Credits:

Ensemble Gilles Binchois

Description:

50 years after Stravinsky's death, Isabelle Faust, Queen of the Violin, the latest disc of attention, gathers the gorgeous members who picked up the instruments at the time of "A Soldier's Tale" work! One actor in three languages! A release on an unprecedented scale! Stravinsky recordings by the queen of the violin, Isabelle Faust, are now available. The program includes the introspective unaccompanied work "Elegy," the only work for violin and piano "Duo Concertante," and "A Soldier's Tale. Faust has a tone that brings out the core of any piece, a precision and firmness of structure, intelligence, and a talent for ensemble playing that astounds everyone who performs with him. The CD begins with "Elegy" for solo violin. It was written in 1944 as a memorial to Alphonse Onnoux, a founding member and first violinist of the Belgian Pro Arte string quartet, which specialized in contemporary music. It is an unaccompanied work, a rarity for Stravinsky, with an introspective and austere pathos that draws you into the world spun by Faust's delicate, miniature-like touch. The "Duo Concertante" is performed with his longtime ensemble partner, Melnikov.The work is composed of five pieces of various characters, beginning with the ostinato-like piano and the inorganic violin part in the first piece, followed by the cynical second piece, the introspective and relaxed third piece, the impressive fourth piece with its percussion-like bouncing rhythms, and the tension-filled fifth piece. The ensemble of Faust's straight, ray-like tone and Melnikov's sometimes earth-shattering, sometimes extremely delicate piano are superbly performed. (1/2) King International