Never likely to be best-sellers, Mozart’s duos for violin
and viola are however full of inventiveness, and this combination
is one which always sounds fuller than one expects.
Competition for this fine recording by Rachel Podger and Jane
Rogers is to be had, though not with quite the same programme.
Mozart’s duos KV 423 and 424 are on a beautiful
SACD disc from the Capriccio label, C71106, with Antje Weithaas
and Tabea Zimmermann coupled with the Spohr Duo in E minor
Op.13, and the Hungaroton label has a 2 CD set with all
four of Michael Haydn’s surviving duos P.127 as
well as P.128, 129 and 130 on HCD 32376-77. Duo
Kelemen and Kotas also play very well, but are a bit more butch
than the Capriccio pair or Podger/Rogers, digging into the strings
for heightened contrast but trying a little too hard for my
taste. Most expressively performed is the second ‘filler’
CD to Philippe Graffin and Nobuko Imai’s Sinfonia Concertante
KV 364 on Avie AV2127, and if you are looking for a fairly
romantic view of these pieces then this isn’t a bad choice
at all.
Enough of the comparisons: where Podger/Rogers differ from the
aforementioned recordings is in their period approach. Their
use of gut strings makes for a different timbre, slightly more
throaty than with the more up to date versions, though there
is no lack of sparkle and upper resonance in the sonorities
produced. These musicians don’t go overboard seeking dramatic
effect or extra expressive emphasis, playing within the character
of their instruments and bringing the music to life very effectively
indeed. There is clearly a great deal of affection for the music
shown here and there are plenty of little personal touches,
such as subtle changes in tonal colour, and moments such as
the subtle little portamento from Rachel at the beginning of
the Andante cantabile of KV 424. The finale, Mozart’s
Menuetto from the 12 Duos for Horn KV 487 is a
perfect encore, Jane Rogers’ witty recurring boing
in the bottom register the kind of joke I’m sure the composer
and Jacques Tati would have relished.
The Mozart duos are said to have been supplied by the composer
when Michael Haydn was having difficulty completing a set of
six for his employer, the Archbishop of Salzburg. The proximity
in style of the two composers is clearly present, though Michael
Haydn is more inclined to give bravura material to the violin,
seeing the viola as accompanist much as brother Joseph had in
his six Six Sonatas of around ten years previous to the
works here. Mozart’s work moves forward from the Sinfonia
Concertante; also recorded by Rachel Podger (see review),
in giving the viola a far more active role.
Compliments for this recording go to engineer Daan van Aalst
who achieves the tricky balance of giving us plenty of detail
in the sound and placing the musicians close enough for perfect
definition, while at the same time avoiding glare and the fatiguing
effect you have if you get the feeling the players are breathing
down your neck. The 5.0 surround SACD effect is very nicely
done, and this also makes a very fine stereo recording with
pretty much ideal separation. Over 70 minutes of string duos
may not sound like everyone’s cup of tea, but if you love
Mozart’s string quartets you’ll be surprised at
how far this instrumentation goes towards providing similar
effects, so don’t miss out - give ’em a try.
Dominy Clements
Rachel Podger (violin), Jane Rogers (viola) 
[72:37] 
