This is principally
notable for d’Indy’s substantial four-movement Trio of 1888.
It marked a new sense of direction for him which, since he was
thirty-seven, was no bad thing. It’s also a piece for which
he retained affection and which he used in his composition classes.
Like most French composers of the time d’Indy was a good pianist
and he played the piano part in numerous concerts.
It begins tensely
and quite tersely before opening out into resplendent sunlight
lyricism, one that looks naturally to Franck but that has a
certain fluid lyricism all its own and one moreover that strikes
an instantly appealing note. A pity he didn’t exercise rather
more caution over its length however; at over fourteen minutes
this first movement lacks shape. Still the scherzo (or Divertissement;
Vif et animé) is laced by puckish cello pizzicati and
a certain balletic grace before the zesty trio section spices
the music still further with vineyard tang. The clarinet reminiscences
are splendidly forlorn. In the slow movement the coiling cello
melody and the dramatically rolled piano chords summon up, along
with unison clarinet and cello figures, a strong profile. But
it’s the finale where the Franckian inheritance is at its most
potent. Here d’Indy recycles earlier material with a burnished
and contemplative largesse, evoking sonorities – whether unison
or solo - that are inherently attractive if very occasionally
somewhat clotted in the Franckian manner. It’s good to have
this trio available in a recommendable recording; there have
been very few versions of this down the years and currently
there are only two somewhat hard-to-find recordings available.
I write at the head
of this review that this Naxos disc was notable for the d’Indy
but this isn’t an indictment of the Amici Ensemble’s Bruch so
much as an acknowledgement that whereas it may be hard to programme
it’s seen an increasing number of new recordings. In fact it’s
getting to be, if not exactly a disc staple, at least a constant
presence in the catalogues. The Pieces were often dismissed,
or accepted grudgingly, for their easy Schumannesque lyricism.
The clean textures and romantic impress certainly make for a
strong contrast with the late Romantic tension of the Frenchman’s
Trio. But it’s in the melancholy tinge of the First or the arresting
start to No.3 that Bruch really makes his mark. The Amici bring
light, spruce textures to bear and in the Sixth a certain restrained
nobility of expression – note that in the lower registral passages
the clarinet is not covered by the cello as can happen if balances
and dynamics are not observed.
So whilst the d’Indy
remains the principal reason for consideration the Bruch receives
a pleasing, quite relaxed reading. The sound quality can be
a touch boomy and the notes are inclined to be sketchy but at
Naxos price these are relatively minor considerations.
Jonathan Woolf
see also Review
by Christopher Fifield
Amici Ensemble
