Customer Reviews

French Violin Sonatas

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
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In this new disc, Midori shows an edgier side of her without losing her usual balancing act.

She sounds miraculous throughout, especially in Poulenc. In Poulenc, sounding so fiery but also very calm at the same time, Midori effectively brings out dichotomizing qualities of the work in a razor sharp performance. Each very fine detail is delicately yet boldly realized with subtle shading of color with such a broad palette, but she never misses the whole view of the music. The contrast between the introverted side and the extroverted side is so beautifully rendered in great depth that the impression of the music would last for a very long time.

Midori's Debussy sounds very very sharp and aggressive (in an extra refined manner as always). But I have to say that such conviction also sounds very imposing, and it lost spontaneity and fantasy from the piece. It felt like as if I were enjoying a very modern art piece in a minimal space... meaning lack of an organic quality; She sounds beautiful but not so engaging. I would recommend Kyung-Wha Chung/Radu Lupu for Debussy.

Then, a great joy comes back with Saint Saens violin sonata. Sounding fiery again, but also with sweeter tones and mesmerizing technique, Midori sounds just breathtaking, especially at the dashing finale. Most violinists play this piece by beautifying each phrase in a calculative way, but Midori brings "wholeness" into the piece. She also gives the piece more weights, but also brings out some "lightness" with clarity and speed.

I also have to mention that the piano (Robert McDonald) sounds just great. He shares the equal weight, and the communication between the violin and the piano is spot-on accurate yet spontaneous. Also I actually liked the recording balance. The piano comes much more forward and sounds magical.

Francis Poulenc wrote three violin sonatas and threw out the first two. We already know that this sonata was dedicated to the emotional violinist Ginette Neveu and that it was written between 1942-1943, think long and hard about the feelings of a French impressionist composer trying to compose while a war is going on for a soloist who plays with unbelievable beauty. Of course the result is a moody yet beautiful composition worthy of attention.

There are few recordings of this work, of the ones I have heard include Grumiaux, Menuhin, Van Keulen, Suk (grandson of the composer), and Kang. I actually like the Grumiaux recording the best but it is only available in Japan and I liked this recording almost as much.

Midori has a very colorful violin tone, a lush vibrato, and a sense of romance in her playing. I remembered thinking of how her Paganini Caprices recording was so colorful and romantic sounding. While I believe this is the wrong approach to play Paganini, I did think she had incredible warmth and feeling in her playing and wanted to hear her play something more in that direction. So here it is, a rarely played masterpiece that has plenty of room for emotional expression. This piece perfectly fits her style and she delivers with a great sounding recording.

The Debussy sonata is much more popular but I don't know why. Forgive me but I don't really listen to it much because I really don't enjoy his violin sonata as much as his great composition "Images" 1 & 2 and many other chamber works. Therefore I will not comment on this performance of the Debussy.

The Saint Saens is my favorite sonata ever written, I recommend the recording of Gil Shaham as alternative to this one.

I completely recommend this CD without hesitation for a great performance of the Poulenc.

Midori can always be counted on for great recordings, and this is no exception. After hearing probably 20 different people play the Debussy sonata, I'd probably say that this is my second-favorite recording (the first is a live one with Oistrakh and Frida Bauer from the 1960s.) The reviewer below mentioned Kyung-Wha Chung and Radu Lupu as their favorite...well, it's not bad but to quote one of my colleagues, "Chung is way too angular for Debussy." Anyhow, back to this disc.... The Saint-Saens sonata is the highlight. When I first heard this, I had a hard time forgetting the Heifetz/Brooks Smith discing that is just fricking amazing. But after listening to it a few times, I think I like Midori's equally well. Heifetz often played slow movements too fast, and fast movements too fast. Midori's tempos, for just about everything, are much more sensible. In the second movement, she plays the sixteenths in separate bows, which makes it far more interesting. The last movement is paced pretty well too.

I bought this cd on a whim, because I wanted to listen to new classical music. Although, I have heard of Camille St.Saens, but I wasn't familiar with Francis Poulenc. Anybody who loves great violin pieces, should buy this cd. In my opinion, I would compare Midori to Joshua Bell, Sarah Chang, and Hillary Hahn. So, if you're looking for unfamiliar classical music played with not only technical excellence but with passion, I suggest you get this cd now!!