"This extraordinary cello recital features the 32-year-old Wietheger amidst the dazzling pyrotechnical and emotionally diverse demands of Sofia Gubaidulina′s Ten Preludes for cello solo, a 25-minute tour de force that could, in time, become as much a staple for the ambitious cellist′s solo portfolio as the Bach Suites and Kodaly′s solo cello masterpiece. The preludes were composed in response to a request made in 1966 by a professor of cello at the music conservatory in Novosibirsk who found them too modern for his taste. As a result, they were not premiered until 1977, in Moscow, by Vladimir Tonkha to whom they are dedicated. Each prelude focuses on a specific technical challenge or (in eight of them) a pair of contrasting technical challenges (the first, for example, is marked "staccato-legato"). The result is deeply absorbing, and are performed by Wietheger as if he were exploring seductive new musical dimensions.
Wietheger is less impressive in the Janacek and, particularly, the Grieg (a surprisingly tough nut to crack, with a unique combination of conventional and modernist tendencies), where pianist Atsuko Seki dominates inappropriately if very beautifully because of her imposing musical elegance and the lovely sound she draws from her instrument. When Wietheger is alone in the Gubaidulina, he takes center stage. In the Grieg, he struggles to be heard.
Andreas Günther′s conversational liner notes are useful and enjoyable, and Andreas Spreer′s recording is perfectly judged, blending the unforced accuracy of the parent company, Tacet, with a highly musical sense of space. On balance, this is a must have disc for cellists and audiophiles who believe that this royal member of the string family, when heard alone, is one of the ultimate tests of an aspiring sound system."
Laurence Vittes
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Wietheger is less impressive in the Janacek and, particularly, the Grieg (a surprisingly tough nut to crack, with a unique combination of conventional and modernist tendencies), where pianist Atsuko Seki dominates inappropriately if very beautifully because of her imposing musical elegance and the lovely sound she draws from her instrument. When Wietheger is alone in the Gubaidulina, he takes center stage. In the Grieg, he struggles to be heard.
Andreas Günther′s conversational liner notes are useful and enjoyable, and Andreas Spreer′s recording is perfectly judged, blending the unforced accuracy of the parent company, Tacet, with a highly musical sense of space. On balance, this is a must have disc for cellists and audiophiles who believe that this royal member of the string family, when heard alone, is one of the ultimate tests of an aspiring sound system."
Laurence Vittes
<< retourner