Janine Jansen BEETHOVEN / BRITTEN Violin Concertos

Coupling Beethoven's and Britten's violin concertos was a brilliant idea; both start with timpani tattoos, but the former is much better known, and pairing them together will expose at least some listeners to music they might not ordinarily hear. Taken on their own merits, both violinist Janine Jansen and Die Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen are superb, but bringing them together in the Beethoven concerto was a colossal mistake, for the simple reason that the Dutch violinist and the German orchestra are not playing in remotely the same style. Jansen is a modern violinist who makes tasteful use of the tools of violin playing developed in the 200 years since the concerto was written -- vibrato, glissando, and other tone-enhancing techniques -- while the Bremen musicians eschew nearly all that for the purer style of the composer's own time, albeit on modern instruments. Though individually both Jansen and the Bremen musicians are excellent players, the disjuncture between the styles of the two is unnerving, to say the least. Jansen's technique is fully formed and flashy, while her interpretation is big-boned but lyrical. Led by Paavo Järvi, the orchestra's playing is as tight, sweet, and strong as it is in its series of Beethoven's symphonies. No such problems afflict the Britten concerto since the London Symphony Orchestra is on hand, and the combination is a performance as musical and moving as it is cogent and cohesive. Decca's sound is clear, clean, and transparent, but oddly lacking in depth, warmth, and richness. (James Leonard)

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827)
Violin Concerto in D, Op.61
1) 1. Allegro ma non troppo [22:57]
2) 2. Larghetto - [8:21]
3) 3. Rondo (Allegro) [9:26]
Janine Jansen
Die Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen
Paavo Järvi

Benjamin Britten (1913 - 1976)
Violin Concerto, Op.15
4) 1. Moderato con moto [9:31]
5) 2. Vivace [8:36]
6) 3. Passacaglia; Andante lento [14:29]
Janine Jansen
London Symphony Orchestra
Paavo Järvi


2009 DECCA Records
1 CD DDD
478 2086 4


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Anna Caterina Antonacci ERA LA NOTTE

This unusual sequence of four Italian Renaissance laments was presented as a staged recital, first given this January at Luxembourg in a production by Juliette Deschamps. She also writes for the CD some rhapsodic introductory notes which disdain to do anything so mundane as provide useful information. It would be nice to have some facts about the composers Strozzi and Giramo, for instance. Possibly knowledge of Ariadne's unfortunate circumstances can be taken for granted, but there will surely be many listeners who have become, let's say, a trifle rusty on their Tasso and would appreciate a reminder of who Tancredi and Clorinda were, why they fought each other, and what so surprised Tancredi when towards the end he had a chance to view his opponent more closely (briefly, he was a Crusader, she a Muslim female warrior in male attire).
The four pieces were, apparently, chosen by the singer herself; and one can imagine, given her striking appearance and expressive powers, that the evening would have proved moving and memorable. On records we are of course deprived of the sight. The sound alone is still impressive but not quite to the same degree. Antonacci's voice, though ample, is not now of an outstandingly rich beauty, and its production is not entirely steady. In Ariadne's lament, Carolyn Watkinson in a recording from 1978 shows what a really firm voice sounds like, and Anne Sofie von Otter On her 1998 Lamenti recital is both more even in her method and more expressively inner in style.
The Combattimento suffers from the reduction in such a long narrative piece to a single voice. It is of course a triumph of pictorial writing (and Antonacci and her instrumentalists give a vivid account) but its success is much more assured in a version such as that recorded under Reinhard Goebel where three voices are employed, one apiece for the protagonists and another for the testo or narrator.
The monologues by Barbara Strozzi and Pietro Giramo, while not new to the catalogue, are less well known and, in the event, twice as welcome. Both are strikingly original, and Antonacci is well suited by the exotic vocal twists and turns of the first and by the unnervingly realistic mood-changes of the other. The players from Federico Sardelli's Baroque ensemble Modo Antiquo contribute stylishly and the recorded sound is fine. (John Steane, Gramophone - May 2006)

Claudio Monteverdi (1567 - 1643)
1) Lamento d'Arianna, Lasciatemi morire

Barbara Strozzi (1619 - 1677)

2) Lamento: Lagrime mie, a che vi trattenete

Pietro Antonio Giramo

3) Lamento della pazza: Chi non mi conosce

Claudio Monteverdi

4) Il combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda

Anna Caterina Antonacci

Modo Antiquo

Federico Maria Sardelli

2006 Naïve

1 CD DDD

V 5050

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John Cage 4'33"

«The first performance of John Cage's 4'33" created a scandal. Written in 1952, it is Cage's most notorious composition, his so-called ‹silent piece›. The piece consists of four minutes and thirty-three seconds in which the performer plays nothing. At the premiere some listeners were unaware that they had heard anything at all. It was first performed by the young pianist David Tudor at Woodstock, New York, on August 29, 1952, for an audience supporting the Benefit Artists Welfare Fund – an audience that supported contemporary art.Cage said, ‹People began whispering to one another, and some people began to walk out. They didn't laugh -- they were just irritated when they realized nothing was going to happen, and they haven't fogotten it 30 years later: they're still angry.› To Cage, silence had to be redefined if the concept was to remain viable. He recognized that there was no objective dichotomy between sound and silence, but only between the intent of hearing and that of diverting one's attention to sounds. "The essential meaning of silence is the giving up of intention," he said. This idea marks the most important turning point in his compositional philosophy. He redefined silence as simply the absence of intended sounds, or the turning off of our awareness.»

John Cage

4'33"

1) I. Tacet

2) II. Tacet

3) III. Tacet

1991 The Sound Corporation

1 CD DDD

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Maurizio Pollini BACH The Well-Tempered Clavier I

1722, the date that appears on the autograph of the first book of Das wohltemperierte Clavier (the “clavier", or keyboard of the title being applicable to any number of keyboard instruments) merely marks the end point of a compositional process stretching back years. Evidence of this can be seen in the presence of earlier versions of a dozen or so preludes, alongside the two- and three-part inventions, among other pieces, in the Clavier-Büchlein für Wilhelm Friedemann Bach. In their original form, preludes were free-standing pieces but Bach expanded them to make them more substantial in relation to their accompanying fugues. The title of the autograph, a mixture of German and Latin written in different characters, points both to the methodical nature of the collection and to its dual intention of both educating and pleasing: a practical demonstration in 24 Preludes and Fugues in all the major and minor keys of what a tuning based on a particular temperament was now capable of, the book is meant to serve “for the profit and use of young musicians desiring instruction, and equally for the particular delight of those who are already skilled in this discipline."
Schumann certainly had both aims in mind when he made the recommendation to “let the 'Well-Tempered Clavier' be your daily bread" in his Musikalische Haus- und Lebensregeln, published in 1850, but the two books of The Well-Tempered Clavier were already being held up as a model fifty years previously, and the first three published editions that appeared simultaneously at the beginning of the 19th century were followed by a host of others. Even after Bach's death, the two books continued to be regarded as masterpieces, albeit among a restricted circle, since manuscript copies remained in circulation, like the one that Baron Gottfried van Swieten (who had been the Habsburg imperial ambassador to Berlin) showed to Mozart.
In 1722 Rameau published his Traité de l'harmonie réduite à ses principes naturels, and in the same year Bach completed a work in which he explored all the keys according to the principle of “good" temperament as set out by Andreas Werckmeister (1645-1706). In broad terms, this meant contriving to eliminate the minute differences between the tones and semitones of the natural scale by treating all the semitones in the octave as equal. It is worth remembering that in 1702, before The Well-Tempered Clavier appeared, J. C. F. Fischer had published a collection of twenty preludes and fugues under the title Ariadne musica.
In its complexity and variety of conception, The Well-Tempered Clavier stands as one of the great examples of Bach's striving for completeness, for a grand compendium exploring a wide variety of compositional types. In this case, he chose the simple succession of preludes and fugues, a long-established format (which, for some, already appeared outdated). A number of years before the completion of The Well-Tempered Clavier, for instance, Johann Mattheson (1681-1764) wrote that there was no point in “racking one's brains" (den Kopff zu zerbrechen) constructing fugues. For others, however, it was clear, even at the time, that Bach was here giving students of counterpoint a lesson in practical composition through a series of examples, and at the same time providing a benchmark in the teaching of keyboard players. And many outstanding musicians of later generations found in it the nourishment (Schumann's “daily bread") they required. (Paolo Petazzi)

CD 1:
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750)
Das Wohltemperierte Klavier: Book 1, BWV 846-869
1) Prelude in C major BWV 846 [1:52]
2) Fugue in C major BWV 846 [1:56]
3) Prelude in C minor BWV 847 [1:30]
4) Fugue in C minor BWV 847 [1:40]
5) Prelude in C sharp major BWV 848 [1:13]
6) Fugue in C sharp major BWV 848 [2:14]
7) Prelude in C sharp minor BWV 849 [2:43]
8) Fugue in C sharp minor BWV 849 [4:47]
9) Prelude in D major BWV 850 [1:11]
10) Fugue in D major BWV 850 [1:47]
11) Prelude in D minor BWV 851 [1:25]
12) Fugue in D minor BWV 851 [1:58]
13) Prelude in E flat major BWV 852 [3:58]
14) Fugue in E flat major BWV 852 [1:39]
15) Prelude in D sharp minor/E flat minor BWV 853 [3:24]
16) Fugue in D sharp minor/E flat minor, BWV 853 [5:59]
17) Prelude in E major BWV 854 [1:23]
18) Fugue in E major BWV 854 [1:11]
19) Prelude in E minor BWV 855 [2:18]
20) Fugue in E minor BWV 855 [1:10]
21) Prelude in F major BWV 856 [0:54]
22) Fugue in F major BWV 856 [1:14]
23) Prelude in F minor BWV 857 [2:02]
24) Fugue in F minor BWV 857 [3:57]

CD 2:
1) Prelude in F sharp major BWV 858 [1:15]
2) Fugue in F sharp major BWV 858 [1:52]
3) Prelude in F sharp minor BWV 859 [1:03]
4) Fugue in F sharp minor BWV 859 [3:28]
5) Prelude in G major BWV 860 [0:56]
6) Fugue in G major BWV 860 [2:52]
7) Prelude in G minor BWV 861 [2:00]

8) Fugue in G minor BWV 861 [2:19]
9) Prelude in A flat major BWV 862 [1:33]
10) Fugue in A flat major BWV 862 [2:21]
11) Prelude in A flat minor/G sharp minor BWV 863 [1:33]
12) Fugue in A flat minor/G sharp minor BWV 863 [2:36]
13) Prelude in A major BWV 864 [1:14]
14) Fugue in A major BWV 864 [2:18]
15) Prelude in A minor BWV 865 [1:02]
16) Fugue in A minor BWV 865 [3:47]
17) Prelude in B flat major BWV 866 [1:11]
18) Fugue in B flat major BWV 866 [1:32]
19) Prelude in B flat minor BWV 867 [3:00]
20) Fugue in B flat minor BWV 867 [3:33]
21) Prelude in B major BWV 868 [1:19]
22) Fugue in B major BWV 868 [2:05]
23) Prelude in B minor BWV 869 [5:08]
24) Fugue in B minor BWV 869 [7:03]

Maurizio Pollini

2009 Deutsche Grammophone GmbH, Hamburg

2 Compact Discs DDD

477 8078 6 GH 2

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Anne Gastinel / Pablo Márquez IBÉRICA

ibérica
by Anne Gastinel

I love this country. Spain.
Its colours.
Its perfumes, its warmth, its energy, its lyricism, its pungency, its generosity, its dynamism
its discretion, its pride, its enthusiasm.
Its musicis all of that.
An intoxicating mixture of its paradoxes.
An intense reflection of its soul.
My travels often take me onto its soil; constantly renewed delights.
A desire to share them, today, on this disc, through three tremendous composers.
Cassadó, first of all, whose Suite for solo cello constituted the starting point of this project.
A piece that came back many times to my music-stand; played, replayed, re-practised...
Then the need for me to build a purely Iberian universe around it. That "ibérica" of composers
and pieces full of local colour.
Falla and Granados, then, such faithful "translators" of the alchemy between profundity and
lightness. Sorrow and jubilation. Absolutely indispensable, both of them!
Then we come to the guitar...
A commonplace, to be sure, but how could one imagine Spanish music without it?
And how could one resist the pleasure of discovery, the thought of the marriage of these
ten strings? The renewed pleasure of transcriptions...
The meeting was a flavoursome one.
The voyage was multicoloured.
Pablo, a generous and marvellous musician.
Our celloguitar was born.

April 2009

Manuel de Falla (1876 - 1946)
1) Danza Española No. 1 (La vida breve)

Siete Canciones popuares españolas
2) El paño moruno

3) Seguidilla murciana
4) Asturiana

5) Jota
6) Nana

7) Canción
8) Polo

Gaspar Cassadó (1897 - 1966)
9) Leyenda catalana
10) Catalanesca
11) Canción de Leonardo

Manuel de Falla
12) Danza de la molinera
13) Canción del fuego fatuo

Enrique Granados (1867 - 1916)
14) Intermezzo

Manuel de Falla
15) Danza del molinero

Gaspar Cassadó

Suite

16) Preludio - Fantasía
17) Sardana
18) Intermezzo e danza finale

Enrique Granados

Ocho tonadillas en estilo antiguo
19) El mirar de la maja

Enrique Granados
20) Danza Española No. 5

Ocho tonadillas en estilo antiguo
21) El tra-la-la y el punteado
22) Amor y odio
23) El majo olvidado
24) El majo discreto

25) La maja dolorosa II

26) El majo tímido

27) La maja de Goya

Manuel de Falla

28) Relato del pescador

Anne Gastinel, cello

Pablo Márquez, guitar

2009 naïve

1 CD DDD

V5182

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Mitsuko Uchida BEETHOVEN Piano Sonatas No. 28, Op. 101 & No. 29, Op. 106

It's hard to pin down Mitsuko Uchida's performances of Beethoven's "A major Sonata, Op. 101," and "B flat major Hammerklavier Sonata, Op. 106." Of course, there's no debating her sparkling tone or dazzling technique. Since her first recordings in the mid-'80s, Uchida's pianistic mastery has always been amply evident. What's debatable is Uchida's artistic temperament. She is sometimes intimately lyrical as in the opening "Etwas lebhaft" of the "A major Sonata" and sometimes immensely monumental as in the opening movement of the "B flat major Sonata." She can march irresistibly forward in the central "Lebhaft" of the A major or linger to contemplate the profundities of the central Adagio sostenuto of the "B flat major Sonata." She may bend the bar lines at times in her "B flat major Sonata"'s impetuous Assai vivace Scherzo, ignore them altogether in her "A major Sonata"'s passionate "Langsam und sehnsuchtsvoll," or hammer them home with fingers of steel in her "B flat major Sonata"'s fugal finale. For some listeners, these contradictions may resolve themselves in Uchida's fiery and poetic sensibility; for others, her interpretations may seem willful and perhaps even arbitrary. But whatever one ultimately thinks of her artistic personality, there's no denying the overwhelming power of Uchida's performances, and at least while the disc is playing, her Beethoven sonatas are wholly persuasive. Recorded in spring 2007 in La Salle de Musique, Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, by producer Everett Porter and engineer Sebastian Stein, the sound, the very touch and feel, of Uchida's piano is palpable. (James Leonard)

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827)

Piano Sonata No.28 in A, Op.101

1) 1. Etwas lebhaft und mit der innigsten Empfindung (Allegretto ma non troppo)
2) 2. Lebhaft, marschmäßig (Vivace alla marcia)
3) 3. Langsam und sehnsuchtsvoll (Adagio ma non troppo, con affetto)

Piano Sonata No.29 in B flat, Op.106 -"Hammerklavier"

4) 1. Allegro
5) 2. Scherzo (Assai vivace - Presto - Prestissimo - Tempo I)
6) 3. Adagio sostenuto
7) 4. Largo - Allegro risoluto

Mitsuko Uchida

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Sharon Isbin CHRISTOPHER ROUSE / TAN DUN

Classical guitarist Sharon Isbin is a remarkably versatile performer. Her 20-plus recordings cover a wide range of styles: from Baroque and latin to folk and even jazz-fusion. But more impressive are her efforts to extend the guitar's repertoire through commissioning works by contemporary composers. With this recording, Isbin adds two more premieres to her extensive resume, performing a pair of concertos for guitar and orchestra by Christopher Rouse and Tan Dun. Rouse's work, entitled Concert de Gaudi, takes as inspiration the fantastically surreal work of Barcelona's visionary architect, Antonio Gaudi, and a sense of his eccentric, organic structures inhabits the concerto. A Baltimore native and student of George Crumb, Rouse uses Spanish musical idioms as points of reference in his work -- such as the opening flamenco flourish -- and subjects them to distortion and bending along the way, creating a dreamlike musical landscape redolent of Spain. Chinese composer Tan Dun's concerto, Yi2, also has audible Spanish influences, but it melds those with evocations of the traditional Chinese lute, the p'i-p'a, forming an unusual and evocative cross-cultural blend of sonorities. The cultural mix extends to the album's performers, too: Isbin is American; Muhai Tang, the conductor, is Chinese; and the Gulbenkian Orchestra, which performs here with precision and style, is based in Lisbon, Portugal. The contemporary works on this program are a far cry from the inviting, folksy styles Isbin traversed in her Grammy-winning Dreams of a World. But don't be put off by the "contemporary" label: These are interesting and often beautiful works, thoughtfully and sensitively performed. Isbin is a true musical explorer, and we should not hesitate to go along for the ride. (EJ Johnson)

Christopher Rouse (1949 - )

Concert de Gaudi

1) I. Allegro

2) II. Largo sereno

3) III. Svolazzante

Tan Dun (1957 - )

Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra (Yi2)

4) I. Rubato

5) II. Adagio

6) III. Andante agitato

7) IV. Cadenza

8) V. Ending

Sharon Isbin

Muhai Tang

Gulbenkian Orchestra

2001 Teldec Classics International

1 CD DDD

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Simone Kermes LA DIVA (HANDEL Arias for Cuzzoni)

German soprano Simone Kermes has earned plaudits for her athletic renditions of Baroque opera arias, and here she takes on some of the most strenuous of them all: arias composed by George Frederick Handel for Francesca Cuzzoni. This Italian diva (the album title La Diva seems to refer both to her and to Kermes) joined London's Royal Academy of Music opera company in 1718, and then, when Handel became the city's hottest composer of Italian opera, spent several years singing the most difficult parts he could devise. The relationship was apparently a stormy one at times, with Handel at one point threatening to throw the soprano out a window if she didn't cooperate. Cuzzoni's fame is attested to by the sheer volume of stories about her that have come down to the present time. One of the most famous of these stories had Cuzzoni duking it out on-stage with a rival diva, Faustina Bordoni; that one is now thought to be a fabrication, but it shows the passions Cuzzoni stirred up in her own time. From Kermes' readings it may be a bit hard to figure out exactly why people got so worked up, but these arias are a perfect match for her skills. Perhaps Cuzzoni and Bordoni were one of those classic technician-actress pairs (there is, of course, no way to know). Kermes is a precise technician. Her voice remains not only on pitch but downright beautiful over all the extremes of range and embellishment these arias contain, and her pianissimo (hear the middle of the aria "Piangerò," from "Giulio Cesare," for one of several examples that must bring live crowds to their feet at the end) is extraordinary. In pure emotion-laden melody such as that of the famed "V'adoro pupille" from the same opera, Kermes is not quite as convincing. But there are more discoveries than chestnuts here, notably the series of marvelous arias from the less-familiar "Siroe," and there are even a couple of world premieres of early versions of arias from "Rodelina." These might have been interesting to pair with the later versions, perhaps as bonus tracks. But the presentation in general is both entertaining and intelligent, with booklet notes and translations of the Italian texts in both German and English. Berlin Classics' studio sound is superbly clear. (James Manheim)

George Frideric Handel
1) Scipione: Scoglio d'immota fronte [5:05]
2) Giulio Cesare: V'adoro pupille [4:39]
3) Giulio Cesare: Piangerò [7:02]
4) Giulio Cesare: Se pietà di me non senti [9:47]
5) Alessandro: No, più soffrir non voglio [4:01]
6) Rodelinda: Ombre, piante (1st Version) [2:24]
7) Rodelinda: Ahi perché, giusto ciel (1st Version) [6:55]
8) Siroe: Or mi perdo di speranza [4:10]
9) Siroe: Mi lagnerò tacendo [6:46]
10) Siroe: Torrente cresciuto [4:19]
11) Tolomeo: Fonti amiche [5:00]
12) Flavio: Amante stravagante [3:36]
13) Riccardo primo: Morte vieni [2:45]
14) Admeto: Io ti bacio [3:15]

Simone Kermes
Lautten Compagney
Wolfgang Katschner

2009 Berlin Classics

1 CD DDD

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Mikhail Pletnev HOMMAGE À RACHMANINOV

Gimmickry? Not a bit of it. This is a genuinely illuminating and thought-provoking issue. More than that, it’s immensely enjoyable. The freedoms and avoidances of convention which Pletnev often likes to allow himself, but which can seem merely self-conscious and applied from the outside, here sound consistently inspired and true to the spirit of the music.

The instrument is Rachmaninov’s pre-war American Steinway, but I’ve been listening without more precise details than that. What I hear is a well-regulated tone, a little more uneven between the registers and a little thinner overall than its modern counterpart, but never measly or tinny, with the exception of the high treble, which sometimes gives an impression similar to excessive use of the soft pedal. Some of the glittering passagework in the Chopin does becomes rather glaring, especially when pushed beyond mezzo-forte. On the whole though, even this is easy to adapt to, because in Pletnev’s hands the texture is so rich in nuance, his own eloquence apparently released from all inhibitions. There’s also a significant gain in transparency. Indeed if anyone wanted to claim that this kind of instrument has all the advantages of the ‘early’ piano with none of the drawbacks I wouldn’t be inclined to disagree. Whether it would stand up to the demands of having to project to the back of a full-size concert hall I don’t know, but heard in DG’s close yet well-ventilated recording, it sounds marvellous.

I’m not sure I’ve ever heard as involving an account of the Rachmaninov Corelli Variations, and only Richter in my experience has surpassed Pletnev in the Etudes-tableaux. Nor is it only Rachmaninov’s own opulent textures which are thrillingly clarified. The Les adieux Sonata is wonderfully free, both in rubato and voicing, and never so at the expense of the longer lines of the structure.

Pletnev’s Mendelssohn is breathtakingly poetic and, in the Rondo capriccioso, stunningly articulate, every single phrase subtle yet unselfconscious. All in all, this is one of the very finest achievements in Pletnev’s already imposing discography. Gramophone [3/1999]

Sergey Vasil'yevich Rachmaninov (1873 - 1943)
Variations on a theme of Corelli, Op.42
1) Theme (andante) [0:54]
2) Variation 1 (poco più mosso) [0:46]
3) Variation 2 (l'istesso tempo) [0:33]
4) Variation 3 (tempo di menuetto) [0:46]
5) Variation 4 (andante) [0:58]
6) Variation 5 (allegro) [0:26]
7) Variation 6 (l'istesso tempo) [0:23]
8) Variation 7 (vivace) [0:26]
9) Variation 8 (adagio misterioso) [0:52]
10) Variation 9 (un poco più mosso) [0:58]
11) Variation 10 (allegro scherzando) [0:36]
12) Variation 11 (allegro vivace) [0:26]
13) Variation 12 (l'istesso tempo) [0:37]
14) Variation 13 (agitato) [0:33]
15) Intermezzo (a tempo rubato) [1:26]
16) Variation 14 (andante) [1:04]
17) Variation 15 (l'istesso tempo) [1:42]
18) Variation 16 (allegro vivace) [0:33]
19) Variation 17 (meno mosso) [1:14]
20) Variation 18 (allegro con brio) [0:35]
21) Variation 19 (più mosso. agitato) [0:32]
22) Variation 20 (più mosso) [1:00]
23) Coda (andante) [1:53]
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827)
Piano Sonata No.26 in E flat, Op.81a -"Les adieux"
24) 1. Das Lebewohl (Adagio - Allegro) [6:56]
25) 2. Abwesenheit (Andante espressivo) [3:36]
26) 3. Das Wiedersehen (Vivacissimamente) [5:32]
Felix Mendelssohn (1809 - 1847)
27) Andante cantabile e presto agitato in B [2:50]
28) Presto agitato in G minor [2:39]
29) Rondo capriccioso, Op.14 [6:33]
Frédéric Chopin (1810 - 1849)
Andante spianato and Grande polonaise in E flat, Op.22
30) Andante spianato [4:34]
31) Grande Polonaise [9:01]
Sergey Vasil'yevich Rachmaninov (1873 - 1943)
Etude-Tableau in E flat minor, Op.33, No.6
32) Non allegro [1:48]
Etude-Tableau in C sharp minor, Op.33, No.9
33) Grave [3:00]
Etude-Tableau in G minor, Op.33, No.8
34) Moderato [3:56]
Etude-Tableau in E flat minor, Op.39, No.5
35) Appassionato [4:59]

Mikhail Pletnev

1999 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Hamburg

1 CD DDD

459 6342 6 GH

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Julia Fischer MOZART Sinfonia concertante

German violinist Julia Fischer, 24 years old when this recording was released, is surely a bright new star, all charisma as her diminutive self stands between conductor and collaborator Yakov Kreizberg and violist Gordan Nikolic on the cover of this disc. She has a steely technique that she brings to Mozart's "Sinfonia Concertante in E flat, K. 364" -- not a steely work, but the musicianship here is superb. Fischer and Nikolic make an attractive pair in the work, her razor-sharp tone set against his gutsier sound production, all the contrasts held together by Kreizberg's brisk tempos and no-nonsense forward drive. There are recordings of the "Sinfonia Concertante" that play more directly to sentiment, but the work's intricate architecture breathes in this interpretation. An additional bonus is the inclusion of the rarely heard "Concertone in C major for two violins and orchestra, K. 190," a work that also has solo oboe and cello parts and seems to hang in the balance between the concerto and sinfonia concerante (multiple-soloist) genres. The performers bring a nice lilting quality to the first two movements, rather sprawling creations of the young Mozart that demand really compelling soloists of the sort on display here. The only complaint is over-resonant sound, the result of PentaTone's decision to record in a Haarlem church -- the wrong place for music intended for a medium-sized, crowded, well-upholstered room. It destroys the intimate scale of the performance and causes the soloists and the harpsichord continuo of the "Concertone," especially, to sound a bit like they are swimming in a watery chamber. The clarity of Fischer's playing, however, is not compromised, and it's a real wonder. She has also recorded two of Mozart's solo violin concertos with the same forces, but this disc in a way suggests even greater talents. (James Manheim)

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 - 1791)
Sinfonia concertante for violin, viola & orchestra in E flat major, K. 364

I. Allegro maestoso
II. Andante

3) III. Presto
4) Rondo for violin & orchestra in C major, K. 373
Concertone for 2 violins & orchestra in C major, K. 190

5) I. Allegro spiritoso
6) II. Andantino grazioso
7) III. Tempo di menuetto: Vivace

Julia Fischer

Yakov Kreizberg

Gordan Nikolic

Netherlands Chamber Orchestra

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Julia Fischer TCHAIKOVSKY Violin Concerto in D, Op. 35

The Tchaikovsky "Violin Concerto," though not widely appreciated in its time, has come to be one of the crown jewels of the violin concerto repertoire. As such, it has been recorded hundreds of times by as many violinists and various orchestras. In contrast, the miniatures also included on this album are rarely heard; this is truly a shame as they were written before (with the exception of the "Op. 42 Souvenir") the concerto and allow listeners to listen in on Tchaikovsky's experimentation and exploration of the instrument before he began writing the concerto. Equally interesting, the Meditation movement of the "Op. 42 Souvenir" was originally written as the slow movement of the concerto but was later pulled and made into the first movement of the three miniatures.
Violinist Julia Fischer has received extensive accolades and keeps musical company with some of the most prominent performers and conductors of our day. She does not fail to live up to her reputation in this recording. Her sound is deep and throaty, a wonderful quality for this concerto. Fischer's technique and intonation are seamless, and her musical passions shine through in each risk-taking track. For the oft-recorded concerto, however, she does not bring anything new or revolutionary to the table. So while this album is highly recommended for its collection of miniatures and suitable as a first recording of the concerto, listeners who may be seeking something a little fresher may wish to check out Joshua Bell's recording with Michael Tilson Thomas and the Berlin Philharmonic. (Mike D. Brownell)

Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840 - 1893)
Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35
1) I. Allegro moderato
2) II. Canzonetta: Andante
3) III. Finale: Allegro vivacissimo
4) Serenade melancolique, Op. 26
5) Valse - Scherzo, Op. 34
Souvenir d'un lieu cher, Op. 42
6) Meditation
7) Scherzo
8) Melodie

Julia Fischer
Russian National Orchestra
Yakov Kreizberg

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Mitsuko Uchida BEETHOVEN Piano Sonatas Op. 109, 110 & 111

With highly acclaimed surveys of Mozart and Schubert under her belt, Mitsuko Uchida turns to the composer who bridges the gap between those projects -- and between the Classical and Romantic eras. This is her first disc of Beethoven's piano sonatas, though she's already released recordings of the concertos. Arguably, her Beethoven is all the richer after imbibing the graceful clarity of Mozart on one side and the pensive breadth of Schubert on the other -- though being late Beethoven, it leans more toward the latter pole. Uchida has said that she sees Beethoven's final three sonatas, which comprise this album's program, as a single, large musical structure. It's easy to hear what she means: While her performance of each work is persuasive on its own, they do build in cumulative impact. With her characteristic introspection -- suited to these works like few others -- Uchida approaches this music with a sense of awe that makes this recording a very special one. (Scott Paulin)

Piano Sonata Op. 109 In E Major

1) I Vivace, Ma Non Troppo

2) II Prestissimo

3) III Andante Molto Cantabile Ed Espressivo
Piano Sonata Op. 110 In A Flat Major

4) I Moderato Cantabile Molto Espressivo

5) II Allegro Molto

6) III Adagio, Ma Non Troppo

7) IV Fuga: Allegro Ma Non Troppo
Piano Sonata Op. 111 In C Minor

8) I Maestoso

9) II Adagio Molto Semplice E Cantabile

Mitsuko Uchida

2006 DECCA Records

1 CD DDD

475 6935 0 PH

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