Franck/Vieuxtemps Works for Viola
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: César Franck, Henry Vieuxtemps
Label: Chandos
Magazine Review Date: 9/1992
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 59
Mastering:
DDD
Catalogue Number: CHAN8873
Tracks:
| Composition | Artist Credit |
|---|---|
| Sonata for Violin and Piano |
César Franck, Composer
César Franck, Composer Nobuko Imai, Viola Roger Vignoles, Piano |
| Sonata |
Henry Vieuxtemps, Composer
Henry Vieuxtemps, Composer Nobuko Imai, Viola Roger Vignoles, Piano |
| (6) Morceaux and a capriccio |
Henry Vieuxtemps, Composer
Henry Vieuxtemps, Composer |
| Elégie |
Henry Vieuxtemps, Composer
Henry Vieuxtemps, Composer Nobuko Imai, Viola Roger Vignoles, Piano |
Author: mjameson
Nobuko Imai gives a powerfully argued account of the Cesar Franck sonata in the company of the pianist Roger Vignoles. The chief advantage of this performance of what is rapidly becoming an over-recorded work lies in its relative conservatism and total lack of rhetorical artifice; this comes as a welcome alternative to more general tendencies in the Recitativo-Fantasia in particular. The sonata, often performed by cellists nowadays, actually suits the viola equally well, although there is a danger that the register and timbre of the instrument might pose problems at climactic moments in the score. Imai's performance is something of a triumph of textural clarity and she has been most beautifully and sympathetically recorded.
The violin virtuoso Henri Vieuxtemps is remembered primarily as a leading figure of the Franco-Belgian violin school, but his output as a composer includes works for viola and cello, in addition to an exhaustive catalogue for his own instrument. His ''Capriccio'' for solo viola, taken from the Morceaux, Op. 61, is given an idiomatic and commanding performance by Nobuko Imai, and her sensitively phrased account of the Elegie, Op. 30, is very ably supported by Roger Vignoles. The disc concludes with their polished and eloquent reading of Vieuxtemps's Sonata for viola and piano, Op. 36, scarcely a landmark in the genre, but an enterprising and competent essay, made all the more welcome in a version of this quality. Nobuko Imai's playing merits the highest commendation, with Vignoles making a contribution of characteristic distinction in the Franck especially.'
The violin virtuoso Henri Vieuxtemps is remembered primarily as a leading figure of the Franco-Belgian violin school, but his output as a composer includes works for viola and cello, in addition to an exhaustive catalogue for his own instrument. His ''Capriccio'' for solo viola, taken from the Morceaux, Op. 61, is given an idiomatic and commanding performance by Nobuko Imai, and her sensitively phrased account of the Elegie, Op. 30, is very ably supported by Roger Vignoles. The disc concludes with their polished and eloquent reading of Vieuxtemps's Sonata for viola and piano, Op. 36, scarcely a landmark in the genre, but an enterprising and competent essay, made all the more welcome in a version of this quality. Nobuko Imai's playing merits the highest commendation, with Vignoles making a contribution of characteristic distinction in the Franck especially.'
Franck/Vieuxtemps Works for Viola
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