Customer Reviews

Yuri Bashmet (Viola) : Brahms;Shostakovich

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Yuri Bashmet has done a masterful job in transcirbing the Quintet for Clarinet and Strings in B minor, Opus 115 for Viola. The first movement is rich and warm, beautifully orchestrated. Thre second movement is heart-wrenching and I think, even more suited to the Viola than the Clarinet. Brahms would be proud to hear playing like this.

Please disregard the editorial column on this CD. Just listen to the music. Bashmet's transcription of the Brahm's quintet is great. The performance is absolutely stunning. Though I have to agree that the Shostakovich's piece on the CD can't be compared to the live performance I was so lucky to watch and listen day before. But what else could be a good replacement for live music? In the overall the disk is challenging for a first time listener but every single note will pay off if get into the music

I bought this CD because I am a clarinetist who is learning the viola, and I really love the Brahms Clarinet Quintet.

I think that this quintet definitely works better with clarinet, although Bashmet has done a good job with this arrangement. The only real problem I have with it at times is that, in spots where all the strings are playing with the soloist, the solo viola part often gets lost in the texture. The solo line in this quintet often interweaves with the string parts and plays accompanimental lines. Even in the clarinet version, the texture can be a bit dense at times, but because of the clarinet's different tone color, it can still be heard. One spot where this is particularly noticeable is in the end of the first movement. The clarinet has some really cool runs, and they're completely lost in the texture when played on viola. Of course, even when the solo line is covered up, the music is still amazing and beautiful, so it's not that big of a deal.

It is in the places where the solo line is more exposed that Bashmet really shines. The 2nd movement, in particular, is wonderful and Bashmet plays it as well (if not better) than any clarinetist I've heard.

Bashmet places with a really beautiful sound. From the limited amount of viola recordings I've heard, it seems like many violist play with either a dull, sort of scratchy sound, or an overly bright and nasal sound. Bashmet does neither. His sound is always warm and round, without ever losing its clarity or projection.

I am a string quartet player and this was given to me from a fellow chamber music player as a gift. The Brahms is absolutely stirring - the quality of the viola playing in the Brahms will blow you away and the flawless yet original blending of all the instruments to a single vision. I have always heard this piece as a clarinet quintet, but this is my favorite rendition now. The Shostokovitch contains dissonences which might be inaccessible to some novice ears, but listen a few times more and you WILL appreciate.

This performance of both Brahms and Shostakovich is warm, genuine and subtle. It is due to these qualities that some professional reviewers cannot comprehend this great recording. Fortunately for some of us, we never read them.

Like another reviewer, I also play chamber music and received this CD from a fellow musician. Brahms is really difficult and to even pull it off is a feat. For the Brahms, I love the clarinet version, but this is even better. Here we have a violist with soul. The first movement of the Brahms knocks my socks off.