Bloch: Schelomo & Voice in the Wilderness; Bruch: Kol Nidrei

“Clein's performance [of Schelomo] concentrates, most affectingly, on the atmosphere of deep introspection...thoughtful, subtle and satisfying, well supported by the passionate and spirited BBC Scottish SO...The Bruch, too, receives a lovely performance, with Clein bringing out the different colour of each of the cello's strings and the orchestra effecting most beautifully the transition from sombre to heavenly.” --Gramophone Magazine, September 2012

Gramophone Magazine Editor's Choice - September 2012

“[Clein's] impassioned, sensitive playing finds willing collaborators in the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and their former principal conductor.” --Sunday Times, 15th July 2012

“Clein is the cello protagonist in all four works, her range of tonal colour, her animation and her discreet soulfulness proving to be ideal qualities...Kol Nidrei is one of the most beautiful works in the entire cello canon, a factor that this performance conveys in a blend of tranquillity and heartfelt ardour.” --The Telegraph, 27th July 2012 *****

“She and Volkov give a performance of Schelomo (1916) that is very moving, both in its profound sensuality and in the pervasive sense of transience that gnaws at its vision of worldly glory...Beautifully done, [Kol Nidrei] brings the disc to a reflective close. Highly recommended.” --The Guardian, 9th August 2012 *****

“As one might expect, Clein delivers a powerfully committed performance, but also manages to avoid over-indulgence, negotiating the peaks and troughs of the music's volatile emotional language with a clear sense of direction...Volkov brings a welcome transparency to Bloch's languorous instrumentation in the reflective sections.” --BBC Music Magazine, September 2012 ****

“one of the pleasures of the recital is the meeting of minds between orchestra and soloist, each perfectly partnering the other...It's a lovely piece of programming, tenderly performed.” --bbc.co.uk, 22nd August 2012

Maxim Rysanov plays Schubert, Tchaikovsky & Bruch

Maxim Rysanov (viola), Swedish Chamber Orchestra, Muhai Tang

“Rysanov makes the best possible case for hearing this version [of the Arpeggione], delivering a wonderfully poetic account of the solo part with subtle and sensitive accompaniment from the Swedish Chamber Orchestra...Rysanov's dazzilng performance [of the Rococos] makes us believe that the work was tailor-made for his instrument.” --BBC Music Magazine, December 2011 *****

 

“His playing has his instrument sounding impressively like a cello, although some of the viola's capacity for subtle light and shade has been ironed out in this relentless quest for powerful tone. Max Bruch's Romance (a rare viola original) brings out a likeable, gentler streak in Rysanov's artistry.” --Classic FM Magazine, November 2011 ****

“Maxim Rysanov's version of the Tchaikovsky Rococo variations for cello is one of the most successful steals, not tampering with the orchestral score but simply shifting the solo part, sometimes up an octave to give its virtuosic writing brilliance and allure. Rysanov's viola sound is warm, lyrical but with an edge to it that suits Schubert's "Arpeggione" sonata” --The Observer, 7th August 2011

“Max Bruch’s meltingly beautiful Romance makes for a serene envoi to this delectable disc...[Rysanov] makes [the Rococo's] viola transformation sound thoroughly idiomatic. His burgundy timbre brings lustre to the music; his transpositions of passages into higher registers capitalise on the viola’s own spectrum of sonority, and his agility and subtlety are a marvel.” --The Telegraph, 11th August 2011 *****


“Needless to say, Rysanov plays with consummate artistry and stylish aplomb throughout. I can also confirm that he benefits from razor-sharp yet always warmly affectionate backing from an eager Swedish CO under the excellent Muhai Tang.” --Gramophone Magazine, December 2011

Bruch: Scottish Fantasy, Serenade

Gramophone Magazine Editor's Choice - December 2004

“Though the Scottish Fantasy, with its wealth of traditional melodies, ripely presented, is firmly based in the repertory, most of Bruch's other concertante works for violin are largely unknown. Here's one of the most ambitious, the Serenade, dating from 1900, 20 years after the Fantasy. Its breadth and weight belies the lightweight title.

 

It's a warm and fluent work in Bruch's high-Romantic style, built on clearly defined themes that lack only the last degree of memorability of the Fantasy. The third of the four movements, a dreamy, lyrical Notturno, comes nearest to matching the Fantasy's natural glow, but the other movements have striking moments, too.

Bruch had the idea of putting this substantial work among his numbered concertos but changed his mind.

Maxim Fedotov gives a warm, thrusting performance of both the Serenade and the Fantasy.
He may be a little short on the mystery and tenderness, but his bravura playing, helped by fullblooded accompaniment from Dmitry Yablonsky, makes the results consistently compelling.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

Tchaikovsky & Bruch: Violin Concertos

“Her tone is beautiful, and more varied than in some of her earlier recordings: she can be caressing, incisive and yielding within a short space of time.” --BBC Music Magazine, December 2010 ***

“...a sweetness of tone...lends a charming vulnerability to her performance, which suits the slow movement [of the Tchaikovsky] beautifully...the lush, romantic sound of the Bruch suits her assured and lyrical playing.” --Classic FM Magazine, December 2010 ***

“Nicola Benedetti can be proud of this disc...there's a flexibility, a confidence and a rapport here that makes for consistently rewarding listening...hers is so well thought-out an interpretration [of the Tchaikovsky] and it's so alertly accompanied that it merits serious attention: it is a performance that has few quirks but bags of conviction” --International Record Review, December 2010

“Her approach to the Tchaikovsky is both full-blooded and sensitive. She rides the first movement’s emotional storms with utter confidence and complete command of old Romantic tricks...The central canzonetta is taken very slowly, yet the flow of feeling never stops, and her magically sustained pianissimos deserve an Oscar.” --The Times, 29th October 2010 ****

Bruch: Violin Concerto, Romances, Etc

“[Gluzman] presents a refreshingly straightforward performance that allows the music to speak for itself. The playing is indeed superb in every way, wonderfully lyrical in the soaring melodies of the slow movement, impassioned and dramatic in the opening Prelude and exuberant in the Finale. Andrew Litton and the Bergen Philharmonic are sterling accompanists, responding with subtlety to Gluzman's nuanced phrasing.” --BBC Music Magazine, July 2011 *****

 

“This performance of the Quintet is robust and confident. High-powered playing and a resonant recording combine to create an almost orchestral sound. Vadim Gluzman plays the finale's virtuoso passages magnificently” --Gramophone Magazine, August 2011

“Gluzman embraces [the Concerto's] emotion and character with such passion it's as though this is a new discovery for him, with freshness, vitality and in the final, great pace and wonderful rhythms. But the heart of the work is the Adagio, and here Gluzman delivers the melody with breathtaking intensity” --Classic FM Magazine, July 2011 *****

“Gluzman is a wonderful player and the combination of peerless technique and an eloquent and flexible approach to the score makes for a refreshing and absorbing account of this much performed work. With Gluzman it becomes a most rewarding rediscovery...Litton and the Bergen Philharmonic are truly attentive partners; their committed support does much to make this one of the most engaging recent performances of this concerto” --International Record Review, July 2011