A beautiful disc of Schubert works interspersed with Webern and Berg!
Sitting in the our 'Schubert Chamber Works' section was an unassuming recording of the Arpeggione Sonata by Jean-Guihen Queyras and Alexandre Tharaud. I was looking for something to buy and dedcided to give this disc a go, and boy and I glad that I did! Featured on this recording is the title work, the Arpeggione Sonata by Schubert (composed for the rare Arpeggione, which was a six-string instrument similar to a cello) as well as some Schubert Lieder adaptations for Cello, and works by Berg and Webern. The Arpeggione Sonata is masterfully played. There is s such a sweet sound that Queyras gets from his Cello. Tharaud is solid throughout the disc and is the perfect collaborator. The Lieder adaptaions were my favorite part of the disc and really showed the agility of Queyras' playing. This was a wonderful suprise, and a great buy!
'Schubert's Arpeggione Sonata has been at the heart of our repertoire ever since Alexandre Tharaud and I began to play together. Berg assumes his dark inner demons, whereas Webern plays on sublimation and limitless confrontation with the basic elements of desire, sensuality, and death, making them almost palpable...' - Jean-Guihen, Queyras
Vancouver Playhouse, Vancouver, Canada, with Alexandre Tharaud:
“Elegance is the duo's keyword. Queyras's tone is silky, focused yet sweet, not particularly large but with beautifully graduated dynamics… The cello's great range of colour added new intensity to these already painfully expressive pieces [Alban Berg's Four Pieces, Op.5]… Here everything was integrated [Foulenc's Sonata]: the exquisite lux of the Cavatine, the swagger of the Ballabile, the theatricality of the finale, and the overall underpinning of classicism redefined – all in meticulous balance.” The Vancouver Sun – 23 November 2005
“As if he were a painter, Alexandre Tharaud obtains a sense of relief, matter, oppositions or fusions of colours. As if he were a magician, he fills his audience with wonder with his fluid gestures, almost invisible…Discrete, refined, coloured but with no affectation, this recording dazzles with excellence. ” Le Monde de la Musique, “Choc” – November 2001
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Price: $22.98