During long periods the flute has been almost synonymous with France, the country from which the music, the great players and the finest instruments all came. The French flute - whether dreamy as in Debussy's Syrinx or sprightly as in Poulenc's Sonata - is simply unmistakeably French, in all its delights. On her new release, renowned flutist Sharon Bezaly - who herself studied in Paris - celebrates this tradition, with a programme consisting of works composed between 1889 and 1946. French Delights is something of a companion piece to a previous Bezaly disc: Café au Lait, a predominantly French flute recital accompanied by Roland Pöntinen. Upon its release that disc, and the artistry of Sharon Bezaly, were highly acclaimed, for instance in French magazine Diapason: 'The flute turns into the voice of enchantment, a lullaby of the senses or an invitation to dreamfulness, into planing light or the glitter of light on water - an instrument almost too beautiful.' Here again, with the support of eminent pianist Love Derwinger, Sharon Bezaly displays her prodigious talent.
Berlioz: Les Nuits d'été; Cléopâtre / Barbara Hendricks, Söderblom, Pori Sinfonietta
Arte Verum
CD
$20.99Oct 20, 2023
Throughout her fifty year career Barbara Hendricks has shown herself to be one of the greatest champions of French song. This has always held a special place in her repertory and in her heart, as have German lieder, Scandinavian and Spanish songs (not to mention jazz and blues); her musical world has no limits. For this new recording made in 2016, the Swedish soprano pays homage both to her singing teacher and mentor, the great American mezzo-soprano Jennie Tourel, and to the creative genius of Hector Berlioz. If the Nuits d’été have long formed part of her repertory, the two cantatas Herminie and Cléopâtre are new.
A towering figure in French music of the later 19th century, Cesar Franck created a distinctive fusion of German Romanticism and French Classicism, enriching the symphonic, chamber, instrumental, vocal and sacred repertoires. As a teacher and mentor he gained admiration for his modesty and generosity while exercising a powerful influence on younger disciples such as Vincent d'Indy, Henri Duparc and Ernest Chausson. The Cesar Franck Edition gathers together all his masterworks - among them the Symphony in D, Violin Sonata, Prelude, Fugue et Variation and, of course, 'Panis Angelicus' - in enthralling performances by musicians of the first rank. Running to 16 CDs, the collection includes a CD of transcriptions and arrangements, proving their fascination for a still greater diversity of interpreters than Franck might have imagined. The five CDs of historical recordings - dating back as far as 1907 - testify to the continuing growth of his reputation after his death in 1890, and to the vibrant performing tradition engendered by his genius.
