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reVisions - Isserlis / Takacs-Nagy

reVisions - Isserlis / Takacs-Nagy

BIS  BIS-SACD-1782

Stereo/Multichannel Hybrid

Classical


Debussy: Suite pour Violoncelle et Orchestre (arr. Beamish), Prokofiev: Concertino for Violoncello and Orchestra Op.132 (arr. Blok), Bloch: From Jewish Life (arr. Palmer), Ravel: Deux mélodies hébraïques (arr. Tognetti)

Steven Isserlis (cello)
Tapiola Sinfonietta
Gabor Takacs-Nagy (conductor)


Steven Isserlis has earned a reputation as one of the foremost cellists of our day. At the same time he has become known for his ingenuity and innovation in programming, something which this disc is the perfect example of. It combines four works for cello and orchestra that wouldn't even exist without Isserlis - all arrangements made at his personal request, and each of them by the arranger of his personal choice.

The most radical reworking is the opening piece, an arrangement based on the fact that Debussy at the age of 19 composed a Suite for cello and orchestra. All that is known for certain about this suite is that its fourth movement was called Intermezzo, and that this piece has survived in a version for cello and piano. In her imaginative reconstruction of - or rather replacement for - Debussy's original composition, Sally Beamish has used this piece as the opening movement, going on to construct orchestral arrangements of four other Debussy works from the same period, including the piano pieces Rêverie and Danse bohémienne.

The two Ravel songs which follow were arranged by Isserlis' friend, the violinist Richard Tognetti in order to supplement the concert programme for a tour that the two were to make with Tognetti's own Australian Chamber Orchestra. Vladimir Blok's orchestration of Prokofiev's Concertino, which had been left incomplete at the death of the composer, was made as Isserlis was unhappy with the existing arrangement of the work, made by Kabalevsky.

The disc closes with the earliest of these four re-visions, film composer Christopher Palmer's orchestration of Ernest Bloch's From Jewish Life, allowing the disc to end with the movement entitled Prayer - 'one of the most fervently beautiful pieces ever written for the cello', according to Steven Isserlis himself. Throughout the programme Isserlis receives the expert support of Tapiola Sinfonietta conducted by Gábor Takács-Nagy.

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Review by John Miller - February 6, 2013

Isserlis writes in his notes for this disc "... the cello repertoire is not so huge that we can afford all the lost works which burn the souls of cellists everywhere". He is in the position of being able to commission arrangements (or reVisions) to add to his repertoire and that of other cellists. Here are four such revisions of various kinds, for violoncello and orchestra, the latter fulfilled by the brilliant Tapiola Sinfonietta under the baton of Gábor Takács-Nagy. Amongst other things which these pieces have in common, the four composers were born within 30 years of each other, all lived in Paris during some stage of their lives and were inclined towards musical Nationalism. You can read all the details of what musical metamorphoses their selected compositions underwent in Isserlis' instructive and entertaining liner notes.

The most complex revision concerns Debussy's Suite for cello and orchestra, written by Debussy at the age of 19. Sadly, most of the movements are lost. Several pieces for cello and piano, however, have the same date and probably belong to the Suite. British composer Sally Beamish was asked in 2006 to collate the existing pieces with some other early ones by Debussy and orchestrate them all - a sort of replacement-arrangement task. Isserlis considers this to be a great success, and listening to its radiant performance here, I'm more than inclined to agree.

The opening Prelude (Intermezzo) has a vibrant dance rhythm with exotic touches from the strings and caressingly seductive phrases from flutes. The orchestral colours are magical and quite Debussy-esque; the piece is interlaced with mystery and hints of eroticism. The other movements are equally alluring, with harp cascades, general delicacy and much gallic refinement. I was particularly charmed by the fourth movement, a Nocturne where a heartfelt melody sails over a moonlit harp accompaniment. The finale uses Debussy's first piano piece, Danse Bohémienne, written for his piano pupil, none less than Tchaikovsky's correspondent Madame von Meck in Moscow. Despite having been disparaged by Tchaikovsky, the piece is bold and assertive, with a dazzling flourish of a coda which sets the seal on the whole "revision". Sally Beamish does indeed seem to have "channelled" Debussy, and Isserlis applies a gorgeously warm cello cantabile to this fascinating exercise.

Ravel's original Deux Mélodies Hébraïque was for cello and piano, but he later orchestrated it for soprano and orchestra. Isserlis was looking for another concertante piece, and asked conductor/violinist Richard Tognetti for a version with cello and strings (2006). A very successful reincarnation, its 'Kaddish' is played with real intensity and poetic beauty, underpinned with a rich, deep bass foundation. Its companion, the very brief 'L'énigma éternelle', is a gently dissonant, humorous Yiddish assertion of the futility of trying to answer meaningful questions, a nice piece of satire.

Prokofiev's late Concertino for Violoncello and Orchestra Op. 132 had to be completed by its dedicatee Mstislav Rostropovich, who then arranged for Kabalevsky to do the orchestration. As the composer had described the piece as a "delicate" concertino, Isserlis relates that he always thought the Kabalevsky effort was far too heavy, and he asked Prokofiev expert Vladimir Blok to supply a new chamber orchestration (1996). In a most amusing self-deprecatory account in his liner notes, Isserlis finally told Slava about the new re-scoring - which provoked a very characteristic frosty reception.

The Concertino is the real meat of this programme. The music is of the quality of Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet, illuminated by his late-stage folk-led lyricism, and is played with a spontaneity and affection which is deeply touching. Pianist Olli Mustonen provides a striking cadenza with guitar-like treatment of the cello in the first movement, and the delightful finale introduces a brusque waltz with an amusing bassoon theme which leads the cello into a mass of tricky double-stopping - perhaps Slava's revenge on cellists. It could in places use more development, as Isserlis remarks, but this is none the less a very worthwhile revitalisation of a nearly "broken" piece of music.

Bloch's 'From Jewish Life' is a staple for cellists, but Isserlis asked Christopher Palmer for a replacement of the piano accompaniment for one on strings. Placing 'Prayer' at the end, rather than at the beginning, allows this programme to finish with one of the most beautiful melodies in all music, glorious in its new raiment.

If you are a cellist or not, this is a most desirable and memorable disc. Stunningly played by Isserlis and with phenomenal musicianship from all concerned - including a warm, detailed bloom-rich recording, it denies all doubts about arrangements or reVisions.

Copyright © 2013 John Miller and HRAudio.net

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