Chandos
Bartok: Violin Sonatas No 1 & 2 / Ehnes, Armstrong
$21.99
Details
- Composer
- BARTOK, BELA
- Artist
- Ehnes, Armstrong
- Format
- CD
- Label
- Chandos
- Released
- Jan 31, 2012
- Catalog #
- CHAN 10705
- UPC
- 095115170526
About
This is the second volume in a series devoted to the works for strings by Béla Bartók, with James Ehnes the featured soloist. Ehnes had earlier recorded the Violin and Viola Concertos (CHAN 10690), which was made Disc of the Month in Gramophone magazine. On this new recording, he turns to the Violin Sonatas and Rhapsodies, complemented by the earliest surviving work by Bartók for violin and piano, an Andante. He is accompanied by the pianist Andrew Armstrong.
Dedicated to the Hungarian violinist Adila d’Arányi, the sonatas for violin and piano were composed in 1921 – 22, around the same time as the highly successful ballet score The Miraculous Mandarin. Of the two works, the Sonata in C sharp minor is the more traditional in terms of its structure, and characterised by a mood that is sometimes exhilarated, sometimes turbulent – but always virtuosic. The finale builds from a series of increasingly wild dances, folk-like in style but entirely expressionistic.
In the Sonata in C major, Bartók removes himself from classical form and traditional tonal practice, calling on the violinist to distance himself from the romantic manner of playing. At several points, for example, the violin is played without vibrato, producing an ethereally cool and distant sound. The improvisatory character is strong throughout, as the work repeatedly alternates between the quiet and thoughtful, and the stormy and strident. The ending, in contrast to the earlier sonata, is understated, emotional, and expressive.
Bartók’s two rhapsodies for piano and violin, dedicated respectively to Joseph Szigeti and Zoltán Székely, are steeped in the tradition of Hungarian folk music. Exuberant and infectious, the works are heavily inspired by the csárdás, the national dance of Hungary, and display the traditional pairing of lassú (slow) and friss (lively) movements.
Dedicated to the Hungarian violinist Adila d’Arányi, the sonatas for violin and piano were composed in 1921 – 22, around the same time as the highly successful ballet score The Miraculous Mandarin. Of the two works, the Sonata in C sharp minor is the more traditional in terms of its structure, and characterised by a mood that is sometimes exhilarated, sometimes turbulent – but always virtuosic. The finale builds from a series of increasingly wild dances, folk-like in style but entirely expressionistic.
In the Sonata in C major, Bartók removes himself from classical form and traditional tonal practice, calling on the violinist to distance himself from the romantic manner of playing. At several points, for example, the violin is played without vibrato, producing an ethereally cool and distant sound. The improvisatory character is strong throughout, as the work repeatedly alternates between the quiet and thoughtful, and the stormy and strident. The ending, in contrast to the earlier sonata, is understated, emotional, and expressive.
Bartók’s two rhapsodies for piano and violin, dedicated respectively to Joseph Szigeti and Zoltán Székely, are steeped in the tradition of Hungarian folk music. Exuberant and infectious, the works are heavily inspired by the csárdás, the national dance of Hungary, and display the traditional pairing of lassú (slow) and friss (lively) movements.
Tracklist 13 tracks
-
1 I. Lassu: Moderato 04:32
- Track
- 1
- Title
- I. Lassu: Moderato
- Duration
- 04:32
- Composer
- Béla Bartók
- Performer
- James Ehnes, Andrew Armstrong
-
2 II. Friss: Allegretto moderato - 03:47
- Track
- 2
- Title
- II. Friss: Allegretto moderato -
- Duration
- 03:47
- Composer
- Béla Bartók
- Performer
- James Ehnes, Andrew Armstrong
-
3 II. [Agitato] 02:06
- Track
- 3
- Title
- II. [Agitato]
- Duration
- 02:06
- Composer
- Béla Bartók
- Performer
- James Ehnes, Andrew Armstrong
-
4 I. Molto moderato 08:29
- Track
- 4
- Title
- I. Molto moderato
- Duration
- 08:29
- Composer
- Béla Bartók
- Performer
- James Ehnes, Andrew Armstrong
-
5 II. Allegretto 11:36
- Track
- 5
- Title
- II. Allegretto
- Duration
- 11:36
- Composer
- Béla Bartók
- Performer
- James Ehnes, Andrew Armstrong
-
6 I. Lassu: Moderato 04:20
- Track
- 6
- Title
- I. Lassu: Moderato
- Duration
- 04:20
- Composer
- Béla Bartók
- Performer
- James Ehnes, Andrew Armstrong
-
7 II. Friss: Allegro moderato 06:11
- Track
- 7
- Title
- II. Friss: Allegro moderato
- Duration
- 06:11
- Composer
- Béla Bartók
- Performer
- James Ehnes, Andrew Armstrong
-
8 I. Allegro appassionato 12:23
- Track
- 8
- Title
- I. Allegro appassionato
- Duration
- 12:23
- Composer
- Béla Bartók
- Performer
- James Ehnes, Andrew Armstrong
-
9 II. Adagio 11:23
- Track
- 9
- Title
- II. Adagio
- Duration
- 11:23
- Composer
- Béla Bartók
- Performer
- James Ehnes, Andrew Armstrong
-
10 III. Allegro 09:47
- Track
- 10
- Title
- III. Allegro
- Duration
- 09:47
- Composer
- Béla Bartók
- Performer
- James Ehnes, Andrew Armstrong
-
11 Andante in A Major, BB 26b 04:00
- Track
- 11
- Title
- Andante in A Major, BB 26b
- Duration
- 04:00
- Composer
- Béla Bartók
- Performer
- James Ehnes, Andrew Armstrong
-
12 II. Accelerando - A tempo - (alternative ending) 00:24
- Track
- 12
- Title
- II. Accelerando - A tempo - (alternative ending)
- Duration
- 00:24
- Composer
- Béla Bartók
- Performer
- James Ehnes, Andrew Armstrong
-
13 II. [Agitato] (alternative ending) 01:23
- Track
- 13
- Title
- II. [Agitato] (alternative ending)
- Duration
- 01:23
- Composer
- Béla Bartók
- Performer
- James Ehnes, Andrew Armstrong