Analekta

Ideals of the French Revolution is the unusual title of this two-disc set by Kent Nagano and the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal of music by Beethoven with texts by Goethe, Matthisson, and Paul Griffiths. The second, fairly conventional disc includes three works by Beethoven that could reasonably be said to embody the ideals of liberté, égalité, fraternité: his Fifth Symphony, excerpts from his incidental music for Goethe's Egmont, and his fourth setting of Matthisson's Opferlied (Song of Sacrifice). The far less conventional first disc, however, features a single work, called The General, setting a text by the aforementioned Griffiths, noted author and Beethoven scholar, to music drawn from Beethoven's incidental music for Egmont, König Stephan, and Leonore Prohaska, plus the Opferlied.

Already a presence to be reckoned with by his early 20s, James Ehnes has risen steadily to claim a place among the finest violinists of the day. Critics were impressed with both his immaculate technique and his musical integrity, each of an order rare enough in a musician of any age. Ehnes has continued to consolidate his strengths, bringing audiences a brand of music-making that transcends the present and draws upon the richest traditions of ages past.

Known for his virtuosity and probing musicianship, violinist James Ehnes has been honored with many international prizes, including a GRAMMY, a Gramophone Award, and eleven JUNO Awards.

Here's a collection of Bach pieces where the performances fit together exceptionally well. The basic sound is that of Canada's veteran Baroque ensemble Tafelmusik under violinist and director Jeanne Lamon: smooth, bright, French in its light seductiveness. Sample the almost accentless Rondeau from the Suite in A minor, a violin-and-strings transcription (and according to musicologist Joshua Rifkin a reconstruction of an original version) of the Suite in B minor for orchestra, BWV 1067; you couldn't call it gutsy, but the degree of control and consistency is impressive.