I. No.1 in G minor	(Dedicated to Joseph Szigeti)
1. Grave (Lento assai)  /1/
2. Fugato (Molto moderato)  /2/
3. Allegretto poco scherzoso (Amabile)  /3/
4. Finale, con brio (Allegro fermo)  /4/

II. Sonata No.2 in A minor	(Dedicated to Jacques Thibaud)
1. ''Obsession'' - Prelude (Poco vivace)  /5/
2. ''Malinconia'' - Poco lento  /6/
3. ''Danse des ombres'' - Sarabande (lento)  /7/
4. ''Les Furies'' - Allegro furioso  /8/

III. Sonata No.3 in D minor ''Ballade''  /9/	(Dedicated to Georges Enescu)
Lento molto sostenuto - Allegro in tempo giusto e con bravura

IV. Sonata No.4 in E minor	(Dedicated to Fritz Kreisler)
1. Allemande (Lento maestoso)  /10/
2. Sarabande (Quasi lento)  /11/
3. Finale (Presto ma non troppo)  /12/

V. No.5 in G major	(Dedicated to Mathieu Crickboom)
1. ''L'Aurore'' (Lento assai)  /13/
2. ''Danse rustique'' (Allegro giusto molto)  /14/

VI. Sonata No.6 in E major  /15/		(Dedicated to Manuel Quiroga)

Gidon Kremer – violin

…what’s recorded here are not a group of pieces called Impressions, or a variety of works, but the Sonatas for violin solo, Op. 27. These six pieces, after years of neglect, have become popular once again, with new recordings appearing from mostly young violinists. The appeal of the sonatas to younger players may have to do with their musical language: just as distinctive as the mind-bending virtuosity of the music (many passages could hardly be guessed to be for a single violin) is its stylistic pastiche. This is not simply a question of the potpourri type of composition that was still common enough in 1923, when these sonatas were composed. Ysaÿe’s conception of structure is closer to what fans of contemporary popular music might call a mash-up. Consider the first movement of the Sonata No. 2 in A minor, Op. 27/2 (track 5), where one of the themes from Bach’s Partita No. 3 for solo violin, BWV 1006, is interwoven with the Dies irae chant melody. The general trend among players has been to take this as, to use modern parlance once again, extreme violin. There’s some evidence that Ysaÿe himself, who was recorded a few times, tended toward a more dramatic approach. ---James Manheim, naxos.com

As is well known, the six Sonatas Ysaye published in 1924 were written for the six greatest virtuosi of the day: Szigetti, Kreisler, Enescu, Jacques Thibaud and (less well remembered nowadays) Manuel Quiroga and Matthieu Grickboom. They are held in special regard by violinists who enjoy overcoming the technical challenges they pose.

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1. Caprice d'apres l'etude en forme de Valsede Camille Saint-Saens, Op. 52
2. Sonate en fa mineur 'au tombeau' d'apres la sonate de Pietro Antonio Locatelli
3. Paganini Variations op. posth. d'apres le caprice no. 24 de Niccolo Paganini
4. Saltarelle Carnavalesque Op. 11 posth.
5. Poeme Elegiaque Op. 12
6. Reve D'enfant Op. 14
7. 'Dans Le Lointais' tempo di Mazurka
8. Mazurka

Sandrine Cantoreggi - violin
Bruno Canino – piano

The 500-pound gorilla in the room inasmuch as the compositions of Belgian violinist-composer Eugène Ysaÿe is concerned are the set of six solo violin sonatas he composed in 1924; all six are widely performed and have been recorded numerous times. The reputation of these pieces is so gargantuan that little else of Ysaÿe's output has been recorded, and a quick look at his known output demonstrates that the six sonatas are merely the tip of what is a very large iceberg. Belgian violinist Sandrine Cantoreggi, assisted by pianist Bruno Canino, attempts to lift the veil a little further through her Turtle Records disc Ysaÿe.

Of the eight works presented here, only Saltarelle Carnavalesque, Op. 11 -- composed when Ysaÿe was 18 -- is previously unrecorded, and some others visited in the course of the program are reasonably well covered, though in the context of mixed recitals of various composers. It is certainly a plus to hear all of these things together, and away from the context of the monolithic solo sonatas; usefully, Cantoreggi includes both of the only two original pieces Ysaÿe himself recorded.

Canino's playing is sensitive and restrained in the main, but when the accompaniment calls for fireworks, he certainly can deliver them. Some of these pieces are technically some of the toughest nuts to crack in the violin literature, though Cantoreggi makes them sound easy, and while that's amazing, this recording seems at times a little too smooth and effortless, somewhat lacking in the passionately gutty attack that Ysaÿe employs in his own recordings. It is clear her interpretation is her own, not an attempted re-creation of what Ysaÿe might have played -- and that's fine -- though when she lets her hair down a little, as in the concluding Mazurka, the playing has a bit more sparkle and brightness in such cases than is the norm throughout this disc. Nevertheless, Turtle's Hybrid SACD sounds great, and for those who need a bit more depth in their Ysaÿe beyond his set of six, this should prove a pleasing answer to the call. --- Uncle Dave Lewis, Rovi

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1 Poème élégiaque d-moll op. 12 (for Violin and Orchestra)
2 Chant d'hivers h-moll op. 15 (for Violin and Orchestra)
3 Berceuse f-moll op. 20 (for Violin and Orchestra) 
4 Les neiges d'antan op. 23 (for Violin and Orchestra)

Violin Concerto  No.8
5 1. Grave e lento poco maesto 
6 2. Andante non troppo 
7 3. (without heading) 

Divertimento op. 24 (for Violin and Orchestra)
8 1. Molto moderato
9 2. Allegro non troppo, vivo

Albrecht Laurent Breuninger – violin
Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie
Welisar Gentscheff – conductor

Ysaÿe’s works for violin and orchestra are far less frequently encountered than his solo sonatas. There was always something of a vogue in Russia for some of the bigger works. Oistrakh was a proponent of the Poème élégiaque, recording it. More recently Raskin has committed a couple to disc. But in the main these are under-recorded works of lush, Chausson-esque evocation.

One can see what Oistrakh saw in the Poème élégiaque. Along with its hothouse Franckian inheritance there’s Chausson’s stamp but also a Tchaikovskian shape to the solo line that reminds one of the Russian’s own Violin Concerto. The languorous heat haze that sometimes falls over the music is almost tropical - the rich orchestration is by Jacques Ysaÿe. Chant d’hiver offers another cushioned ride, though one obviously less verdant. Good player though he is – lower string work really speaks - Albrecht Laurent Breuninger takes a decidedly more leisurely approach than Aaron Rosand did in his traversal with the Luxembourg Radio Orchestra and Louis de Froment in their Vox Box. Rosand deploys timbral variety and a bewitching colouration to make this piece really live and at a considerably faster tempo. The newcomer’s more leisurely charms aren’t obliterated but are very different.

The Berceuse is a more concise and delightfully lyrical morceau but of a bigger stamp is Les neiges d’antan. This has its whimsical side, attractively brought out here, and certainly not over-done. Breuninger dares a sleek period portamento or two and he proves deft in his harmonics, even the cruelly stratospheric ones with which the piece ends.

The Violin Concerto might raise hopes as to an undiscovered masterpiece but it’s actually a surviving work – among many concertos – from his relative youth and boyhood. It’s couched in concerto grosso form, in three movements, and is for strings alone. The recording team has calculated this rather well with the solo violin well integrated into the body of strings without losing its relative prominence in the fabric. The ethos here is backward-looking but enjoyable because there are those typically languorous moments that mark out his orchestral writing. The fugato sounds rather academic but the slow movement is intense if short. The finale has its vaporous moments but also some Chausson inspirations as well.

The Op.24 Divertimento is aptly described in the notes as an example of Art Nouveau in music. Well, Brussels is famous for its Art Nouveau, and Ysaÿe was a Belgian, so ... well let’s not follow it too far as Liège was his stomping ground. There are some insider’s bowing demands here and some terrific colouristic opportunities. It’s an unusual work, quite intense, with a lot of decorative embellishment of the theme.

This disc has the field largely to itself at the moment. Performances are warm and lyric, though occasionally rather laid-back. With very decent notes and a suitably enveloping acoustic this is a intriguing sidelight on Ysaÿe’s more prominent and bracingly up-to-date solo sonatas. --- Jonathan Woolf, MusicWeb International

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