In completing their survey of Rossini's youthful Sonatas for string quartet with vigorous period renditions of No. 3 and No. 6, Explorations Ensemble and Harmonia Mundi have wisely filled the remaining space on this disc with his other delightful chamber works -- rarely heard but amusing and surprisingly rewarding. The Serenata in E flat major (1823) heads the program, a charming instrumental imitation of opera buffa -- one can easily imagine comic singing and acting in this work's colorful, parodistic sections.
The Duo for cello and contrabass (1824) is the most farcical piece, and its humor is remarkably light in spite of the dark timbres and occasional clumsiness of the low strings. The Une Larme (A Tear) Variations for cello and piano (ca. 1857-1868) is not as lachrymose as its title suggests, for it is one of those peculiarly contrarian Sins of My Old Age, which Rossini composed during his long retirement from opera. Its theme may be sorrowful, but the variations are more tongue-in-cheek and playfully virtuosic, in Rossini's most relaxed manner. While these entertaining chamber works are not first-rate masterpieces, the musicians treat them all with exceptional care and give them enthusiastic readings that anyone will find appealing. Harmonia Mundi's sound quality is superb. --allmusic.com
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