Oeuvres pour Violoncelle Seul

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Harmonia Mundi's series Les Nouveaux Interprètes aims to bring us "the cream of the new generation of musicians," and no listener to this CD will deny the appropriateness of the young French cellist Emmanuelle Bertrand in that company. Her recital is devoted to solo cello music of the 20th century, and two interpretations stand out as having the composer's blessing: those of the inventive Trois strophes sur le nom de Sacher (1976-1982) by Henri Dutilleux, and the more conventional but still finely written Suite No. 4 (1994-1996) by Nicolas Bacri, which is dedicated to Bertrand and was premiered by her. Here and in the other works--the engaging and characterful Serenade (1949) by Hans Werner Henze, the impressive Sonata (1955) by the American individualist George Crumb, and the powerful, folk-influenced early Sonata (1948-53) by Ligeti--Bertrand reveals her mastery of tonal variety and creative engagement with her material. Booklet documentation on these rather esoteric pieces is weak, but all the works are worth getting to know, especially in performances such as these. --George Hall

Amazon.com

Harmonia Mundi's series Les Nouveaux Interprètes aims to bring us "the cream of the new generation of musicians," and no listener to this CD will deny the appropriateness of the young French cellist Emmanuelle Bertrand in that company. Her recital is devoted to solo cello music of the 20th century, and two interpretations stand out as having the composer's blessing: those of the inventive Trois strophes sur le nom de Sacher (1976-1982) by Henri Dutilleux, and the more conventional but still finely written Suite No. 4 (1994-1996) by Nicolas Bacri, which is dedicated to Bertrand and was premiered by her. Here and in the other works--the engaging and characterful Serenade (1949) by Hans Werner Henze, the impressive Sonata (1955) by the American individualist George Crumb, and the powerful, folk-influenced early Sonata (1948-53) by Ligeti--Bertrand reveals her mastery of tonal variety and creative engagement with her material. Booklet documentation on these rather esoteric pieces is weak, but all the works are worth getting to know, especially in performances such as these. --George Hall

Customer Reviews:

Some superb performance of some superb works.......2005-09-03

Emmanuelle Bertrand is amongst the best cellists of the younger generation. Indeed there is a letter in the sleeve notes from Dutilleux himself commending her qualities as an artist. Her range of tonal colours is immense, her tone ravishing and her articulation a delight.

This CD has won a massive amount of awards in France, and its easy to hear why. The Ligeti solo Sonata is a beautifully concise work, written in 1948 in his pre experimental/avante guard phase (his 'Hungarian' phase), with a soulful and songful first movement, and massively virtuosic and brilliant second movement. The George Crumb Sonata of 1955, another pillar of the solo cello repertoire also recieves a highly coloured and perfectly executed reading. The surprisingly tonal Henze Serenade and newly comissiones Bacri Suite are pleasent enough but are not up to the level of the other masterpieces on the disk.

The Dutilleux Trois Strophes have been recorded a few times, and this is the best version of them. As has been said, Dutilleux himself praises the recording, which should be reason enough to believe in their supremecy. These three short pieces are some of the greatest solo cello music written in the twentieth century.

None of the music is very difficult to listen too, in the way that Ligeti for instance, can be .I recommend this CD unreservedly.

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Open All Night

Taneyev: String Trio In E/String Trio In D

Simple Symphony / Concerto for Double String Orch

Nightshift

The Other Mixes & The Other Side [Import]

Tavener: Ikon of Eros

Talk To Me

Salinas Y Amigos En Espana [Import]

Salsa Flava

Lalo: Symphonie Espagnole/Franck: Sonata In A/Debussy: Preludes/Schumann: Prophet Bird/Shostakovitch: The Age Of Gold

Classic Double: Songs of Inspiration/I Believe