Cat’s Cradle
Arnab Chakrabarty
Independent (arnabchakrabarty.bandcamp.com/releases)

Musicians from around the globe have chosen to make Toronto home ever since the days it was colloquially tagged for hogs and muddy streets. Virtuoso sarod player Arnab Chakrabarty, a representative of the venerable Hindustani raga classical music tradition, is a relatively recent and welcome addition to the ranks of Toronto-area music professionals.  

No novice, over the last two decades Chakrabarty has played hundreds of concerts on stages around the world. Indian newspaper The Hindu reported that Chakrabarty is “known both for his emotive virtuosity and cerebral approach,” believing not in “simplifying music to cater to popular tastes as much as revelling in ‘manipulating the operative rules of the ragas to create interesting expressions.’” 

Chakrabarty aims to make classical raga performance accessible to today’s audiences without compromising its fundamentals. And his third full-length album Cat’s Cradle, featuring sarod renderings of five classical ragas, reflects this balanced approach. Eschewing flamboyant ornamental passagework, he rather focuses on the core values of the raga at hand which come to life in the alap, the introductory melodic improvisation.

The gat, a melody set in a specific raga and tala (time cycle) the latter rendered on the tabla, follows. On this album the gats are Chakrabarty’s compositions. They in turn inspire improvisation, the outcome of a spirited dialogue between set rules and the musician’s imagination freed up.

Cat’s Cradle gives full scope to Chakrabarty’s in-depth understanding and imaginative exploration of each raga complex, plumbing their signature phrases and emotional tenor while never losing sight of the rich Hindustani traditions of raga performance practice.

Vessel
Gamelan Pacifica
Independent 002 (gamelanpacifica.org)

Led by composer Jarrad Powell, for over 40 years Seattle’s Gamelan Pacifica has been one of the few ensembles specializing in the intersection of Southcentral Javanese gamelan and international experimental music. Its new release Vessel extends that approach in new directions, bookended by two works by group musician and composer Stephen Fandrich. Laras Chopin and Difference both evoke a sound world of electronic clusters, or perhaps of bowed glass bowls, supported by occasional powerful bass tones. Yet Fandrich creates that soundscape using mostly acoustic sounds coaxed from bowed metal gamelan instruments, deep gongs, and a piano played with an electromagnetic bow. The effect is magical.

Fandrich’s Iron Tears explores regions between the Western harmonies rendered by the Del Sol string quartet and indigenous gamelan tunings. They’re allowed to interweave for 12 minutes before cadencing in a surprising A Major chord. 

Powell’s Tsuki features the brilliant Javanese-inflected singing by Jessika Kenney of an English text by Zen Master Doĝen urging us toward direct experience, the path to spiritual awakening. In her challenging work Scar, composer Kenney aims to “unlearn Javanese vocal timbres and melodic patterns without relearning centering whiteness.” She explains the work is a “prayer which intends to reject the violence of white imperial privilege, and also to unlearn [the] Javanese vocal tradition” in which she is so fluent.

Finally, Ketawang Panembah by Darsono Hadirahardjo features an emotional rebab (2-string bowed lute) solo masterfully played by Jesse Snyder. Originally meant to evoke a prayer for divine blessing, this moving music – and much of the album – reminds us of the healing power of music in dark times.

Shanties! Live
La Nef; Chor Leoni
Leaf Music NEF0003 (chorleoni.org/product/shanties-live/)

There could be nothing more eminently singable and danceable than sea shanties – those apparently unforgettable work songs from the 19th century. Fortuitously – perhaps even providentially – proud Canadians (particularly of the Scottish diaspora) continue to keep the cultural flame of the shanty alive. There is much to choose from; shanties – creations of the peripatetic merchant mariner – grew out of the French “chanter” fused into boisterous barn-dancing songs, merrily sung by British mariners into a pint of lager across the ocean to North America. Many have made it to this outstanding live recording. 

Two celebrated traditional music groups – Montreal’s La Nef and Vancouver’s Juno-nominated Chor Leoni, came together for a one-night-only performance of brand new arrangements of these work songs on the resplendent Shanties! Live. It would be a minor travesty to suggest that all praise for this performance accrues to members of La Nef, albeit the fact that the ensemble’s fame is owed to their iconic soundtrack for Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed video game. The participation of the iconic Chor Leoni has – together with arrangements by Seán Dagher and the Chor directed by Erick Lichte – turned this rare collaboration into something truly special. 

Rip-roaring shanties such as Haul on the Bowline and the stomach-churning Stormalong John provide thrill-a-minute excitement. Meanwhile the profound beauty of Lowlands Away, Shallow Brown and Le 31 du mois d’août, and the sublime fidelity of the recording make this classic sea shanties disc truly spectacular.

Listen to 'Shanties! Live' Now in the Listening Room

Three Corners
Hypnosis Negative
(instagram.com/hypnosis.negative)

Hypnosis Negative is a collaboration between Canadian Robert Alan Mackie (violin) and Estonian Katariina Tirmaste (flute, jawharp). The duo explores the roots of dance in their modern original interpretations of international and traditional repetitive dance music with inherent trance-like “hypnotic” listening and movement qualities.  

The ten-track debut release includes their modern renditions of some Estonian dance tunes they found in folk music archives, which I appreciate as a Canadian musician of Estonian parents. The first track – Hi (Mardi Tandi Polka), and  last track – Bye (Kuldimuna Lõikaja) – are each under 50 seconds, opening and closing the release with two shorter version repetitive rhythmic and melodic Estonian polka interpretations. Track 2, Buffalo Gals, (Kuldimuna Lõikaja), from the “common repertoire” Estonia, is its longer version. This upbeat rendition has many melodic repetitions with flute harmonies, quasi atonality and a waltz midstream, with a legato violin countermelody to an abrupt “time to stop dancing” accented ending. Guest percussionist is Juan de la Fuente Alcón. His subtle background beats in the calming waltz Sõrmõlugu from Estonian Jaan Palu’s repertoire, support high-pitched flute, violin held notes and astoundingly tight lyrical unison instrumental passages. Three southeastern United States square dance interpretations show a surprising traditional folk-dance similarity to them. There are Spanish cultural flavours with tight violin and flute playing over percussion grooves in the more contemporary sounding Cantiga 181 by Alfonso X El Sabio.

Hypnosis Negative is creating a brilliant traditional music future here, both on and off the dance floor!

Listen to 'Three Corners' Now in the Listening Room

They were supposed to have vanished when singers replaced big bands and become anachronisms once rock music combos became the de facto performance configuration. Yet large ensembles never went away. The challenge of blending multiple instrumental colours still fascinates composers and players of both notated and improvised music. Producing the proper balance between those two motifs, while taking advantage of every timbre produced by a large group of musicians is what characterizes the following CDs.

Using the 14-member Trondheim Jazz Orchestra, Norwegian bassist Ole Morton Vågan created Plastic Wave (Odin Records ODINLP 9578 odinrecords.bandcamp.com), a 2CD meditation on modern challenges and promises. Although the brief recitations by a poet are lost on non-Norwegian speakers, the compositions stand on their own. Taking advantage of the soprano tessitura of vocalist Sofia Jernberg, Vågan’s arrangements often blend her wordless lyricism with brassy fissures or placid reed tones. But groove is never sacrificed for gentleness. Throughout motifs, which suggest Charles Mingus at his bluesiest and Henry Mancini at his jazziest, are driven by Ståle Storløkken’s Hammond organ pumps, Kjetil Møster’s and Espen Reinertsen’s tenor saxophone vamps and Vågan’s own double bass stops. Tracks such as Critical Mass Distraction are notable for their unified polyphony, as the piece advances due to contributions from trumpeter Eivind Lønning’s shakes and triplets and violinist Ola Kvernberg’s barbed glissandi. Meanwhile, drummers Gard Nilssen and Håkon Johansen’s pops and rebounds emphasize the tune’s spikiness, confirmed by a coda of heightened brassiness. Extended or briefer tracks accentuate the unforced swing that underlies the program. Two of the more notable are Pickaboogaloo and the title track; moving along with double bass thumps and drum backbeats the former maintaining a funk tempo projected by contrapuntal reed and brass riffs. Soon though, a wailing plunger interlude from trombonist Øyvind Brække, paced by double time organ smears introduces a stop-time variant that matches portamento brass flutters and honks from the group’s four-person reed section, sliding from that dissonate interlude to a coordinated finale. Plastic Wave confirms tone construction. Gradually building up from unified voice, brass and reed expressions, Oscar Grønberg’s piano tinkles precede an arrangement that alternates intermittent drum beats, brass tongue sucking and puffs from Eirik Hegdal’s baritone saxophone with the layered harmonies of the introduction. 

Another double bassist, Benjamin Duboc of Paris, composed and directed an even more ambitious project. Entitled Volumes II – Fiction Musicale et Chorégraphique – Création pour Grand Orchestre et Corps Actants (Dark Tree DT 15 darktree-records.com), Duboc’s  Ensemble Icosikaihenagone (EI) runs through a single (nearly) 45-minute arrangement that brings to life this fictitious idea. Added to the 22 instrumentalists, who also vocalize, are the voices of three actors. With the text oscillating between imagery and sardonic comments, with voices often overlapping, it’s best to concentrate on the music. Beginning with near-silence, it’s not until after the first four minutes that a harmonized chord from seemingly every ensemble member moves in a linear fashion but without losing the exposition’s near-opaqueness. Although reed squeaks and string strokes are sometimes detached from the sonic murk, it isn’t until repeated kettle-drum-like throbs from percussionists Thierry Waziniak and Amélie Grould introduces a dramatic upsurge from reed players Jean-Luc Petit and Sylvain Kassap, soon followed by Émilie Aridon-Kociołek’s reflective keyboard interlude, fully define the musical program. Brassy triplets from trumpeters Jean-Luc Cappozzo and Franz Hautzinger join with the seven string players for a crescendo of undifferentiated timbres amplified with expressions from two female and one male voice. These fragments emphasize the composition’s two contrapuntal currents: dissonant footfall-like tongue slaps from the reeds and romantic glissandi from violinists Mathias Naon and Patricia Bosshard. Confirming his manipulations of low pitches Duboc’s next section matches Dorian Marcel’s and Sébastien Beliah’s percussive double bass motifs to Diemo Schwarz’s electronic samples which interject mariachi-like brass, Latin dance, waltz music snatches and hooting voices. The sampled voices and electronic wave forms continue in the following sequence as they’re toughened with Christiane Bopp’s and Alexis Persigan’s portamento trombone slurs, anvil-hard percussion smashes, percussion slaps and wordless bel-canto vocalizing. Reaching another polyphonic crescendo, the voices, electronic buzzes and trumpet triplets fade to silence. Now suspended in time, ones wonder how Volumes I and Volumes III sound.

Interest in large-scale improvisation appears to fascinate French musicians, since six months before the EI disc was recorded, the 24-member Le Un troupe made its album. Coincidentally organized by David Chiesa, another double bass player, Le Havre (UnRec R 21 unensemble.bandcamp.com/album/le-havre) finds the orchestra, with a similar blend of reeds, brass, strings, percussion and electronics working its way through five group compositions over 65 minutes. The performances can be low key and slow moving or aggressive and rapid. But whether a tune’s horizontal progress is spurred by, for instance, Claire Bergerault’s accordion shakes or pianist Sophie Agnel’s key clips, overblowing and circular breathing from the four reed players, or staccato stops from the eight plucked or bowed strings, group affiliations and counterpoint always supersede singular instrumental spots. Vocalized yells, electronic drones, reed yelps and brass triplets have their place but are balanced and layered. Chiesa’s preference for low pitches means that a track such as Unité Nodale 8.2 reaches a climax at mid-point as double bass pumps preface a defining sequence where every one of the instruments’ tones, pops, cries, thumps and squeaks in unison, with bell tree shakes as a respite. Unité Nodale 11.2 and Unité Nodale 3.1, the introductory and concluding salvos, express this strategy at greatest length. On the first, affiliations from tremolo accordion brush up against thick double bass stops, mooing reeds and trumpeter Christian Pruvost’s half-valve expressions, reaching a crescendo of miasmatic blending. This mixture bypasses stuttering rips from the trumpeter and trombonist Patrick Charbonnier plus col legno string sweeps to reach a contrapuntal climax of intermittent piano clips and thumping ruffs from percussionists Camille Emaille and Benoit Kilian. That’s until spiccato string shakes, brass scoops and vocalized bel canto sighs sail across the lower pitches for a finale. These alternations from complete freedom to integration are confirmed with Unité Nodale 3.1 although here the reverberating metallic pressure and vibrating sibilation from Pascal Battus’ rotating surfaces and Jérôme Noetinger and Lionel Marchetti’s electronics are more prominent. Among the concentrated timbres of drones, pops, slaps and shakes dualism is set up between pairs such as Nina Garcia’s guitar strums and saxophonist Michel Doneda’s wailing split tones, or as multiple circular breathing abuts swift string glissandi. Ascending to a mesh of electroacoustic output, the cumulative tone ascends in pitch and loudness until it shakes away.

Unlike the massive ensembles put together by EI and Le Un, another French band, the Healing Orchestra (HO) presents its music as Free Jazz for the People! (LFDS 011 lefondeurdeson.com) with only 14 musicians. Despite the insurgent title, the two CDs combine free-form swinging with precise touch of emotional free jazz. Led by vibist/pianist Paul Wacrenier, who composed all the music, the strategic arrangements take advantage of every member’s talent. Pouvoir du Dedans which introduces the three-part title suite, features slurping and squeezed clarion variations from Kassap who has a less prominent role with Le Un. Overall his staccato tongue-slapping floats over lumbering group work then introduces a section characterized by throbbing bass lines from Victor Aubert and Blaise Chevalier and climaxes with a dual between violinist Sarah Colomb’s stretched spiccato and flutist Fanny Ménégoz’s peeping whistles. This dualism is used to striking effect on other tracks, especially when soloists pop out of concentrated orchestral motifs before integrating themselves back into the evolving themes. Confluences and L’Estaca suite’s final tracks illustrate this. The flutist’s traverse colouration; projected triplets from trumpeter Xavier Bornens; snorting and searing altissimo and vibrated split tones from saxophonists Arnaud Sacase (alto), Jean-François Petitjean (tenor) and Jon Vicuna (baritone); plus Wacrenier’s staccato vibes chiming and linear piano comping heard briefly but crucially. Personalizing the packed group improvisations, the narrative is loosened enough so that the shift to a happy dance rhythm makes the finale more freylekhs than free jazz. This same balance between freneticism and facility is expressed on Blooming In Tough Days, the extended finale of the Fraternity Suite. After exploring motifs encompassing folkloric harmonies by the three arco string players, gong-like resonations from the vibes and a touch of drone from concentrated timbres led by low-pitched piano notes, baritone sax honks and plucked bass thumps, the group settles into a groove. With portamento brass scoops, mellow violin glissandi and drummer Benoist Raffin’s press rolls, the suite and session exit with joyous vamps that are spirited, streetwise and sophisticated all at once.

There are similar concepts from Vancouver’s Hard Rubber Orchestra (HRO) on Iguana (Hard Rubber DL hardrubber.com).The urbane arrangements by leader/trumpeter John Korsrud and others make it sound as if they’re being played by a larger group whereas the HRO is usually an octet. Always ready to emphasize the hard in the group’s name, the tracks often suggest how a metal band would sound playing all acoustic instruments. Instances of this are the extended Source Code, composed and featuring guitarist Harry Stafylakis and Korsrud’s Force Majeure. Built up from buzzy guitar and electric bass riffs and backbeat drumming from Eliot Doyle, the often agitated program still finds room for Mark Ferris’ Baroque-tinged mid-point violin sweeps before a polyphonic climax-crescendo with every instrument, especially the three hocketing and harmonized horns projecting at once. Based around a responsive and repeated chunky pattern by drummers Trent Otter and Kai Basanta, this background power pushes juddering and ascending chords from saxophonists Tom Keenlyside and Jon Bentley plus thickened brass portamento from Jim Hopson’s three low-pitched horns. Metal doesn’t replace melody however, since Korsrud’s From the Earth is a veritable piano concerto for Marianne Trudel. As her piano line evolves with Romantic overtones including waterfalls of notes and individual plinking, Mike Herriott adds to the Arcadian mood with overdubbed harmonized French horn, trombone, bass trombone and flugelhorn textures. Other tracks showcase everything from Vivian Houle’s alternating banshee-like or warbling vocalizing floating over electrified violin sweeps and paced by Ron Samworth’s guitar drones, to the stop-time title track that matches a Latin tinge with driving plunger brass and Samworth’s string slaps. Overall it appears the HRO has every part of the sound spectrum covered.

A comparison of the sparse HRO personnel with the many players involved elsewhere shows how modern large ensemble writing and playing can take many forms if creativity is in the right hands.

Canadian violinist Karl Stobbe recently created a series of online concerts featuring video recordings of solo violin repertoire, including all six of the Bach Sonatas & Partitas. These recordings are now being turned into a series of albums, with Bach & Bartók the opening volume (karlstobbe.com).

Stobbe pairs Bach’s Sonata No.3 in C Major BWV1005 with the Bartók Sonata for Solo Violin for historical as well as musical reasons: Bartók heard Yehudi Menuhin play the Bach in early 1944 when he was working on his own sonata, commissioned by Menuhin after their late-1943 meeting. Stobbe senses a connection, feeling that the Bach C Major is the only one of the Bach works that has a similar musical journey to the Bartók – from darkness to light, through uncertainty and wandering harmonies to an expression of celebration and joy.

Stobbe has a big, rich sound, and the strength to navigate the fiendishly difficult Fuga in the Bach as well as the technical challenges in the Bartók. It promises to be a fascinating series.

Concert Note: Karl Stobbe performs at the Festival of the Bay, Midland Cultural Centre, on July 26 and at the Festival of the Sound on July 28.

Listen to 'Bach & Bartók' Now in the Listening Room

There’s more Baroque violin music from an exact contemporary of Bach on Telemann 12 Fantasias for Violin Solo in supremely satisfying performances by Tomás Cotik (Centaur CRC 3949 tomascotik.com).

In previous reviews I’ve noted that the Fantasias, written some 15 years after Bach’s Sonatas & Partitas at first appear less challenging than the Bach. They seem so much easier on the page, shorter and with simpler lines and less multiple-stopping, but they’re fraught with technical pitfalls – angular, awkward intervals, tricky string-crossing – and they play much faster than they look.

Still, nothing challenges Cotik, who uses a Baroque bow to lovely effect in the slow sections and to simply dance through the Allegro, Presto and Vivace movements. There are 44 sections in all, some only a few bars long, but all are inventive, varied and charming. The booklet essay says that “every note of these often complex pieces lies perfectly, if not easily, [my italics] under the bow.”

Well, yes – if you’re as superb a player as Tomás Cotik.

The Bartók sonata also turns up in Ostinata: works for solo violin, the excellent debut recording from the young London-based French violinist Charlotte Saluste-Bridoux (Champs Hill CHRCD158 champshillrecords.co.uk).

Biber’s Passacaglia in G Minor, “The Guardian Angel”, the final piece from his Rosary Sonatas, is followed by Bartók’s Sonata for Solo Violin and the Prokofiev Sonata in D Major Op.115. Grażyna Bacewicz’s Sonata No.2 from 1958 and Ysaÿe’s Sonata No.4 in E Minor Op.27, dedicated to Kreisler, complete the disc.

There’s smooth, clean playing throughout, with technical assurance, strong melodic lines and no hint of roughness – I’ve certainly heard the Bartók Fuga (which Karl Stobbe interestingly terms “brutal”) played with more attack and spikiness. The Presto final movement in the Bacewicz is quite brilliant, and an idiomatic reading of the Ysaÿe sonata completes a highly satisfying recital.

There should be a warning label on violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja CDs: “Fireworks – handle with care.” You always get something different and incredibly exciting from this player who never hesitates to take risks, and so it is with her latest CD Le Monde selon George Antheil with pianist Joonas Ahonen (Alpha Classics ALPHA797 outhere-music.com/en/albums/le-monde-selon-george-antheil).

Antheil, the American composer and pianist, caused riots in early 1920s Europe as a “Pianist-Futurist” who wrote machine-like and explosive piano works. Presented here is his astonishing Violin Sonata No.1 from 1923, its percussive and machine-like outer movements in particular drawing terrific playing from the duo.

 Antheil’s world, referenced in the CD title, included Morton Feldman and John Cage, the former represented here by the brief Piece (1950) and Extensions 1 (1951) and Cage by his 1947 Nocturne. It’s the Violin Sonata No.7 in C Minor Op.30 No.2 by Antheil’s lifelong hero Beethoven, however, that sees Kopatchinskaja really upping the excitement levels in a quite remarkable performance.

There’s an outstanding new set of the complete Beethoven Cello Sonatas, this time with cellist Alisa Weilerstein and pianist Inon Barnatan (Pentatone PTC5186884 pentatonemusic.com/product/beethoven-cello-sonatas).

The two have been playing together since 2008 and are close friends, and their mutual understanding shows in every moment of these beautifully judged performances. They were recorded during the pandemic in 2020 for the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth, with Weilerstein saying that doing so “at such a fragile, chaotic time” helped make it an immensely rewarding experience. 

It certainly shows in superb performances that will more than hold their own against any competition.

Denmark’s Nightingale String Quartet follows up its outstanding first volume of fellow-countryman Vagn Holmboe’s complete works in the genre with Vagn Holmboe String Quartets Vol.2 (Dacapo 6.220717 naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=6.220717).

The three works this time are the String Quartet No.2 Op.47 from 1949, the String Quartet No.14 Op.125 from 1975 and the two-movement Quartetto sereno Op.197 posth., the shortest of Holmboe’s quartets and unofficially No.21. Started just two months before the composer’s death in 1996, it was completed by his friend and former pupil Per Nørgård.

The exceptionally high standard of the initial volume is continued here, the publicity material accurately describing the performances as “energetic, precise yet lively and poetic interpretations” of works which “stand among the most significant contributions to the genre in the 20th century.”

Swordsman, horseman, athlete, violinist, composer – what a fascinating individual Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges must have been. SAINT-GEORGES Six Concertante Quartets is the fourth Naxos CD devoted to his works, in performances by the Arabella String Quartet (8.574360 naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=8.574360).

Saint-Georges wrote three sets of six quartets, starting with Six Quatuors Op.1 in 1772 and ending with Six Quatuors concertans Op.14 in 1785. The quartets in the current set, written in 1777 and published without opus number in 1779, are all short works of only two movements each. 

The string quartet form in France was in the early stages of development at the time, the four-movement form being developed by Haydn having little influence. Still, as the booklet notes remark, while small in scale these quartets are exceptionally rewarding, amply demonstrating Saint-Georges’ rich lyrical gifts and natural ability to delight performers and audiences alike.

Lovely playing makes for an absolutely delightful CD.

The French violinist Gérard Poulet, who turns 84 later this year, is no stranger to the Beethoven violin sonatas, having released a 4CD box set in 2001 in addition to a few single releases, all with different pianists. His latest recording is Beethoven Sonates pour violon et piano nos. 3, 5 et 7, with pianist Jean-Claude Vanden Eynden (Le Palais des Dégustateurs PDD026 lepalaisdesdegustateurs.com).

The sonata keys and opus numbers aren’t identified, but they are No.3 in E-flat Major Op.12, No.5 in F Major Op.24 “Spring” and No.7 in C Minor Op.30 No.2. Poulet has a lovely sound – warm, sweet and never forced or over-stressed. These are simply lovely readings, with the “Spring” sonata (which also features in all the above-mentioned recordings) at the heart of a delightful recital. 

Chinoiserie – Building New Musical Bridges is the fascinating debut CD from the Duo Chinoiserie of classical guitarist Bin Hu and Jing Xia on guzheng, the Chinese plucked string instrument similar to a zither. Described as a true melding of Eastern and Western cultures, it features arrangements of works by Granados, de Falla and Debussy as well as contemporary compositions (Navona NV6417 navonarecords.com/catalog/nv6417).

Newly commissioned works by Sérgio Assad and Mathias Duplessy, along with Yusuke Nakanishi’s Inari open and close the disc. All other titles are transcriptions by the Duo Chinoiserie, including Stephen Goss’ Cantigas de Santiago, three excerpts from El amor brujo, the Granados Oriental and Debussy’s Girl with the Flaxen Hair and Golliwog’s Cakewalk.

The guzheng’s clear, distinctive sound obviously tends to dominate, especially if it’s taking the melodic line, but it combines perfectly with the guitar to produce a quite unique musical experience.

Consolations – Liszt Six Consolations and other reflective pieces for violin and piano, featuring violinist Maya Magub and pianist Hsin-I Huang is another lockdown project, started when Nathan Milstein’s transcription of the third of Six Consolations for Solo Piano inspired Magub to transcribe the remaining five for violin and piano herself (CRD Records CRD3540 crdrecords.com).

The big difference here was the decision to record the tracks independently and then combine them in the studio, although having to decide which to record first possibly contributed to a sense of treading carefully and a general absence of risk-taking.

Accompanying the Liszt are 12 short pieces, with evergreen favourites by Schumann, Massenet, Rachmaninoff, Kreisler, Bach/Gounod, Dushkin/Paradis, Handel, Chopin and Mendelssohn.

Magub’s violin sound is clear and warm and quite distinctive – a slow vibrato (if any at all) and occasional portamento. Both instruments are clearly recorded.

The Armenian-American Aznavoorian sisters Ani, cello, and Marta, piano, make their duo recording debut with Aznavoorian Duo: Gems from Armenia, a CD that explores their musical heritage (Cedille Records CDR 90000 209 cedillerecords.org).

The disc opens with five ancient folk songs arranged by the Western-trained orthodox priest, composer and musicologist Komitas Vartabed (1869-1935), a seminal figure in Armenian classical music. Four Soviet-era composers are represented: Aram Khachaturian with two brief pieces; Arno Babajanian (1921-83) with the lovely Elegy for solo piano and the Aria & Dance; Alexander Arutiunian (1920-2012) with the lively Impromptu; and Avet Terterian (1929-94) with the really impressive three-movement Sonata for cello and piano from 1956.

Contemporary Armenian composers are represented by single short pieces by Serouj Kradjian (b.1973), well known in Toronto as the pianist in Amici, and Vache Sharafyan (b.1966), plus the world-premiere recording of Mount Ararat, commissioned from Peter Boyer (b.1970) for this recording project.

There’s some really lovely music here, all beautifully played and recorded.

The Tcherepnin family of composers is celebrated on Three Generations: Chamber Music by Ivan, Alexander and Nikolai Tcherepnin. Violinist Quan Yuan and pianist David Witten are the duo for almost the entire CD (Toccata Next TOCN 0012 toccataclassics.com).

Works by Alexander Tcherepnin (1899-1977) open the disc, his Romance WoO from 1922, his Élégie Op.43 from 1927 and Arabesque Op.11 No.5 from 1921 all being first recordings. The major work here is his three-movement Sonata in F Major Op.14.

The most attractive music on the disc is by the composer most active in the Russian late-Romantic era, Nikolai Tcherepnin (1873-1945). His Poème Lyrique Op.9 from 1900 is a simply lovely work that draws particularly fine playing from Quan, and his Andante and Finale Op. posth. from 1943 (another first recording) is also a gem, the dazzling folk-influenced Finale having more than a hint of Stravinsky’s Petrushka.

Two flute works by Ivan Tcherepnin (1943-98), Pensamiento and Cadenzas in Transition are played here by his wife, Sue-Ellen Hershman-Tcherepnin. She is joined by pianist Donald Berman and clarinetist Ian Greitzer for the premiere recording of the latter.

Although it was apparently released in 2020 I only recently received the CD of Brahms Trio Op.114 and Sonatas Op.120 in the composer’s own viola arrangements of three of the four late chamber works inspired by his friendship with clarinetist Richard Mühlfeld, but I’m including it because it features some of the loveliest viola playing I’ve heard in a long time (Le Palais des Dégustateurs PDD023 lepalaisdesdegustateurs.com).

Ettore Causa is the outstanding violist, ably supported by pianist Boris Berman throughout and by cellist Clive Greensmith in the Trio. The Steinway D piano adds depth and body to beautifully judged performances of Brahms at his most autumnal.

Canzone di Notte
Marianne Lambert; Valerie Milot
Fidelio FACD052 (mariannelambert.com)

The grand conception of this disc, intended to be in praise of bel canto, is instantly discernible. Why would it not be? Quebec soprano Marianne Lambert inhabits this repertoire, sliding into it as if into a second skin; musical secrets revealed from the tablet of her heart. 

The singer’s lustrous voice soars in melismatic and arpeggiated leaps, sometimes with sly, but glorious coloratura. She is an eminently graceful singer who can generate genuine pathos, as superbly captured on Vivaldi’s Sposa, son disprezzata or Rossini’s Giusto Ciel, in tal periglio!; conjure great hope as in Mozart’s Ridente la calma and Rossini’s La promessa; and unfettered joy on Donaudy’s Vaghissima sembianza. 

Lambert is an artist of the first order. She makes key phrases in these arias come alive and spring in balletic arcs, cutting through the still air of this room. She digs into the meaning of words and phrases and infuses their poetry with a sense of nostalgia and melancholy, painting the song’s fluid melodies with poignant candour.

With radiant chromaticisms and splendid sonorities the harpist Valérie Milot complements the plaintive soundworld of the characters played by the singer. Her notes are ideally weighed and measured, and fit perfectly onto Lambert’s vocals as if punctuating these songs with wistful and melancholy accents. Together Lambert and Milot create a grand edifice of song through this well-chosen repertoire.

Brian Field – Choral and Orchestral Works
Budapest Symphonic Orchestra and Choir; Lviv Philharmonic Society and Chorus; Composers’ Choir; Heelan Chorale
RMN Classical RMN70709 (brianfield.com)

I grew up in the Anglican tradition: high mass, chant choir in front, choir and organ in the loft behind, masses by Healey Willan, smells and bells, the lot. All this to say, “I get how American composer Brian Field can sound so English. His music is shamelessly ear-friendly, his instrumental writing idiomatic and choirs seem to revel in the beautiful sonorities he elicits from them.” I’m back as a bored altar boy dozing off amidst incense and anthems. Snapping awake to assure you this is a very enjoyable recording, I take issue with one reviewer’s pronouncement that Field “stretches tonality to and beyond its limits.” He seems quite content within tonality’s limits, whatever those are. 

Choral excellence from a variety of groups sets a standard not met by the instrumentalists of the Budapest Symphonic Orchestra. While the ensemble’s standards of rhythm and phrasing are acceptable, they seem casual regarding intonation; “stretched tonality” might have masked this, but Field’s tonal palette deserves more care. Carping aside, Shiva Tandava is a compelling concerto grosso and makes a nice change from the very fine choral writing. 

Perhaps more generous liner notes would explain how the Hindu god of destruction gets along with the reputedly benign Christian version, or at least what the title references. I’d appreciate knowing too, which choirs sing which of the various sacred (Christian) texts. His lovely setting of the Christina Rosetti poem In the Bleak Midwinter adds just a few pounds of tonal stretch to Gustav Holst’s version.

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Secret Places – A Tribute to Michel Legrand
Sharon Azrieli; Tamir Hendelman
LML Music (sharonazrieli.com)

The brilliant composer and pianist Michel Legrand died in 2019, and yet his work continues to resonate – not only in the films in which his compositions were heard, but in the many fine versions of his body of work that have been lovingly interpreted by international artists, including Canadian Sharon Azrieli. The arrangements and orchestrations on this fine collection were created by pianist Tamir Hendelman and Azrieli, who also co-produced the disc with David Merrill. First up is If There Were No Dreams (with lyrics by Neil Diamond). Azrieli brings her well-seasoned, classically trained and sibilant voice to this gentle, lilting and rarely performed ballad, while Lori Bell’s elegant flute and Alex Frank’s sinuous bass lines intertwine with an unaffected loveliness. Another delight is Secret Places – with snappy lyrics from master wordsmith, Alan Jay Lerner, the well-chosen title track displays the irrepressible joy of Legrand’s musical sensibility with a stunner of a piano solo by Hendelman and fine bass work by Frank.

Arguably, Legrand’s most constant collaborators were luminous lyricists Marilyn and Alan Bergman, bringing us many memorable compositions written for an array of fine films, including Les Moulins de Mon Coeur (better known as The Windmills of Your Mind) from 1968’s The Thomas Crown Affair.  Azrieli renders this excellent interpretation in English, and also in flawless French, expertly capturing the romance and passion of the cinematic plot. Also with the Bergmans, in What Are You Doing For the Rest of Your Life? Azrieli evokes an aura of deep emotion and mystery here – just as Legrand intended.

Two additional stunners include Watch What Happens and I Will Wait For You – with English lyrics by Norman Gimbel. Both of these gorgeous songs appeared in the equally gorgeous 1964 film, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg and feature fine soloing from Ricky Woodard on sax and Dean Koba on drums with Frank on bass. A superlative tribute to an eternal international artist.

Opera in Music – Carlo Monza Quartets
Europa Galante; Fabio Biondi
Naïve v 7541 (bfan.link/opera-in-musica-carlo-monza-quartets)

This is a world-premiere recording for these six quartets, an amazing fact because the sheer dramatic quality of these works means they deserved much earlier appreciation. In addition, recognition of Carlo Monza should surely have been forthcoming as a certain Mozart had been a 14-year-old in Monza’s native Milan looking out for local composers in order to make his own technique more locally acceptable. 

From the initial Quartetto in C Major “Gli amanti rivali” there is a spirited, operatic character to Monza’s compositions, as if the instruments are singing their own private arias, sometimes almost arguing with each other. The same quartet brings us the haunting, slow, subdued strings of the largo L’amante favorito muore.

The more one explores this collection, the more one wonders why Monza’s music was lost for so long. There is a stateliness to the adagio from Il giuocatore reminiscent of Pachelbel’s famous canon; the following allegro is worthy of Mozart or any of his contemporaries, while the same suite’s ravveduto appears to draw on the pastoral movements of the early Baroque.

Finally, there is the La caccia suite, unmistakable for the boisterousness of its opening movement, conjuring up the sounds of the hunt from which it is inspired. Monza saves perhaps his most intricate movement for last; Rondò de’ pastori frattanto che i cacciatori cenano creates the images of a hunt concluding in a quiet, satisfied atmosphere.  

Fabio Bondi devoted much time to finding Monza’s manuscript. A private library refused to lend it; kudos then to the Bibliothèque Nationale de France for lending its copy. And to Bondi for his perseverance in finding it.

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Fantasias
Mélisande McNabney
ATMA ACD2 2812 (atmaclassique.com/en)

The fantasia is an old and well-traversed musical form that reached its peak in the 18th and 19th centuries, combining improvisational flourishes, compositional skill and virtuosic panache into a single work. Many of music’s greatest minds have written fantasias for a range of keyboard instruments, including J.S. Bach’s works for harpsichord and organ, Mozart’s pianoforte fantasias and Liszt’s immense organ fantasias. This disc focuses on music written by three Baroque and classical-era luminaries: Johann Sebastian Bach; his son, Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach; and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, performed on the fortepiano by Montreal-based keyboardist Mélisande McNabney.

The decision to begin a fortepiano-centred recording with J.S. Bach’s Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue, BWV903 is an interesting one, as Bach almost certainly composed this work with the harpsichord in mind. (The fortepiano was invented in 1698, while J.S. Bach died in 1750; it’s not implausible to think that Bach was acquainted with early models of the fortepiano, but there is no evidence that he composed anything specifically for that instrument.) For those familiar with BWV903 performed on rhythmically percussive, reverb-rich harpsichord recordings, McNabney’s choice of instrument provides a drier and less aggressive approach, with more room for flexibility and rubato.

The remainder of the disc is comprised of smaller works by C.P.E. Bach and Mozart, as well as the large-scale Fantasia in C Minor, K475. This is, perhaps, the most successful combination of composition and instrument, as the moody affect combines with the fortepiano’s unique timbre and ability to produce contrasting dynamics with great success. Fantasias leaves little doubt that McNabney is a master keyboardist and skillful interpreter; this, combined with the charming and dramatic music itself, makes for a highly recommended recording, especially for those with a particular interest in early instruments.

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Haydn; Schubert
Boris Berman
Le Palais des Degustateurs PDD025 (lepalaisdesdegustateurs.com)

Boris Berman has had a long and distinguished career as a concert pianist, teacher and author. Many will remember his impeccable performances with orchestras around the globe, as well as his recordings of numerous solo piano works. He is most certainly a performer who projects a technical prowess within the gentle curves of the heart and, as such, late music by Haydn and Schubert suits him very well. 

Perhaps it is only fitting for a performer of that calibre to revisit, at some point in their career, the music that seems simple in structure and expression yet complex in nature. The pairing of late sonatas by Haydn (E-flat Major No.62 and D Major No.61) and Schubert (the “grand” Sonata in A Major D959) is simply wonderful. These two composers shared a similar structural architecture, rarely wrote flamboyant music and often left plenty of interpretative choices to the performers. Berman takes full advantage of it and is very successful in finding and bringing out commonalities, especially the splendid elegance of the phrases. On the other hand, he is equally brilliant in underlining the emotional restraint of Haydn versus the deep emotions of Schubert, without losing sight of the form and intentions of the composers. 

To me Berman’s playing feels like a narration of the story, and this narrator knows all the secrets behind the scenes.

Schubert – Relics
Mathieu Gaudet
Analekta AN 2 9186 (analekta.com/en)

When Schubert’s unfinished Sonata in C Major D840 was published in 1861, the publisher gave it the title Reliquie (Relic), a name which shall forever remain a mystery. The title was deemed worthy enough to be given to this Analekta recording featuring this and the Sonata in A Major D664 with pianist Mathieu Gaudet, the sixth volume in an ongoing series presenting Schubert’s complete piano sonatas and major piano works.

Despite its incomplete state, the Sonata D840 is monumental in size and there were opinions that it may even have been intended as a piano version of a large-scale symphony. Indeed, the majestic opening movement – all 16 minutes of it – is truly symphonic in spirit with large block chords and much unison writing which Gaudet handles with a solid assurance. The minuet and trio – which never progressed beyond the recapitulation – is more “scherzo” than “minuet” while the sprightly Rondo Finale is halted at mid-development. (The recording uses an alternate ending by pianist Paul Badura-Skoda.)

The Sonata D664 was composed during the summer of 1819 and is now known as the Little A Major Sonata to differentiate it from the much lengthier work (D959) in the same key from 1828. This is placid and lyrical music, with Gaudet offering up a fine legato, a fluid sense of rhythm and a keen sense of phrasing. The well-known Finale-Allegro is particularly joyful where Gaudet’s hands breathe new life into this familiar repertoire.

An added bonus is the brief Danse Allemande et Ecossaise D643, an appealing interlude between the two sonatas. For lovers of Schubert – or Romantic period piano music – this is another welcome addition to the series and we can look forward to more.

My Life In Music
Ruth Slenczynska
Decca B0035175-02 (deccaclassics.com/en)

Like it or not, success in the world of recorded music (classical, pop, jazz or otherwise) no longer, if it ever did, results exclusively from musical excellence. Rather, what is required is the coalescing of good music and a compelling backstory in order to command listener and record label attention. Though not a simple binary, examples abound, of course, of music more heavily weighted in one area, and not the other. There is the classic “style-over-substance” designation. Conversely, examples are many of truly great playing that has no extra musical narrative to help push its reception towards broader recognition. 

As music lovers, I am sure that we can all think of examples that reside in either of these two categories. Rarely, do both imperatives come together. But, thankfully such is the case on Ruth Slenczynska’s My Life In Music, new from Decca Records. The music: Samuel Barber, Debussy, Grieg, Bach and, of course, Chopin (Slenczynska had earned a reputation as among the most celebrated of Chopin interpreters while still a child prodigy) is, given the considerable time spent working on this repertoire, predictably amazingly played, recorded, interpreted and executed. But it is the extra musical bits, most notably the fact that this 2022 album was recorded when Slenczynska was 97-years old, representing a return to the Decca label after an absence of nearly 60 years, that makes this recording both a satisfying musical statement and a punctuation note on a fascinating life in music that I knew little about prior to the record’s release, the ensuing press and the considerable interest in this remarkable story.

Chopin Polonaises
Peter Schaaf
Schaaf Records SC 104 (peterschaaf.com)

Let me introduce you to an exceptionally talented artist, Peter Schaaf. Not only he is having a brilliant career as a concert pianist and accompanist but he is also a remarkable portrait photographer with such clients as Seiji Ozawa, André Laplante, Janina Fialkowska and Peter Schickele.

Due to the COVID epidemic his photographic career came to a halt, so for the past two years he has focused on the piano, practising more than ever, learning new pieces and expanding his repertoire. During this time he created and issued four CD recordings: 1) Chopin Polonaises, 2) Chopin Waltzes 3) Albeniz Iberia and 4) a miscellaneous waltz album from a few different composers like Schubert, Brahms, Ravel and Dvořák. And imagine, the four albums are available on his website for free download! I wouldn’t mind having any of them in my collection.

The Polonaise is a genuinely Polish, elegant dance especially suited to festive occasions. The couples line up one behind the other and move forward gracefully in a unique 3/4 time rhythm. It’s beautiful to watch and is sometimes even included in symphonies, concertos and operas. Chopin wrote eight of them (and my fondest wish was to be able to play the “Heroic” A flat Major Op.53, which I fell in love with). Schaaf plays it with joy and panache and the middle ostinato is particularly menacing. The Andante Spianato is flowing gracefully in sustained piano and the following Grand Polonaise erupts in fortissimo as a magnificent contrast. This is highly accomplished, technically brilliant, enthusiastic piano playing and a recording to match.