Fenella’s Four Seasons are a kaleidoscope of calm
The violinist is perfectly suited to the contemporary nuances of Richter’s reimagining, says Claire Jackson The Four Seasons Recomposed
Max Richter: The Four Seasons Recomposed; Vasks: Lonely Angel; Arvo Pärt: Fratres
Fenella Humphreys (violin); Covent Garden Sinfonia/ Ben Palmer
Rubicon RCD1015 63:40 mins
‘Recomposing’– or ‘reimagining’ as it is also known – is an increasingly popular compositional style that sees original works spliced and melded together with new material. Max Richter’s version of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons (2012) is a pioneering example of this idiom, yet until now the only recorded version that existed was Richter’s own, produced in collaboration with the Konzerthausorchester Berlin and violinist Daniel Hope (Deutsche Grammophon, 2012). Fenella Humphreys’s interpretation is a welcome addition to the work’s discography.
Humphreys’s previous Bach 2 the Future albums demonstrated her ability to combine traditional and contemporary techniques, and here we find her ideally suited to Richter’s writing. Her playing is less explosive than Hope’s; Humphreys mines the repetitive melodies for subtleties of colour, rather than drama. The iconic fragments (the ‘Spring’ emblem, in particular) sing with clarity, and there is broadly sound ensemble playing with the Covent Garden Sinfonia under Ben Palmer. This recording sits companionably next to DG’S, rather than knocking it off the shelf.
P teris Vasks’s Lonely Angel was written for violinist Gidon Kremer and evokes a singular spiritual presence floating above the world, symbolised by an upper-octave solo part set against a fluttering string orchestra. Humphreys excels in the soaring stillness, giving a less sentimental reading than the title and premise suggest.
This collection is described as ‘post-minimalist’; perhaps ‘alternative minimalist’ might be more apt, as the concluding Fratres (1977) by Arvo Pärt, with its sparse, repeated motifs, is comparable with the likes of Glass and Reich.
PERFORMANCE ★★★★
RECORDING ★★★★
Hear extracts from this recording and the rest of this month’s choices on the BBC Music Magazine website at www.classical-music.com
Marsalis
Violin Concerto in D; Fiddle Dance Suite for Solo Violin Nicola Benedetti (violin); Philadelphia Orchestra/
Christian M celaru
Decca 485 0013 67:06 mins
Wynton Marsalis has been long recognised as as one of the world’s foremost trumpeters, working across jazz and classical music in ways that challenge cultural assumptions while being firmly rooted in tradition. He is equally passionate as a composer about ‘finding and nurturing common musical ground between differing arts and musical styles.’ His Violin Concerto in D, written for Nicola Benedetti, does just that while saluting a similarly engaged fellow virtuoso.
From opening ‘Rhapsody’ to closing ‘Hootenanny’ via ‘Rondo Burlesque’ and ‘Blues’, each of the Concerto’s four movements is a tangy gumbo of diverse idioms that have in common human expression: joy, pain, sorrow, sensuality and humour are all part of the mix. It’s hugely to Benedetti’s credit, colourfully supported by the Philadelphia Orchestra under conductor Cristian M celaru, that they fuse into a fluent whole across a whopping 40-plus minutes total length.
Assembled from live performances over three days, the recording captures her impressive commitment, poise and sense of spontaneity through a highly listenable if sometimes sprawling succession of Celtic reel, barnyard stomp, Mardi Gras and New Orleans jazz, delivered with Ivesian dissonance and Copland-esque Americana sweep.
The journey is effectively repeated in the ensuing fivemovement Fiddle Dance Suite for solo violin. A dazzling showcase, this rather lengthily stretches the point, though it allows Benedetti to fully take charge in alternating whistling and wistful, impassioned and fiercely syncopated jig, lullaby, bebop and hoedown, driving home the symbiosis of fiddle and violin across cultures. Steph Power PERFORMANCE ★★★
RECORDING ★★★★
Humphreys mines the repetitive melodies for subtleties of colour