REFLECTIONS

Britten: Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge; Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis; Stravinsky: Apollon musagète Trondheim Solistene

2L 2L-125-SABD (SACD plus Blu-ray audio) 70:03 mins

This is another glorious disc from the Trondheimsolistene. Britten’s Variations on a theme of Frank

Bridge is a natural next step after the ensemble’s phenomenal recording of the Simple Symphony. As is the norm for the enterprising Norwegian 2L label, the performances are captured in state-of-the-art sound and presented both on hybrid SACD and Blu-ray Audio, the latter offering up to 9.1 surround, though ‘oldfashioned’ 5.1 still sounds pretty extraordinary, and an excellent stereo mix has not been overlooked. Such audiophile gobbledegook is not superficial stardust, but informs the entire approach, the ensemble being arranged in a circle around the microphones, creating a visceral immersive experience in which the listener is at the centre of marvellous performances.

All this brings out the playful dialogue of, for instance, ‘Calliope’s Variation’ in Stravinsky’s Apollon Musagete or the ‘Aria Italiana’ in the Britten Variations in a way never normally experienced. The intensity of the sustained string playing in the latter’s ‘Funeral March’ is both thrilling and moving, so it comes as a surprise that the work’s closing moments are a touch mundane. With its use of acoustical space, Vaughan Williams’s Tallis Fantasia is made for surround sound, and, even if a larger main ensemble would provide an even greater sonic contrast, the placing of the more distant soloists works well. The Trondheimsolistene ensure Apollon Musagète is suitably elegant and really dances, releasing the rapt energy of the Vaughan Williams, while its wry interplay is the perfect foil for the Britten.