Classical CD Reviews
Mischa Maisky and Martha Argerich in Concert = STRAVINSKY: Suite Italienne from Pulcinella; PROKOFIEV: Cello Sonata, Op. 119; Waltz from The Stone Flower; SHOSTAKOVICH: Cello Sonata, Op. 40
Published on May 20, 2005
|
Mischa Maisky and Martha Argerich in Concert = STRAVINSKY: Suite
Italienne from Pulcinella; PROKOFIEV: Cello Sonata, Op. 119; Waltz from
The Stone Flower; SHOSTAKOVICH: Cello Sonata, Op. 40
DGG B0004047-02 72:22 (Distrib. Universal)****:
Recorded April 2003 in the Flagey Buiding, Brussels, this an electric, riveting concert by two past masters of their respective instrument - old colleagues collaborating in music they have long cherished without having committed their thoughts on record. Gregor Piatagorsky’s 1932 arrangement of the suite from Stravinsky’s Pulcinella was recorded by that artist (with Lukas Foss), but has yet to come back to CD format. The odd mixture of refined, 18th century melos with quirky, pungent 20th century harmony still raises an eyebrow, especially when plied by the sizzling combination of Miasky and Argerich, who apply all kinds of orchestral effects, tremolandi double and triple stopping, and fierce, broad glissandi. The Andante movements enjoy a limpid sincerity of expression. The C Major of Prokofiev (1949), despite having been written during troubling times for the composer (and others deemed anti-populist), has the energy and blithe urgency of Prokofiev’s most fertile period, especially with the spirit of his masterpiece ballet Romeo and Juliet not far from his motifs in the sonata.
Less sentimental in character than the approach taken by the sonata&Mac226;s dedicatee Rostropovich, Maisky’s razor-sharp account has the lines pulsating with nervous energy. Argerich has maintained her muscular devotion to Prokofiev, which revealed itself early, in her account of the C Major Concerto with Abbado. Spiky and impassioned, the Sonata makes a splendid centerpiece, followed as it is by the ironic grotesques of the Shostakovich Sonata. Conceived around the time of the gloomy, moody Fourth Symphony, the 1934 Sonata by Shostakovich had as its early acolyte Gregor Piatagorsky. An urge to stately lyricism, a suggestion of Jewish plainsong that haunts his later style, and a bit of raunchy good humor in the drunken reel of the finale mark the eclectic personality that was Shostakovich of the mid-1930s. The encore, a little waltz from Prokofiev’s last ballet (1948), its light delicacy seems to bequeath upon the entire concert the homage of a Piatagorsky imprimatur who had likely been a source of inspiration to these fastidious and ardent musicians.
DGG B0004047-02 72:22 (Distrib. Universal)****:
Recorded April 2003 in the Flagey Buiding, Brussels, this an electric, riveting concert by two past masters of their respective instrument - old colleagues collaborating in music they have long cherished without having committed their thoughts on record. Gregor Piatagorsky’s 1932 arrangement of the suite from Stravinsky’s Pulcinella was recorded by that artist (with Lukas Foss), but has yet to come back to CD format. The odd mixture of refined, 18th century melos with quirky, pungent 20th century harmony still raises an eyebrow, especially when plied by the sizzling combination of Miasky and Argerich, who apply all kinds of orchestral effects, tremolandi double and triple stopping, and fierce, broad glissandi. The Andante movements enjoy a limpid sincerity of expression. The C Major of Prokofiev (1949), despite having been written during troubling times for the composer (and others deemed anti-populist), has the energy and blithe urgency of Prokofiev’s most fertile period, especially with the spirit of his masterpiece ballet Romeo and Juliet not far from his motifs in the sonata.
Less sentimental in character than the approach taken by the sonata&Mac226;s dedicatee Rostropovich, Maisky’s razor-sharp account has the lines pulsating with nervous energy. Argerich has maintained her muscular devotion to Prokofiev, which revealed itself early, in her account of the C Major Concerto with Abbado. Spiky and impassioned, the Sonata makes a splendid centerpiece, followed as it is by the ironic grotesques of the Shostakovich Sonata. Conceived around the time of the gloomy, moody Fourth Symphony, the 1934 Sonata by Shostakovich had as its early acolyte Gregor Piatagorsky. An urge to stately lyricism, a suggestion of Jewish plainsong that haunts his later style, and a bit of raunchy good humor in the drunken reel of the finale mark the eclectic personality that was Shostakovich of the mid-1930s. The encore, a little waltz from Prokofiev’s last ballet (1948), its light delicacy seems to bequeath upon the entire concert the homage of a Piatagorsky imprimatur who had likely been a source of inspiration to these fastidious and ardent musicians.
- Gary Lemco
on this article to AUDIOPHILE AUDITION!
Email this page to a friend.
View a printer-friendly version.
