Gidon Kremer Mieczyslaw Weinberg’s Sonatas For Violin Solo (ecm Ns)(2022)

Masques, the title of this album, is a reference to Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet; it mirrors his visionary music, so full of wit, colour and drama, that expresses every possible human emotion. The thousand characters created by the music are both actors in and spectators of their own lives by turns. The Sonata No. 1 is a truly epic work; it leads us from an anguish-laden grief permeated with a gust of wind from the grave to a nostalgic lyricism — the memory of a lost paradise? — that is then driven by tremendous rhythmic energy to the apocalyptic climax of the work: we experience an explosion, a dissolution of every hope, before a return to the frozen whiteness of the beginning and an ending in resignation. The Sonata No. 2, unrestrainedly lyrical and punctuated with humour, can be seen as a contrasting counterpart to the previous work. The album also includes the undervalued Sonata for solo violin and two miniatures in Prokofiev’s characteristic style: they are filled with alacrity, humour and biting wit — an extract of life! Elsa Grether

The seventeen string quartets of Weinberg span nearly half a century, from his student days in Warsaw to the end of his career in Moscow, and show his development as a composer more clearly than his work in any other genre. The Second Quartet, composed in 1939 – 40 whilst studying in Minsk, was dedicated to his mother and sister, who he would later learn had not survived the German invasion of Poland. Quartet No. 5, of 1945, was the first in which he added titles to each movement, and reflects the influence of Shostakovich over the young composer. The final quartet in this programme – No. 8 – was written in 1959 and dedicated to the Borodin Quartet. For many years the best-known of Weinberg’s quartets in the west, this single-movement work is divided into three sections with a coda.

Violinist Rachel Barton Pine and harpsichordist Jory Vinikour, critically acclaimed artists of interntional renown- and also close friends-record together for the first time on this album of J.S. Bach's complete sonatas for violin and harpsichord. The artists approach these works as Bach intended: as trio sonatas with equally important roles for the violin and the harpsichord's treble and bass lines. In addition to the six Sonatas, the album offers the remarkable and ravishingly poetic Cantabile, BWV 1019a, a free-standing work that Bach originally conceived as a movement of the Sonata, BWV 1019. Cedille's audiophile engineering and the intimate acoustics of Evanston, Illinois' Nichols Hall allow the complex trio textures to blossom with detail. In all, the album sets a new standard for a body of work that Bach's son, CPE, considered among his father's finest compositions. Rachel Barton Pine is a Billboard chart-topping artist.

J.S. Bach's sonatas for solo violin, part of a long tradition of virtuoso works for the instrument, seem unsuited to transcription. But a guitar comes closer than perhaps any other instrument: it embodies a tension – not the same tension as with a solo violin but a tension nonetheless – between melodic material and polyphony. In the hands of Finnish guitarist Timo Korhonen they produce an unusual effect.

This new album from one of today's most popular and sought after piano trios delves into the emotive essence of two young composers-Mieczyslaw Weinberg and Franz Schubert-whose compositions offer an encounter with poignant reflections on life, mortality, and ethereal beauty. Mieczyslaw Weinberg's op. 24 Piano Trio, conceived in 1945 amidst World War II's turmoil, embodies a haunting portrayal of unrest and despair. Infused with traces of klezmer music, this composition reflects Weinberg's personal journey as a Polish Jew fleeing wartime atrocities, crafting a musical narrative that echoes both tragedy and resilience.

This new album from one of today's most popular and sought after piano trios delves into the emotive essence of two young composers-Mieczyslaw Weinberg and Franz Schubert-whose compositions offer an encounter with poignant reflections on life, mortality, and ethereal beauty. Mieczyslaw Weinberg's op. 24 Piano Trio, conceived in 1945 amidst World War II's turmoil, embodies a haunting portrayal of unrest and despair. Infused with traces of klezmer music, this composition reflects Weinberg's personal journey as a Polish Jew fleeing wartime atrocities, crafting a musical narrative that echoes both tragedy and resilience.

Jean-Jacques Kantorow is a modern exemplar of the great French-Belgian violin school, with a dash of influence coming from his Russian ancestry. He has also become noted across Europe in his second career as a conductor. Kantorow brought something unique and singularly powerful in his performance. This recording is something special. It isn't just a very good recording of an excellent violinist playing difficult music, it's an inspiring rendition that stands above all other recordings that I've heard. At least from this amateur violinists' ear five stars are insufficient.