gramophone.co.uk GRAMOPHONE SEPTEMBER 2019 75‘FolkTales’
‘BritishCelloandPianoMiniatures’
BaxFolkTaleBridgeCradleSong.SpringSong
DeliusCaprice.Elegy.RomanceElgarRomance,
Op 62 MoeranIrishLament.Prelude
VaughanWilliamsFantasiaonGreensleeves.
SixStudiesinEnglishFolkSong
GeraldPeregrinevcAntonyInghampf
NaxosB8 574035(54’• DDD)Attheheartofthis
recordingofBritish
post-Romanticcello
miniaturesisan
explorationofmusicfromthatwonderfully
fertileperiodduringthefirsthalfofthe
20thcenturyinwhichthesingingvoice
ofthecelloenjoyedaparticularly
propitiousrelationshipwiththeprevailing
lyricalidealsofitscomposers.Thisis
broughtoutwithsympathyandvariety
byGeraldPeregrineandthediscerning
supportofAntonyIngham,whoseplangent
chemistrycommunicatesthemelancholy
tingethatinhabitsallcornersofthis
fragilerepertoire.
PeregrineandInghambringapleasing
shapetothepremiererecordingofthe
celloversionofElgar’sRomance,Op62,
forbassoonandorchestra,though,forall
thesensitivityofthecharacteristically
falteringphrasing,Iadmittomissingthe
ever-changing,interjectingtimbresof
Elgar’sorchestration.Thefolkidiomof
VaughanWilliams’sSixStudiesinEnglish
FolkSong(1926)andtheFantasiaon
Greensleeves(whichsoundsparticularly
wellinthecello’stessitura)aregently
nuancedandthisinsightisextendedto
theneglectedbutnolessdelightfulIrish
Lament(1944)andPrelude(1943)by
EJMoeran,whowrotethemforhis
wife,PeersCoetmore.Thetwopieces
byFrankBridge–the‘SpringSong’from
FourShortPiecesforviolinandpiano
(1912)andCradleSong(1910)–embody
thatfirstflushofromanticlyricismin
thecomposer’sstylewhicheruptedin
hissuiteTheSea(1911).Bax’sFolkTale
(1918),hisfirstsoloworkforcelloandthe
mostsubstantialworkhere,hasanarrative
qualityinitsCelticmuse,amountingin
manywaystoaminiaturetonepoem.
Perhapsmostrevealing,however,arethe
threeeuphoniousshortessaysofDelius–
theRomance(1918)andtheCapriceand
Elegy(1930),writtenwithFenby’s
assistance.Herethemelodiousdimension
ofthecomposer’sgift(oftenignoredin
favourofhisuniqueharmoniclanguage)
isallowedtoshinethroughwithspecial
luminosity.JeremyDibble‘Palimpsest’
JSBachChromaticFantasiaandFugue,
BWV903(arrR Stoltzman)McKinleyMostly
Blues– Nos2,8 & 12PiazzollaFugay misterio.
Tango-ÉtudeNo 5 RavelPavanepourune
infantedéfunteZornPalimpsest
RichardStoltzmanclMikaStoltzmanmarimba
PedroGiraudodbHéctorDelCurtobandoneón
AvieFAV2409(59’• DDD)Clarinetandmarimba
makeanoddcouple.
Theirtimbresare
almostdiametric
opposites–onewarmandcreamy,the
othercoolandbonedry–andit’sbecause
ofthesestarkdifferences,perhaps,that
theycomplementoneanothersowell.
What’smorecurious,tomyears,isthe
starkcontrastinperformancestyle.
RichardStoltzman’splayingisquite
freeandruminative.Inhisarrangement
forsoloclarinetofBach’sChromatic
Fantasy,forexample,hereplacestheflorid
virtuosityoftheoriginalkeyboard-writing
withsomethingfarmoreintrospective.
Indeed,heseemstobesearchingevery
scaleandornamentalflourishforits
expressivepossibilities.What’slostinthis
lovinglydetailedapproach,unfortunately,
isasenseofthemusic’slarge-scale
phraseologyandarchitecture.
MikaStoltzmanplayshertranscription
ofBach’sChaconnewithgreaterrhythmic
rigourthanherhusband,yether
interpretationfeelssimilarlycontemplative,
andherdelicatetouchbringsan
unexpectedandtouchingfragilityto
thismonumentalwork.Ofcourse,the
Chaconnelackstheimprovisatoryflair
oftheFantasy;butevenintheFugue–
wherethetwoplaytogether,joinedby
abandoneón(anotherunlikelyyet
compatiblepartner)–sheseemstobe
theonesteeringthesteadycourse.
InPiazzolla’sFugaymisterio(from
thetangooperaMaríadeBuenosAires),
MsStoltzmanisabittoostraight,
rhythmicallyspeaking,despitetheoddly
relaxedtempo.Thisisurbanmusicthat
requiresurgencyandatleastahintof
menace.Also,giventhattheBachand
Piazzollaarrangementsaretextually
faithfultotheoriginals,Iwassurprisedthat
theirversionofRavel’sPavaneisnotand
soundsmorelikealooselyimpressionistic
jazzimprovisation.
AsidefromtheChaconne,themost
compellingperformancesareofWilliam
ThomasMcKinley’scharmingMostlyBlues
miniaturesandJohnZorn’sPalimpsest.
TheseworkswerewrittenfortheStoltzmans,andbothcomposerscapitalise
effectivelyontheinstruments’–andthe
performers’–differences.
AndrewFarach-Colton‘Singin’Rhythm’
AbeVariationsonDowland’sLachrimaePavane
CruixentMarimbamoksha,Op46.Elparío,
Op 47 DinicuHorastaccatoEspelZambapara
escuchartusilencioPereiraBatecoxaSammut
SailingforPhilVassilevaKalinomome
Vassileva/DinizPiperomisturado
ViviVassilevamarimba/vibraphone/perc
LucasCamparaDinizgtrViviVassilevaQuintet
AlphaFALPHA463(60’• DDD)‘Singin’ Rhythm’
finds multi-
percussionist Vivi
Vassileva pursuing
all directions at once, from marimba
soloist to bandleader, in a cross-section
of music encompassing a contemporary
classical solo, Brazilian pop-based fare
and several original compositions. The
disc opens with Guillo Espel’s Zamba
para escuchar tu silencio, treated as a gentle
unaccompanied marimba ballad. Only in
its energetic third movement does Eric
Sammut’s Sailing for Phil aspire beyond
pleasant pablum. By the third piece,
Marco Pereira’s Bate coxa, Vassileva’s
virtuosity comes into its own, egged on
by guitarist Lucas Campara Diniz’s nimble
fingerpicking. The duo next turn in a
deliciously succinct Hora staccato.
Oriol Cruixent’s Marimba moksha
mainly stands out for Vassileva’s idiomatic
handling of the music’s syncopated samba
rhythms, where beats are implied more
than stated. Following her sensitively
nuanced reading of Keiko Abe’s Dowland
Variations, Vassileva multitracks herself on
various percussion and mallet instruments
for her own Kalino mome, which I find more
interesting in the louder, denser passages
than in the rambling solo marimba parts.
Pipero misturado, a joint composition with
Diniz, features the kind of low-key yet
pleasant contrapuntal interplay patented by
the Modern Jazz Quartet 50-plus years ago.
The harmonic predictability of Cruixent’s
El parío renders the ensemble’s refined
execution ideal for background listening.
I hope that the Vassileva Quintet’s next
release will be more musically adventurous
and daring. Jed DistlerCHAMBER REVIEWSPHOTOGRAPHY:
TOKE BJØRNEBOE
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