This is an absolutely
lovely disc. It is the first opportunity
I have had to hear this young piano
duo, which was formed as a semi-permanent
group in 1996. Both players met while
attending a master-class of Christian
Zacharias during the Festival d’Ile
de France, held at the Chateau de Villarceaux.
They had both been attending as soloists
and during the festival had decided
to form the duo. They won first prize
at the Caltanisetta International Chamber
Music Competition in Sicily in 1998,
and have gone on to develop a very successful
career, having given recitals all over
Europe.
They have previously
released (also on Thorofon) works by
Stravinsky and Rachmaninov. If these
are anywhere near as good as the current
issue, they will also be well worth
purchasing.
Both Ravel and Debussy
wrote principally for the piano and
many of the pieces were orchestrated
by themselves and/or others. Both versions
have had independent lives. The works
on the current disc were all written
for piano duo by their respective composers
and are at the cornerstone of the piano
duo repertoire, as well as providing
material for orchestral pieces. The
most famous of these is Rapsodie espagnole
which, as most enthusiasts know, was
orchestrated by the composers. In this
form it is one of the most effective
pictures of Spain that exists. To claim
that this piano adaptation (by the composer)
is no less effective for duo piano than
the orchestral version is of course
dependant upon the playing ability of
the two soloists. I found the Spanish
atmosphere of the work was as powerfully
conveyed as that in the orchestral arrangement,
indeed, although they are not there,
one can imagine the sound of the castanets
very clearly. It is as if they were
there.
The ballet Ma mère
l’oye in its duo form is captivating.
The five movements are delightfully
performed, and the recording quality
is superb, handling the large dynamic
range effortlessly. The instruments
used are also evenly matched and have
a sonorous tone, especially in the hands
of this duo.
When we reach the Debussy
items, Ernest Ansermet comes to mind,
since it was he who made the orchestration
of the Six épigraphes antiques.
His original recording made in the fifties
is currently available on Testament,
and a modern version, superbly performed
and recorded is intermittently available
on Arabesque – San Francisco Ballet
orchestra – Emil de Cou. The original
piano duet version is from Debussy’s
own hand. Listening to this performance,
one can understand why Ansermet made
this arrangement: the piano textures
suggest an orchestral guise. These two
soloists make a wonderful job of the
suite.
En blanc et noir is
perhaps the least well known piece here.
In three sections, this was a solo piano
piece written by Debussy at the end
of his life. The three movements were
originally entitled Caprice en blanc
et noir, which led some people to connect
them with the etchings Goya called Caprichos.
This is a superb disc
in every way, and should not be missed.
John Phillips
Duo Villarceaux: Alexandra Sostmann, Judith
Mosch (pianos).
