Stravinsky: Violin Concerto; Chamber Works

by Isabelle Faust, Francois-Xavier Roth, Les Siecles

Overview

Stravinsky's Violin Concerto in D major of 1931 has always been a troublesome work, perhaps less often programmed than any other violin concerto by one of the generally acclaimed great composers. However, that situation may well change with this release by violinist Isabelle Faust and the historically oriented ensemble Les Siecles, playing instruments of the early 20th century, which hit classical best-seller lists in early 2023. Les Siecles have been better known for French music, but the group started out with Stravinsky, who, of course, was working in Paris when he wrote this music, and the effect of their technique in his works is really revelatory. The neoclassical Violin Concerto, hard to grasp in a mushy modern-instrument performance, comes alive in the reading by Les Siecles and leader Francois-Xavier Roth, where the period winds emerge and enter into lively dialogue with the violin. The group is a perfect match for Faust, whose gut strings vividly outline the big space defined by the violin's opening material. Her sound, wiry and lively, is also impressive in the shorter pieces that fill out the program as she shifts gears from concerto soloist to string quartet leader in the radical Three Pieces for String Quartet of 1914, an unclassifiable work unlike anything else Stravinsky wrote (imagine string quartet miniatures in the vein of The Rite of Spring). Harmonia Mundi's studio sound serves the musicians well in this bracing, fresh Stravinsky release. ~ James Manheim

Product Details

Release Date:	03/03/2023
Label:	Harmonia Mundi
UPC:	3149020946862
Rank:	44774

Tracks

1. Apollon Musag¿¿te - Variation of Apollo (Apollo and the Muses) (from Apollon musag¿¿te, second tableau)
2. Violin Concerto in D major~I. Toccata
3. Violin Concerto in D major~II. Aria I
4. Violin Concerto in D major~III. Aria II
5. Violin Concerto in D major~IV. Capriccio
6. Three Pieces for String Quartet~I.
7. Three Pieces for String Quartet~II.
8. Three Pieces for String Quartet~III.
9. Concertino for String Quartet
10. Pastorale for Violin, Oboe, English Horn, Clarinet and Bassoon
11. Double Canon for String Quartet

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Isabelle Faust   Primary Artist,Violin
Francois-Xavier Roth   Primary Artist,Conductor
Les Siecles   Primary Artist,Orchestra

Technical Credits

Charles Johnston   Liner Note Translation
Isabelle Faust   Interviewee
Jiri Heger   Mixing,Editing,Engineer,Artistic Director
Denis Herlin   Liner Notes
Francois-Xavier Roth   Interviewee
Jean-Jacques Groleau   Interviewer
Irene Weber-Froboese   Liner Note Translation
Aurelien Bourgois   Engineer
Alix Ewald   Engineer
Cyprien Tollet   Photography
Igor Stravinsky   Composer
Juan Gris   Cover Art