orchestra. (Nonesuch, 79568)
On this extraordinary
disc, Kremer has commissioned Leonid Desyatnikov (b. 1955) and Alexander
Raskatov (b. 1953) to create new works based on the global time theme.
The texts and melodies of the collection Traditional Music from the
Russian Lake District serve as the foundation for the dozen movements
of Desyatnikov's The Russian Seasons, which is scored for string
orchestra with obbligato solo violin and a solo female voice. The work
is inspired by the Russian Orthodox calendar of religious events rather
than the seasonal cycle of nature. The music is multifaceted and marvelously
imaginative.
Boccherini Cello Quintets–2
Vanbrugh Quartet
(Gregory Ellis and Keith Pascoe, violins; Simon Aspell, viola; and Christopher
Marwood, cello) with Richard Lester, cello. (Hyperion, 67383)
With the exception
of the last movement of Luigi Boccherini's Quintet in C major, Op. 28,
No. 4 (G310), the buoyant rondo familiar to so many young cellists,
none of these four works had ever been recorded. The other quintets
are C major (Op. 42, No. 2), B minor (Op. 42, No. 3), and D major (Op.
43, No. 2). And what a discovery! Boccherini (1743–1805) has languished
for centuries in the shadows of Mozart, Haydn, and Vivaldi. In recording
these striking and often stunningly beautiful works the Vanbrugh Quartet
and Richard Lester (playing the first-cello parts) take a giant step
toward righting that wrong. The graceful Grave of the Quintet in C major
(Op. 28, No. 4) alone is worth the price of admission.
String Quartets Nos. 7
and 10 by Ernst Toch
Buchberger Quartet:
Hubert Buchberger and Julia Greve, violins; Joachim Etzel, viola; and
Helmut Sohler, cello. (CPO, 97752)
Mozart plays a significant
role on the Toch quartets that bookend the absolutely sweet four-minute
miniature Dedication, composed by Toch for his daughter's wedding. On
this vibrant recording, the Buchberger Quartet—all former chamber
students at the Academy of Music in Frankfurt and together since 1974—offer
String Quartet No. 7, Op. 15, believed to be Toch's earliest extant
work (and the work that garnered the Mozart Prize), and String Quartet
No. 10, Op. 28, penned for his cousin Hans Bass in gratitude for the
gift of a complete edition of Mozart's works. The latter quartet, written
nearly 20 years after the first, is the marvelously textured quartet
that brought Toch to international attention. The Buchbergers bring
tremendous sensitivity to these recordings, especially on the tenth
quartet's achingly beautiful 13-minute adagio.
Cape Breton Fiddle and
Piano Music
The Beaton Family
of Mabou. (Smithsonian Folkways, 40507)
A jittery excitability
radiates from the ebullient music found on the second volume of the
Smithsonian's new Cape Breton series. Fiddler Kinnon Beaton, his pianist
wife Bettie, and their kin kick up their heels on this 16-track collection
of strathspeys, jigs, and reels that blend traditional Scottish dance
rhythms with syncopated piano accompaniments. One highlight: a medley
featuring four fiddlers playing in unison to step dancers and the beat
of a pair of pounding pianos—a string-driven wall of sound that
must be heard to be believed.
Epilogue
Miró Quartet
(Daniel Ching and Sandy Yamamoto, violins; John Largess, viola; and
Joshua Gindelle, cello) with Matt Haimovitz, cello. (Oxingale, 2006)
These pieces share
a common bond as the last string works by a pair of great composers
steeped in sorrow. The Mendelssohn String Quartet in F Minor, Op. 80,
is a staple in the quartet repertoire. The Miró Quartet draws
on the boundless sadness
and beauty of Mendelssohn's piece–an ode to the composer's dead
sister and his last complete score before succumbing to grief within
weeks of its completion—at times lending the allegro-molto finale
a characteristic rawness that some critics have mistaken for youthful
indiscretion. The Schubert String Quintet in C Major, D 956, Op. Post.
163, is equally marvelous. During his final days, and wracked with delirium,
Schubert crafted two works as part of a song cycle he called "Schwanengesang"
(literally, his swansong): a trio for soprano, clarinet, and piano;
and this stunningly beautiful quintet for string quartet plus cello.
This recording captures the Miró at its best with the talented
cellist Matt Haimovitz in tow.
EDITH
EISLER
Brahms: Cello Sonatas;
Bruch: Kol Nidrei
Jacqueline du Pré, cello, Daniel Barenboim, piano and conductor,
Israel Philharmonic. Includes a DVD of du Pré. (EMI Classics,
5 57750 0)
Recorded when the
players were in their 20s, this is a breath- and heart-stopping disc.
Only the greatest artists can project such youthful emotional abandon,
such freedom, exuberance, ardor, and spontaneity. Du Pré's tone
is warm, pure, intense, concentrated, and nuanced. Barenboim matches
it perfectly; balance and ensemble are uncanny.
Brahms: Piano Trios
Nicholas Angelich, piano; Renaud Capuçon, violin; and Gautier
Capuçon, cello. (Virgin Classics, 545653 2 8)
In
our speed-obsessed age, these leisurely, expansive performances inspire
grateful relief. Technically and tonally wonderful, fraternally unanimous,
the players take time for elegant phrasing and transitions; combining
power and lyricism, they bring out mood and character with romantic
ardor, freedom, and inward expressiveness.
Bartók: Violin
Sonatas
Christian Tetzlaff, violin; and Leif Ove Andsnes, piano. (Virgin Classics,
7243 5 45668 2)
Surely one of the
best performances of these formidable masterpieces. Tetzlaff brings
to them a pure, beautiful, variable, expressive tone, with stunning
virtuosity, a sure grasp of structure and style, and an extraordinary
affinity for their idiomatic rhythm, their changing moods, and character.
Andsnes is an exemplary collaborator.
Josef Suk: Piano Quartet,
Piano Quintet, Four Pieces for Violin and Piano
The Nash Ensemble. (Hyperion, CDA67448)
Dvorák's pupil
and son-in-law, Suk was an excellent composer though sadly neglected
outside his native Czechoslovakia. These early works are masterfully
written, romantic but original, diverse in texture, character, and expression.
The English musicians display extraordinary affinity for their style
and idiom, and surmount their demanding instrumental challenges easily.
Haydn: The Seven Last
Words of the Savior on the Cross
Emerson String Quartet. (Deutsche Grammophon, B0002053-02)
Sustaining interest
through eight slow movements is not easy, but the Emerson succeeds brilliantly;
indeed, the quartet includes a ninth movement the members found in Haydn's
choral version. The playing is transparent, warm, and expressive, evoking
both the work's agony and resignation and its serene promise of Heaven.
The final "Earthquake," is very effective even without the
original's trumpets and timpani.
ROBERT
MOON
Alan Bush: Chamber Music
Quartet for Piano and Strings; Phantasy for Violin and Piano; Sonata
for Cello and Piano; Three Contrapuntal Studies for Violin and Viola.
London Piano Quartet. (Dutton, CDLX 7130)
These works display
a rich contrapuntal lyricism, modal harmonies, and a warmth of expression
that is convincing and often moving. There is a sense of deep belief
in the faith of music's powers to uplift in Alan Bush's music. A wonderful
tribute to a forgotten English composer.
Shostakovich: Piano Trios
Nos. 1 and 2
Copland Piano Trio
Trio Wanderer. (Harmonia Mundi, HMC 901825)
Trio Wanderer emphasizes
the grim, hopeless emotional terrain of the second trio (Op. 67) and
in the process penetrates the darkest angst of the Russian soul. The
Copland performance mirrors the despair of the Shostakovich. These performances
are passionate, intense, and executed with precision.
Music at Menlo Live: 2003
Artist Series
Schubert: Violin Sonatina D.385. Phillip Setzer, violin, Gilbert Kalish,
piano. Schumann: Piano Quartet, Op. 47. Jorja Fleezanis, violin; Geraldine
Walther, viola; David Finckel, cello; Kalish, piano. Debussy: Cello
Sonata. Carter Brey, cello; Kalish, piano. Stravinsky: Suite from A
Soldier's Tale. Anthony McGill, clarinet; Fleezanis, violin; Kalish,
piano. Harbison: November 19, 1828. Fleezanis, violin; Walther, viola;
Brey, cello; Kalish, piano. Rorem: Aftermath. Nathaniel Webster, baritone;
Ani Kavafian, violin; Finckel, cello; Kalish, piano. (www.musicatmenlo.org).
David
Finckel and Wu Han have fashioned a brilliant chamber-music festival
in the San Francisco Bay Area and these performances demonstrate how
exciting live music making can be. The Schumann Piano Quartet is scintillating
and radiant and the Harbison and Rorem represent the best of 20th-century
chamber works. Audiophile-quality sound.
Lalo: Symphonie Espagnole;
Ravel: Tzigane; Saint-Saëns: Havanaise; Sarasate: Carmen Fantasy.
Howard Zhang, violin; with Takuo Yuasa conducting the Nicolaus Esterhazy
Sinfonia. (Naxos, 8.555093)
The 19-year-old 2001
Irving Klein winner gives a stunning and idiomatic performance of the
Lalo and shows his virtuosity in the Ravel, Saint-Saëns, and Sarasate
showpieces. Another low-budget winner from Naxos.
Prokofiev: Sinfonia Concertante;
Sonata for Cello and Piano
Han-Na Chang, cello; and Antonio Pappano, piano; with Antonio Pappano
conducting the London Symphony Orchestra. (EMI 72435574382)
The underrated Sinfonia
Concertante deserves the first-rate performance in brilliant sound that
Han-Na Chang and Antonio Pappano and the London Symphony provide. The
Sonata receives a larger-than-life recording and performance with the
duo probing the panoply of emotions in this gorgeous work with aplomb.
JAMES
REEL
Lera Auerbach: Twenty-four
Preludes for Violin and Piano, Op. 46; T'filah (Prayer); Postlude.
Vadim Gluzman, violin; Angela Yoffe, piano. (Bis, 1242)
Some of the most compelling,
accessible new music this year has come from Lera Auerbach. Her Twenty-Four
Preludes are haunted and sometimes rather addled, calling to mind Shostakovich
without ever sounding derivative. Violinist Vadim Gluzman and pianist
Angela Yoffe deliver dynamic, emotionally harrowing accounts of music
that deserves to enter the standard repertoire immediately.
Bach: Violin Concertos;
Concerto for Two Violins; Concerto for Oboe and Violin.
Hilary Hahn, violin; with Jeffrey Kahane conducting the Los Angeles
Chamber Orchestra. (Deutsche Grammophon, 474 639-2; hybrid SACD)
The
multichannel surround-sound version of Hilary Hahn's first recording
for Deutsche Grammophon brings greater sonic richness to a release that
was already superb for its musical values. Hahn balances propulsive
fast movements with eloquent slow ones; she seems to understand better
than many other soloists today how to "bounce" a rhythm without
overstressing the beat, and how to establish fleet tempos without sounding
rushed. The sound is enveloping in an entirely natural way, with Hahn
(and, in two concertos, her fellow soloists) situated with great precision
on the stage. Andrew Manze's slightly earlier recording is the preferred
surround-sound disc for period-instrument enthusiasts, but Hahn and
company offer the version of choice for general listeners.
Bach: Orchestral Suites
Martin Pearlman conducting Boston Baroque. (Telarc, 60619; hybrid SACD)
This is simply the
most desirable version of the Bach orchestral suites on the market.
Martin Pearlman and Boston Baroque play stylishly, with a fine balance
of grace and ebullience. The character of each movement is perfectly
judged, and the orchestra demonstrates superb musicianship and about
the most appealing tone you're liable to hear from a period-instrument
band. And in Telarc's multichannel surround sound, the orchestra enjoys
great presence, natural balance, and breadth and depth to its soundstage.
This is an essential addition to every collection, large and small.
Biber: The Rosary Sonatas
Andrew Manze, violin; Richard Egarr, organ and harpsichord. (Harmonia
Mundi, USA 907321-22)
Andrew Manze is one
of our most flamboyant Baroque violinists, yet he tempers his sensational
virtuosity and musical imagination with superb taste. Biber's meditative
yet challenging "Rosary" Sonatas provide a perfect showcase
for Manze's range. He performs with his typical freedom and vigor, yet
his detailed and sensitive phrasing always serves the music, not his
own ego. The set concludes with a succinct and illuminating discussion/
demonstration of scordatura, the retuning system that gives each of
these odd, compelling sonatas its own peculiar color.
Beethoven: The Nine Symphonies
Herbert von Karajan conducting the Berlin Philharmonic. (Deutsche Grammophon,
474 601/606-2; hybrid SACD)
Since its 1963 release,
Karajan's first (and best) Beethoven cycle for DG has been a top recommendation
to anyone seeking a first-rate reference set. The recordings predate
Karajan's obsession with aural creaminess; true, you can hear inklings
of his preference for a string-and horn-centered sound, with the winds,
brass, and timpani fairly submerged except in the most highly exposed
passages, but this is not taken to extremes. The performances are mostly
propulsive, with sharp accents, extremely clear articulation, and a
general avoidance of rubato (not to mention repeats). Except for a bit
of harsh violin sound in the scherzo of the First Symphony, the Berlin
Philharmonic's playing is highly polished without being impersonal.
As for the audio quality of this new SACD two-channel mastering, the
overall sound is full, the orchestral positioning reasonably deep. This
reissue will ensure that Karajan's first DG Beethoven cycle will remain
a standard by which others are judged.
LAURENCE
VITTES
Short Tales for a Viol
Vittorio Ghielmi, treble viol, tenor viol, lyra viol, bass viol. (Winter
& Winter, 910 085-2)
The 36-year-old Italian
virtuoso Vittorio Ghielmi continues his series of innovative recordings
(including Pièces de Caractère for the Opus 111
label and Bagpipes From Hell) with a dazzling demonstration of
what the treble viol and three of its cousins can do. Whether it's the
high jinks of William Corkine's "Whoope doe me" or the profound
beauties of a Tobias Hume piece, this collection of 17th-century English
music is a must for aficionados and aspiring students alike. Beautiful
sound with an exciting edge to it, good notes and luxury packaging.
Geminiani 12 Concerti
Grossi (composti sull'opera V d'Arcangelo Corelli)
Chiara Banchini conducting Ensemble 415. (Zig-Zag Territoires, ZZT 040301)
Chiara
Banchini and her hand-picked Ensemble 415 splendidly meet the competition
in a new recording of Francesco Geminiani's transcriptions of Corelli's
seminal Op. 5 violin sonatas. The playing on this two-CD set–with
its discrete ornamentation and catlike sense of motion in the fast movements
and sinuous allure in the slow–is less edgy than Andrew Manze's
recording with the Academy of Ancient Music. It also is an object lesson
in how effectively period instruments can be played without having to
adopt an authentic attitude. The liner notes by Banchini and Enrico
Careri illuminate not only the music but the recording process itself.
The sound is gorgeous, and the beautiful presentation is enhanced by
original paintings by Anne Peultier.
Alexander Glazunov String
Quartets Vol. 1: Nos. 3 & 5
Utrecht String Quartet. (Dabringhaus & Grimm, MDG 603 1236-2)
This
enterprising Dutch quartet, which has recorded a diverse repertoire
from Boccherini and Schubert to Arthur Lourié and Henriette Bosmans,
takes off on a complete recording of Alexander Glazunov's seven quartets,
composed over a 50-year span beginning in 1880. Although it is at once
obvious that the two works on this first installment are extremely well
made–with wonderful sonorities and a sense of cosmopolitan but
identifiably Russian character and occasional folkish delights–as
they go along, it is equally clear that the thought and inspiration
are deeply compelling. The sound from the Tonmeisters at Dabringhaus
& Grimm is rich and detailed, but the fussy liner notes could use
some improvement.
Beethoven: String Trios
Op. 9
Jacques Thibaud String Trio. (Audite, 97-508)
There
is no shortage of great recordings of these works, both by dedicated
string trios and by superstar pickup groups, but the Jacques Thibaud
Trio of Berlin strives for something of a higher magnitude. Signaled
by violinist Burkhard Maiss' magnificent sweep into the Allegro of No.
1, the Trio's awesome musical equipment (its technique is beyond reproach),
whether it's the use of startlingly wide dynamic contrasts to set off
sections later in the same movement, or the rhetorical breadth of the
slow movement of No. 2 (as just a few examples), shows signs of a commitment
to explore rarely heard dimensions of the music's power and reach. Unfortunately,
the side is let down by the rough sound of the recording.
Yoshimatsu: Cello Concerto
"Centaurus Unit"; The Age of Birds, Chikap
Peter Dixon, cello; with Sachio Fujioka conducting the BBC Philharmonic.
(Chandos, CHAN 10202)
Bookended by a pair
of orchestral works, Takashi Yoshimatsu's 33-minute Cello Concerto highlights
the composer's seventh CD on the Chandos label. It is an episodic technicolor
extravaganza, with dream sequences and tour de force passages both bowed
and plucked, revealing a rich, large-scale imagination and a notion
of the cello as a solo instrument that can rival the violin. The title
refers to the composer's vision of a mythical beast, half human, half
horse (er, cello), musically influenced by Bach, Dvoràk, the
Japanese lute, Buddhist chanting, the Koran, and Kenji Miyazawa's fairy
tale, Gorsch, the Cellist. Peter Dixon, its dedicatee and principal
of the BBC Philharmonic, plays with the surpassing brilliance and command
of a superstar. Chandos' exciting, full-range sound captures the beauty
and majesty of the music.
