BACH: Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin – Pavlo Beznosiuk, violin – Linn Multichannel SACD 366 (2 Discs), 148:16 [Distr. by Naxos] ***1/2:
There seems to be a run on Bach’s solo violin sonatas and partitas these days, with a new one appearing almost every month. Not that I mind, as one can never tire of these amazing pieces, the absolute pinnacle of violin perfection, never equaled in content or technique. And the approaches continue to amaze as well—recently it seems as if a retrograde philosophy has taken hold, with several artists espousing a manner of performance that is looking back to those mid-twentieth century mavens who first brought us these works. I guess what goes around comes around, and this disc in particular makes the case for such a statement.
Pavlo Beznosiuk is well known in period instrument circles, working intensively with the Academy of Ancient Music, and also spending much time in contemporary repertory as well. The AAM once had a reputation as one of the “scratchier” period bands around, and I hear a little of that in Beznosiuk’s tone—not offensive, and certainly not unmusical, but there is a bit of the razor’s edge surrounding it. Many people will actually like this sound. Interpretatively though he goes against what we have come to accept as “modern” in these readings—there are no blazing tempos, mechanistic phrasing, or cookie-cutter interpretative stances offered. Pavlo Beznosiuk goes his own way in this music, no questions asked.
But overall I have the feeling that these readings are just too planned, too cautious, and too regulated to allow the spiritual essence of much of the music to come through. He takes the “dance” tempos seriously—these are among the slowest readings I have heard and even in pieces like the Fugue from the G-minor sonata, the tempo is far too sluggish for my taste, rendering the piece imbued with torpor.
I compared this with Rachel Podger’s release on Channel Classics, not SA but espousing a similar amount of resonance around the instrument, and also done on a period instrument. Podger’s tempos are much more the “new mainline” than what Beznosiuk gives us, but I think more lively and spiritual as well. Beznosiuk demands his way or the highway, and for many that will be an acceptable agreement, but others will want something a little less lethargic and structured. Nevertheless, this is one of the cleanest recordings of this music you will find, and the Super Audio is well-spread and effective even though, as with the Podger, I think the ambiance too resonant. Your call…
— Steven Ritter
