Two great interpreters, poets and lovers of the French repertory and chamber music join forces here: the violinist Tedi Papavrami and the pianist Nelson Goerner. They have chosen to devote this programme to the two violin sonatas of Gabriel Fauré and the Sonata of César Franck. Cesar Franck and Gabriel Faure were two of the main architects of the renaissance in French chamber music during the final decades of the nineteenth century. Both were members of the Societe Nationale de Musique they helped to found in 1871, along with Camille Saint-Saens, Romain Bussine, Henri Duparc, Jules Massenet and others. It was for this society that Faure wrote his first masterpiece, the Sonata for Violin and Piano in A major. Impelled by patriotism, they jointly undertook a crusade to safeguard French music, adopting the motto Ars Gallica. At the same time, in a century largely dominated by opera, they aspired to rehabilitate the neglected genres of symphonic and chamber music, and song- the typical genres of German music. They succeeded spectacularly, and the number of major works produced in France during this period is phenomenal.

-----

REVIEW:

These are huge performances, of enormous intensity and sweep, and in the heat of the moment it’s hard not to be carried away. Papavrami’s playing is what you might call old-school, in the best way—ardent and rich-toned in all registers, with generous vibrato and an effortlessly fluid way of draping itself over a phrase. Goerner responds with an almost improvisatory flexibility and imagination.

– Gramophone

A MusicWeb International Recording of the Month!

An imaginative and intelligent programme this, all three works performed with style, panache and polish.

For me, the most interesting piece here is the Poulenc Sonata, written in 1943 during the German occupation of France. Here Poulenc is deploring fascism. Rather than aiming his ire directly at the Nazis, he prefers an indirect assault by targeting the Spanish fascists and the 1930s Spanish Civil War and specifically eulogising the great Spanish poet, Federico Garcia Lorca, a rightly mourned fatality of that war. Poulenc’s soufflés of insouciance that abound in the concertos are not in evidence here; rather, the opening movement is earnest – passionately, fierily defiant and turbulent – but it is also not without poignancy and appropriate sentimentality. The music here is ambitious, imaginative and intelligently assembled. There is notable and frequent use of pizzicato writing that clearly suggests that for a guitar. The gorgeous, haunting elegiac middle Movement, marked Intermezzo, is aptly headed by a quotation from Lorca – ‘The guitar makes dreams weep’. The final movement, marked Presto tragico, starts with lighter material at speed before the pace becomes halting and tragic and anguished as, with a crestfallen screech (suggesting, perhaps, Lorca’s violent end?), the music comes to an abrupt full stop.

The adorable, memorable melodies that form the opening and closing movements of the deservedly popular Franck Sonata are lovingly articulated and shaped by the Carlock-Combet duo, and they are nicely contrasted with the fiery, protesting yet yearning material of the second Allegro movement and the more inward contemplation of the Recitativo-Fantasia.

Saint-Saëns’ first Violin Sonata is cast in four movements, but the first and second are joined and so, too, are the third and fourth, effectively producing a two-part work. The first two-part section moves seamlessly from the imposing dramatic opening, contrasted with the intimacy of the lovely second subject, to the beauty of the Adagio – tender, intimate and sensually winding. The first part of the second section, Allegretto Moderato, skips along to remind one of Mendelssohn and, perhaps, Kreisler, while the closing Allegro molto rushes headlong with sparkling virtuosity towards a glowing, majestic conclusion.

– MusicWeb International (Ian Lace)

The musical influence of the famous Arcangelo Corelli is witnessed in this set of recordings of unjustly neglected concertos by three of his pupils. The variety of these works is captured by the period instruments of the critically acclaimed baroque ensemble Collegium Musicum 90 under the direction of its founder, Simon Standage, who is also soloist here. The album reveals Corelli’s influence, from a style of execution that was of vital importance to the development of violin playing to a compositional manner that, in establishing the pre-eminence of the violin, proved central to the development of the modern genres of sonata and concerto. Under its exclusive contract with Chandos, Collegium Musicum 90 has made more than sixty albums, forty of them with Simon Standage.

David Matthews and Peter Sheppard Skærved have been collaborating on a series of works for violin for many years now, in a partnership that has resulted in over 30 works, from string quartets to many pieces for violin alone. Matthew sets Sheppard Skærved formidable technical challenges, and Sheppard Skærved surprises Matthews by finding way sof overcoming the difficulties in his path. Behind all the pyrotechnics, this collaboration is generating one of the largest, and most musically rewarding body of compositions for solo vioin by any living composer. The range of reference in this music is wide, from Australian magpies and European songthrushes, via an Alpine ranz des vaches, to Three Chants, where the violinist is requried to whistle and sing as he plays.

The violin competition of 1971 marked a first in the history of the competition, as it was a woman who won the First Prize, the Israeli Myriam Fried, who led the way for many other female laureates. That year, the public discovered a young woman from Ghent, timid and outstandingly gifted: Edith Volckaert. She had already won several international competitions, and, with her amazing gifts, had been following since the age of six the classes of one who would be her only teacher: the pedagogue and soloist Carlo Van Neste. She came fifth in the competition, ending her performance of Shostakovich's First Concerto in a state of exhaustion before the man who first performed it and now jury member: David Oistrakh. On this album she can also be heard in the laureates' concert where, now rested, she produced a magnificent performance of Bartok's Second Concerto. The career of Edith Volckaert was shattered 20 years later by an illness that came far too early. She recorded little, and this album enables us to pay homage to her art and to bring back to life what remains one of the finest moments in the history of Belgian laureates at the Queen Elisabeth Competition.

The indefatigable duo of Tasmin Little and Piers Lane returns with a unique recorded programme at the centre of which stand the violin sonatas of Szymanowski and Franck. Their joined expert musicianship reveals the intimacy and magic of these passionate, late-romantic works. The album encompasses the folk-like yet technically demanding Romance, Violin Sonata, and Notturno e Tarantella by Szymanowski, here more inspired by the German and French romantic tradition than by his native Polish one, as well as Franck's highly original Violin Sonata and Faure's Romance. It follows a much-lauded set of Schubert's complete works for violin and piano, and also marks the eightieth anniversary of Saymanowski's death. Tasmin Little will continue her tribute to the composer with a concerto album this autumn and with a series of concerts of his music, which will take her around the world.

During the summer of 1917, whilst the first World War was raging, Sergei Prokofiev found inspiration for his first Violin Concerto, Op. 19, during walks through the fields. This concerto’s premiere in Paris did not take place until 1923. The Parisians found it “harmless” and “old-fashioned.” Despite putting all violinistic techniques to the test, the work indeed features a distinctly lyrical character. Even if Prokofiev resisted reproaches made against the style of this work, he nonetheless paid heed to them: in the works written immediately after this concerto, he adopted a markedly more modern pace. Unlike the first concerto, the second one was not written in the idyll of nature, but during Prokofiev’s nomadic phase in 1935 between Paris, Voronezh, Baku and Madrid, where it was premiered: “I wanted something completely different from the first one, in terms of both content and form.” Whereas many listeners are reminded of spring-like feelings in the first concerto, Prokofiev strikes a more nostalgic, sometimes even romantic, note. The writing is often reduced, homophonic, preferring chamber scorings to full textures. Rudolf Koelman is a brilliant interpreter of these masterworks. His solo career began in 1999, when he left his post as First Concertmaster of the Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam.

The advantages of old master violins against modern violins - or vice versa - is one of the most discussed issues in the world of string instruments. A year can barely pass without a new scientific study, in which they claim to be able to definitely prove which one is better. For the most part, these supposed sensations reveal only one dimensional thinking, which can hardly ever be appropriate when defining a such complex phenomenon as a string instrument. The situation is absurd and confusing, because nothing is more vague than the price to sound ratio with stringed instruments. The more expensive an instrument is, the more irrational the opinion. The motto is: Close your eyes and listen carefully, because blind tests can sometimes lead to quite amazing, almost unmasking results. Hamburg born violinist and conductor, Philip A. Draganov, has enthralled audiences in Europe, Asia and teh USA with his "impulsive virtuosity...and exuberant musical power" (Hamburger Abendblatt). He had his debut as soloist at the age of only twelve with the Hamburg Symphony Orchestra in the Laeiszhalle in Hamburg and has since enjoyed a multifaceted international career. In addition to solo performances, recitals and chamber music concerts, Draganov is regularly invited by major conductors such as Günter Wand, Herbert Blomstedt, Bernard Haitink, Christoph von Dohnány, Michael Tilson Thomas, Christoph Eschenbach, Alan Gilbert, Sir Roger Norrington and Ken Nagano wtih various orchestras such as the NDR Symphony Orchestra/Hamburg or the Zurich Chamber Orchestra. Draganov plays a violin made by the Italian violin maker Tomaso Balestrieri from 1769 and a violin from the German luthier Peter Grenier.

Leo Ornstein was born in 1895 in the Ukraine, and emigrated with his family in 1906 to the USA, where he became a famous pianist and leading figure in the American Avant-Garde, writing highly experimental music in which tonal clusters played an important role. Halfway through the twenties he withdrew from public life and founded his own music school- the Ornstein School of Music. He continued composing but was largely forgotten until the revival by his son in the seventies. Ornstein’s works show a wide variety, from Post-Romantic works in the tradition of Grieg and Franck to pieces of shocking modernity and savagery. This release contains the complete music for violin and piano and for flute and piano, music of a highly original spirit, who died at the advanced age of 108 in the year 2002. These works are played with great conviction and dedication by violinist Francesco Parrino, flutist Stefano Parrino, and pianist Maud Renier.

Franco Gulli can be easy considered one of the greatest violinists of the XIX Century; but unfortunately had a discographical career less than his qualities and merits. Nowadays IDIS is gathering his discographical history. In this release the Triestine violinist performs two of best masterpieces of XVIII musical literature: Antonio Vivaldi ’s Quattro Stagioni and J.S.Bach’s Prima Sonata for solo violin BWV 1001. In the first recording of 1959 the thirty-three year old violinist is conducted by one of the most talented conductors of time, Aldo Ceccato; the pure sound and the impeccable virtuosity comes out completely in this recording with the impressive Gulli’s cantabile. This recording of the Quattro Stagioni is of a good sound quality at the same level as Bach’s Sonata no 1 in which Gulli solves the complex counterpoint of the work with a unique elegance.

This outstanding release was recorded live at The Library of Congress on January 28, 30, and February 1 1946, and this is the first time they have ever been available to the public! Beethoven’s 10 Sonatas for Violin and Piano are performed by Henri Temianka and Leonard Shure, two of the finest musicians of the first half of the twentieth century. This remastered recording has received glimmering reviews: “The performances are magnificent: bold and fresh, technically fluid and musically insightful… exciting…elegant…exceptional grace… this duo balances formidable power with magisterial command.” (The New York Times) “A great hit in the Beethoven discography… one of the most beautiful surprises to the discophile in recent years… makes you hold your breath constantly… A priceless treasure.” (Diapason)

Francesco Molino rightfully belongs to the generation of musicians that, in the wave of the general renaissance in the age of the European revolutions between the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, elevated the guitar to the status of concert instrument. After a military career and various experiences as violinist and oboist, he arrived in Paris in 1818 and finally reached the role of guitar music composer and teacher: the rise of his fame is also testified by the famous dispute between his supporters against those of Ferdinando Carulli, as reported on a famous illustration of the time. This new album is mainly focused on Francesco Molino chamber music llegacy that the performers Luciano and Mauro Tortorelli manage to capture and deliver to us through the refined simplicity, delicacy and transparency that characterized and distinguished the composer's work from that of his contemporaries.

This new recording presents two iconic violin sonatas in an arrangement for cello and piano. Beethoven’s Kreutzer Sonata and Franck’s Violin Sonata are two undisputed masterpieces of the violin repertoire. Their power of structure, expression and imagination transcends their mere instrumental restrictions, and their human message stands above the musical matter. The arrangement for cello and piano sheds a new light on the music, enriching and enhancing its dark and dramatic atmosphere, while giving a new dimension to their lyrical and ethereal sections. The Beethoven arrangement is by the famous 19th century cellist Franchomme (also dedicatee of Chopin’s cello sonata), the Franck arrangement is by Jules Delsart, with permission of Franck himself. Roberto Trainini and Cristiano Burato, who have already successfully recorded Martucci’s cello sonatas, provide here beautiful and heartfelt performances.

To celebrate his thirtieth performing jubilee in April 2016, Ingolf Turban has recorded the violin sonatas of Johannes Brahms. This artist is proud to offer his listeners something special to stand out from the not inconsiderable competition in this field: Each sonata receives its own instrument in order to develop, in each case, the special tone for the particular voice with which Brahms, as the lover, speaks to his secret beloved- with different “voices”, as it were, all from the same mouth. Ingolf Turban has performed as a soloist in the Philharmonic Orchestras of Berlin and Munich, the Kennedy Center in Washington, New York’s Avery Fisher Hall, Zurich’s Tonhalle, and La Scala in Milan. He became known worldwide after recording Paganini’s violin concertos in the television documentary “Paganini’s Secret.” (2006)

Listen to the Naxos Podcast to learn more about this release

In his day, Johan Halvorsen was one of Norway's most talented violinists and an internationally renowned conductor and composer. With its beautifully lyrical themes and Norwegian character including Hardanger fiddle effects, his Violin Concerto was described by contemporary critics as "an outstanding work" and performed to great acclaim in 1909. It was considered lost, only to be rediscovered in 2015 in the archive of its original soloist. With its equally confident opening and symphonic proportions, Nielsen's Violin Concerto combines emotive power with a delightfully pastoral character, while Johan Svendsen's spontaneously inventive and melodic Romance has become one of his best-loved works.

-----

REVIEW:

This release really deserves wide attention, for it contains something rather rare: the world's recorded premiere of a major lost violin concerto, that being Johan Halvorsen's 1909 Violin Concerto, Op. 28. The work sounds less like Grieg than like a Norwegian version of Josef Suk, with strong folklore elements.

It's joined with Carl Nielsen's Violin Concerto, a work matching the Halvorsen well with its mix of dance rhythms and serious virtuosity. Svendsen's Romance is a tuneful interlude that likewise deserves a revival.

A highly enjoyable release, and a must for lovers of Scandinavian music.

– All Music Guide (James Manheim)