MusicWeb International One of the most grown-up review sites around 2024
60,000 reviews
... and still writing ...

Search MusicWeb Here Acte Prealable Polish CDs
 

Presto Music CD retailer
 
Founder: Len Mullenger                                    Editor in Chief:John Quinn             


CD REVIEW

Some items
to consider

new MWI
Current reviews

old MWI
pre-2023 reviews

paid for
advertisements

Acte Prealable Polish recordings

Forgotten Recordings
Forgotten Recordings
All Forgotten Records Reviews

TROUBADISC
Troubadisc Weinberg- TROCD01450

All Troubadisc reviews


FOGHORN Classics

Alexandra-Quartet
Brahms String Quartets

All Foghorn Reviews


All HDTT reviews


Songs to Harp from
the Old and New World


all Nimbus reviews



all tudor reviews


Follow us on Twitter


Editorial Board
MusicWeb International
Founding Editor
   
Rob Barnett
Editor in Chief
John Quinn
Contributing Editor
Ralph Moore
Webmaster
   David Barker
Postmaster
Jonathan Woolf
MusicWeb Founder
   Len Mullenger

alternatively Crotchet   AmazonUK   AmazonUS

 

Frydéryk CHOPIN (1810-1849)
Nocturne
Nocturne, Op. 72, No.1 (1827) (arranged by Sergei Taneyev) [4:43]
Prelude, Op.28, No.6 (1836-38) [1:58]
Cello Sonata in G minor, Op. 65 (1845-46) [30:06]
Prelude, Op.28, No.4 1838) (arr. Mørk and Stott) [2:29]
Waltz, Op.34, No.2 (1831) [6:27]
Nocturne (after Nocturne in C sharp minor, Op. Posth (1830) arr. Mørk and Stott) [4:39]
Introduction et Polonaise brillante in C major, Op.3 (1829, Introduction 1830) [9:05]
Nocturne, Op.55, No.2 (1843) [4:58]
Étude, Op.25, No.7 (1836) (arr. Glazunov) [5:41]
Étude, Op.10, No.6 (1830) (arr. Glazunov) [3:56]
Truls Mørk (cello)
Kathryn Stott (piano)
rec. 21-23 September 2006, Østre Fredrikstad Church, Norway. DDD
VIRGIN CLASSICS 3857842 [74:06]
Experience Classicsonline


There are some truly lovely sounds here. The playing is of remarkable eloquence and tonal beauty but it does come at some cost. It’s been very closely miked and one can hear Truls Mørk’s frequent intakes of breath. I mention this at the outset because, for all the luminous pleasures on offer, there are some who will resist the cellist’s gasps and will find the recording set-up too unhelpful in this respect.  
 
For those who can banish such things – not exactly a trifle in this case, but nevertheless relatively unimportant – there are some wonders to hear. Mørk is one of the most admirable of contemporary players, one seemingly incapable of making ugly sounds. He’s formed a powerful and intensely expressive partnership with Kathryn Stott and in this recording of the Cello Sonata he has superseded his earlier traversal with Andsnes. 
 
Tonal beauty is allied to a finely exercised sense of the sonata’s architecture. It’s a reading of mellifluous fluency and elegance; the moderato indication is rightly stressed in the first movement but there’s nothing rhythmically flaccid or self-regarding about the tonal resources on offer. It’s true that it’s not a performance that radiates the allure of Rostropovich and Argerich on DG 4198602 or the tensile incision of Starker and Sebok [Mercury 434358] but it does possess very considerable independent qualities of its own. High amongst them is expressive generosity – the well-judged second movement rubati for instance – and there is no over-intensity in the B section, something of which some pairings are guilty. The slow movement is notable for its sheer finesse and refinement – dynamics are assured and never self-serving.
 
The Introduction et Polonaise brillante in C major brings some welcome bite and spruce rhythmic dynamism. Note too Stott’s compelling pianism and the brilliance of her right hand colouration. The remainder of the programme is given over to arrangements. The two musicians have transcribed the Prelude Op.28 No.4 and its beautiful cantabile, with splendid equalized scale, and its hint of melancholia work very well.  Mørk and Stott also do the honours with the Nocturne [C sharp minor, op. posth.]  which has a Spanish tinge. The Op.55 No.2 Nocturne has an especially compelling and plangent pianissimo ending. But all these arrangements reflect well on transcribers – including Taneyev and Glazunov – and performers. They’re played with as much tonal and expressive control as the sonata – no slumming here or indeed exaggerated phrasing.
 
Naturalness is all in this refined and splendidly elegant recital.
 
Jonathan Woolf

see also review by Michael Cookson
 

 



 


Advertising on
Musicweb


Donate and keep us afloat

 

New Releases

Naxos Classical
All Naxos reviews

Hyperion recordings
All Hyperion reviews

Foghorn recordings
All Foghorn reviews

Troubadisc recordings
All Troubadisc reviews



all Bridge reviews


all cpo reviews

Divine Art recordings
Click to see New Releases
Get 10% off using code musicweb10
All Divine Art reviews


All Eloquence reviews

Lyrita recordings
All Lyrita Reviews

 

Wyastone New Releases
Obtain 10% discount

Subscribe to our free weekly review listing

 

 


EXPLORE MUSICWEB INTERNATIONAL

Making a Donation to MusicWeb

Writing CD reviews for MWI

About MWI
Who we are, where we have come from and how we do it.

Site Map

How to find a review

How to find articles on MusicWeb
Listed in date order

Review Indexes
   By Label
      Select a label and all reviews are listed in Catalogue order
   By Masterwork
            Links from composer names (eg Sibelius) are to resource pages with links to the review indexes for the individual works as well as other resources.

Themed Review pages

Jazz reviews

 

Discographies
   Composer
      Composer surveys
   National
      Unique to MusicWeb -
a comprehensive listing of all LP and CD recordings of given works
.
Prepared by Michael Herman

The Collector’s Guide to Gramophone Company Record Labels 1898 - 1925
Howard Friedman

Book Reviews

Complete Books
We have a number of out of print complete books on-line

Interviews
With Composers, Conductors, Singers, Instumentalists and others
Includes those on the Seen and Heard site

Nostalgia

Nostalgia CD reviews

Records Of The Year
Each reviewer is given the opportunity to select the best of the releases

Monthly Best Buys
Recordings of the Month and Bargains of the Month

Comment
Arthur Butterworth Writes

An occasional column

Phil Scowcroft's Garlands
British Light Music articles

Classical blogs
A listing of Classical Music Blogs external to MusicWeb International

Reviewers Logs
What they have been listening to for pleasure

Announcements

 

Community
Bulletin Board

Give your opinions or seek answers

Reviewers
Past and present

Helpers invited!

Resources
How Did I Miss That?

Currently suspended but there are a lot there with sound clips


Composer Resources

British Composers

British Light Music Composers

Other composers

Film Music (Archive)
Film Music on the Web (Closed in December 2006)

Programme Notes
For concert organizers

External sites
British Music Society
The BBC Proms
Orchestra Sites
Recording Companies & Retailers
Online Music
Agents & Marketing
Publishers
Other links
Newsgroups
Web News sites etc

PotPourri
A pot-pourri of articles

MW Listening Room
MW Office

Advice to Windows Vista users  
Questionnaire    
Site History  
What they say about us
What we say about us!
Where to get help on the Internet
CD orders By Special Request
Graphics archive
Currency Converter
Dictionary
Magazines
Newsfeed  
Web Ring
Translation Service

Rules for potential reviewers :-)
Do Not Go Here!
April Fools




Return to Review Index

Untitled Document


Reviews from previous months
Join the mailing list and receive a hyperlinked weekly update on the discs reviewed. details
We welcome feedback on our reviews. Please use the Bulletin Board
Please paste in the first line of your comments the URL of the review to which you refer.