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
CD: AmazonUK AmazonUS


John Solum: Live in Concert
Johann Nepomuk HUMMEL (1778-1837)
Flute sonata in D major op.50 [15:16]
Joseph RHEINBERGER (1839-1901)
Rhapsodie (1856) [6:49]
Paul TAFFANEL (1844-1908)
Allegretto Grazioso (1877) [1:53]
André CAPLET (1878-1925)
Reverie and Petite Valse (1897) [7:44]
Georges ENESCO (1881-1955)
Cantabile et Presto (1904) [6:04]
Darius MILHAUD (1892-1974)
Sonatine (1922) [8:58]
Richard WILSON (b. 1941)
Music for Solo Flute (1972) [11:20]
Ernesto KOHLER (1849-1907)
Flight of the Swallows Op 72 [3:47]
John Solum (flute); Irma Vallecillo (piano)
rec. 19 September 1985, Skinner Recital Hall, Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, New York, 29 October 1978, London, England (Kohler). DDD/ADD
MSR CLASSICS MS1126 [61:50]
Experience Classicsonline

The opening movement of Hummel’s D major Sonata is bright and lightly played on this live recording by American flute player, John Solum. The slow movement demonstrates his warm and colourful tone, while the finale once again gives an opportunity for fast-paced energy.
 
Solum is a distinguished flutist with an impressive pedigree. Born in 1935, he studied with Kincaid and went to Princeton University. Currently professor of flute at Vassar College, he has been associated with the Flute Club of New York, National Flute Association and the Connecticut Early Music Festival. Over twenty composers have written music for him, perhaps most notably Copland, who composed his Duo in memory of William Kincaid at Solum’s request. Respected as an editor and recording artist, his professional career has spanned over fifty years.
 
In the modern recording age, there can often be a disparity between quality in a live performance and a recording. In a recording studio, the only constraints on technical perfection are the amount of time the performer has to make re-takes to cover any mistakes. The spontaneity of the live performance can be lost and the art of being a recording artist can be far removed from that of a concert artist. All the more impressive, then, that this live concert recording lives up to the high standards we have become accustomed to on disc.
 
Solum performs a wide range of repertoire here, from the sparkling Hummel to a three movement work by contemporary composer Richard Wilson, heard in chronological order. Rheinberger’s Rhapsodie is a beautiful work, in which Solum displays his excellent control of tone colours and expressive range. He is accompanied in this recital by Irma Vallecillo, whose playing is both sensitive and expressive, allowing the flute and the music space to breathe where required. The combination of these two players is a winning formula. Taffanel’s Allegretto Grazioso is a lilting miniature, performed with poise and grace. I have heard a number of recordings of Caplet’s Reverie and Petite Valse, my favourite being Paul Edmund Davies’ recording for EMI, but this comes a close second. Solum takes the Reverie slowly, giving a real sense of its dreamlike mood. The Valse has fluidity and direction, with a wonderful sense of ebb and flow. Listening to Solum it is clear that he is not bound up in the diva mentality of some flute players. His technical security is merely a tool of his work as a musician – this programme does not ‘show off’ or ever once lose its musical focus. This is essentially simple repertoire, played with polish and artistry with expression and musicality at its essence.
 
Enesco’s Cantabile et Presto was composed as a test piece for the Paris Conservatoire in 1904, and is now frequently played by flute students everywhere. Solum’s Cantabile is well paced, with a lovely sense of flow. The Presto is taken at an impressive speed, and the dramatic impact is further enhanced by a couple of ‘live performance moments’; somehow very occasional slips add to the performance rather than detract from it.
 
Milhaud’s Sonatine has a hypnotic musical language which fuses the French romantic tradition with jazz and modernism. The music twists and turns, sometimes turbulent, sometimes languishing in the harmony and the textural piano writing. The recital ends with Richard Wilson’s three movement Music for Solo Flute, written for Harvey Sollberger in 1972. This is a well written work which shows an understanding for the capabilities of the flute. The music features bird-like motives, which reminded me of Messiaen. This is a highly enjoyable work, lyrical at times and technically challenging at others, and always full of character and personality.
 
As an encore, Solum adds a previously unreleased studio recording of Kohler’s Flight of the Swallows for flute and orchestra. This is a short work in the form of a charming and virtuoso waltz. Although the recital would have been complete without this, Kohler’s music provides an entertaining ‘lollipop’ at the end of an excellent disc.
 
Carla Rees
 

 


Advertising on
Musicweb


Donate and keep us afloat

 

New Releases

Naxos Classical
All Naxos reviews

Chandos recordings
All Chandos 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.