Matrioshka

Works by Balakirev, Erdely, Glinka, Ivanov, Liszt, Musorgsky, Prokofiev, Rachmaninov, Walterjune & Zabel

Alexandrea Luiceanu (harp)

Evidence EVCD063 59:07 mins

With Alexandra Luiceanu’s eloquent written introduction, and the fascinating quotations she finds for each piece, I was hopeful that this might be that elusive phenomenon, the harp recital that’s companionable from start to finish. Alas, it’s mostly business as usual: melancholy songs with swirly accompaniments – way too many sad Russian ditties at one point – offset only by two unsuccessful ‘fantaisies’ with prettified waltzes at their core, one from Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin, the other from Gounod’s Faust.

There’s one startling wake-up call in the middle of Prokofiev’s Prelude, originally written for harpist Eleonora Damskaya (though where does Luiceanu get the idea that she and the composer were lovers who produced a child?). There are also some breathtaking ornamentations in Luiceanu’s own transcription of Balakirev’s The Lark and Renie’s of Liszt’s (excuse the convolutions) of Alabiev’s The Nightingale.

The chief interest, though, lies in the perspectives of a recording in a reverberant venue, Abbeville (Cathedral rather than Theatre?). Luiceanu’s harp is the gateway to a hall of mirrors. How long you want to spend in there is very much a matter of taste. David Nice PERFORMANCE ★★★

RECORDING ★★★★