Arc Ensemble: Two Roads To Exile / Busch, Braunfel

Marie Bérard & Benjamin Bowman violins, Steven Dann & Carolyn Blackwell violas, Bryan Epperson & David Hetherington cellos

Adolf Busch (1891 – 1952): String Sextet in G Major, Op. 40
Walter Braunfels (1882 – 1954): String Quintet in F sharp minor, Op. 63

Wholenote Discoveries - June 2010
“A sense of exile”, the opening of the CD booklet notes tells us, “is not always accompanied by geographical displacement.” Hence the title of this outstanding disc of virtually unknown works by Adolf Busch – who, although not Jewish, chose to leave Germany when Hitler came to power in 1933 – and Walter Braunfels, who, while half-Jewish, chose to remain in Germany despite the implications for his career and personal safety. Toronto’s ARC Ensemble (Artists of The Royal Conservatory) specializes in reviving long-buried and essentially-forgotten repertoire, especially the works of composers whose lives were fundamentally altered by the Second World War and in particular by the Holocaust. Both Busch, now remembered primarily as a violinist and as leader of the Busch Quartet, and Braunfels were established composers in 1920s Germany. Busch’s String Sextet Op.40 from 1928 (revised in 1933) remains unpublished, however, and Braunfel’s String Quintet Op.63, from 1945, has never been recorded before. Both works are strongly in the German Romantic tradition, a factor which worked against both composers in the post-war years, despite their treatment by the Third Reich. The ARC members – Marie Bérard and Benjamin Bowman (violins), Steven Dann and Carolyn Blackwell (violas), Bryan Epperson and David Hetherington (cellos) – are superb throughout. Recorded in the RCM’s Koerner Hall last November, every nuance of their performance is magnificently captured by producer David Frost. The recording has the distinction of being the first produced in this acoustically superior new concert venue. The excellent booklet notes are by ARC Artistic Director Simon Wynberg. An absolute gem of a CD. Terry Robbins
Featuring two extraordinary works for strings, Adolf Busch's Sextet, and Walter Braunfels' Quintet, Two Roads to Exile (released May 6th, 2010 on Sony Masterworks) continues the ARC Ensemble's artistic mission to expand and deepen our awareness of unknown masterpieces.

Price: $19.98