MusicWeb International One of the most grown-up review sites around 2023
Approaching 60,000 reviews
and more.. 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 AmazonUK   AmazonUS

Krzysztof PENDERECKI (b. 1933)
Capriccio for Violin and Orchestra (1967) [12:52];
De Natura Sonoris No. 2 (1971) [7:13];
Piano Concerto “Resurrection” (2001/2002) [32:59]
Patrycja Piekutowska (violin), Beata Bilinska (piano)
The National Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra Katowice/Krzysztof Penderecki
rec. December 2005 and September 2006, Grzegorz Fitelberg Concert Hall, Katowice. DDD
DUX 0582 [53:18]



Penderecki’s music has always excited me, and this recording was no disappointment. Starting with the Capriccio for Violin and Orchestra, we are transported into a soundworld of drama, dissonance and an excellent understanding of balance. Piekutowska’s violin playing here is full of character, aggression, emotion and beauty of expression as the music demands it, with an obvious understanding of the style. As a violinist himself, the composer is well aware of the capabilities of the instrument, and the technical virtuosity so impressively displayed here cannot go unmentioned. The orchestra supports with gusto and passion, with the percussion and brass playing particularly notable in its strength. The composer deploys orchestral colours to full effect, making use of instrumental groups in isolation and challenging our ideas of a traditional orchestral sound. Always convincing, this is music that speaks its own language.
 
De Natura Sonoris No 2 is an astonishing piece. Full of ethereal sounds, this is reminiscent of the sort of music one would expect to hear in a horror movie. The way Penderecki creates the sounds of nature through a standard symphony orchestra is highly atmospheric and convincing – and completely captivating. Layer upon layer of rich trills build up [3:17] to create a tapestry of insects, crawling over their prey. Blasts from the brass section in Penderecki’s distinct harmonic language take over, resembling the oncoming of elephants, although the bell suggests the approach of a train. A resounding thud, and then silence. A crash? The sounds continue into the distance, passing by and restoring the equilibrium. The liner notes suggest that this is a study in movement in music, and this seven minute work is full of direction. Each sound makes the listener experience something new, constantly evolving and often surprising. Despite its abstract meaning, one cannot help but impose a personal story-line onto this short work. It fuels the imagination. Composed for the Juilliard School in 1971, this is a real gem in the repertoire.
 
With its military style opening, the Piano Concerto could initially be mistaken perhaps for something composed by one of Penderecki’s Russian counterparts, maybe even Prokofiev or Shostakovich. However, within just a few seconds, Penderecki’s distinctive three note motif is ever-present - it also features prominently in the flute concerto of 1992 - giving an obvious sense of the composer’s style. This work is in many ways different from the other two in this disc. More melodic, with distinctive rhythmic drive, the composer’s late style is much developed from the earlier works presented here. Although Penderecki has taken steps towards a more tonally centred style, the writing is mature and structurally clear. Within the context of September 11th (this work was composed in 2001-2), the title, Resurrection deals with man’s need to start afresh and to make new beginnings. The slower sections have an emotional depth which gives the impression of the composer wearing his heart on his sleeve, maybe even traced with a sense of nostalgia. These fleeting moments are replaced with the driving rhythmic energy of the opening, the performers handling the swift changes of pace and mood more than capably. There is a constant sense of unfolding development and under the direction of the composer himself, one would expect this to be fairly close to a definitive performance. The piano playing is clear, controlled and technically impressive. The part makes use mostly of the instrument’s percussive qualities, although there are also moments of melodic beauty. Bilinska plays with a kaleidoscope of colours and emotions. This is an exciting performance, which is thoroughly gripping from the very beginning to its exhilarating end.
 
This is an excellent recording, which would serve as a good introduction to Penderecki’s works.
 
The playing is of a consistently high standard and the music contained on the disc is thoroughly engaging.

Carla Rees

see also review by Dominy Clements 



 


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.