Content provided in partnership with
Instrumental. . and La plus que lente - Classical music - Sonatas and Partitas - Preludes both books - Sonatas for Solo Flute - Tous les matins du monde - Six Trio Sonatas - String Quintets - Sound Recording Review
Christian Century, Feb 8, 2003 by Bradley Lehman
Johann Sebastian Bach. Sonatas and Partitas, arranged for lute. Hopkinson Smith. Astree 8678, $34.00.
This is one of Smith's newest projects, his transcription of Bach's violin sonatas and partitas. As always, Smith's performances have a quiet intensity and a seemingly effortless flow; the music seems to come from the air, spontaneously. For the violin originals, Ingrid Matthews's set (Centaur 2472) is my top choice among dozens, for similar reasons.
Claude Debussy. Preludes (both books) and La plus que lente. Stany David Lasry. Arcana A 63, $16.00.
- Most Popular Articles in Reference
- The importance of understanding organizational culture
- Credit card attitudes and behaviors of college students
- What factors attract foreign direct investment?
- Libraries Need Relationship Marketing - mutual interest marketing concept, ...
- How to set performance goals: employee reviews are more than annual critiques
- More »
Lasry plays an Erard piano from 1874, and its sound is a revelation: Debussy's music emerges with a gentle veiled effect in the quiet parts, and an uncommon brilliance and clarity when louder. Each prelude suggests a mood, from winds to water to jesters to fireworks. This music has such soulful color and rich nuance, it sounds new every time, giving the listener's imagination a terrific workout.
Johann Sebastian Bach. Sonatas for Solo Flute. Wilbert Hazelzet. Glossa 920804, $18.00.
This disc includes the A minor flute sonata plus the first three cello suites (arranged by Hazelzet). Hazelzet's approach is patient, natural and finely nuanced, completely at the service of the music, His wooden flute has a warmly human tone that no metal flute can match. For the original cello versions, Pieter Wispelwey's second set (Channel Classics 12298) is the counterpart to Hazelzet's quiet declamation: the perfect blend of freedom and poise.
Tous les matins du monde (soundtrack). Jordi Savall and friends. Alia Vox 9821, $18.00.
This was new in 1991, with the film; now it is reissued on Savall's own label and includes a free bonus disc. There is no better survey of 17th-century French music than this. It is melancholy, tender, graceful--and the spiritual focus is extraordinary in these performances. The viola da gamba and voices are especially intense.
Johann Sebastian Bach. Six Trio Sonatas. Eliot Fisk, Albert Fuller. MusicMasters 67182, $14.00.
These sonatas are for a solo organist, but they are played in dozens of ensemble arrangements just as often. Here are two old friends playing guitar and harpsichord, simply having a great time as they bounce ideas from one to the other. There is an infectious sparkle throughout these performances--a wonderful spontaneity in this music in which almost all other players sound too studious and serious. This CD is dedicated to Fisk's grandson. (If it is reported "out of print" by some distributors, try the Musical Heritage Society, which still has it as of this writing.)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. String Quintets (K515/516/593/ 614). Salomon Quartet. Simon Whistler. Hyperion 22005, $18.00.
If there exists music of better balance and grace than Mozart's string quintets, I don't know about it. Here are four of the best, in performances both lively and warm: like a conversation among good companions. (Pick up the clarinet quintet, too, if you don't already have it!)
Bradley Lehman of Dayton, Virginia, is a harpsichordist and a composer of hymns. His own CDs of clavichord music are available at http://listen.to/bpl.
COPYRIGHT 2003 The Christian Century Foundation
COPYRIGHT 2003 Gale Group
Find Research Guides for:
Find Featured Titles for: Arts
Most Popular Articles in Reference
- The importance of understanding organizational culture
- Credit card attitudes and behaviors of college students
- What factors attract foreign direct investment?
- Libraries Need Relationship Marketing - mutual interest marketing concept, ...
- How to set performance goals: employee reviews are more than annual critiques
- More »