Béla Bartók - Chamber Works for Violin, Vol. 1 (James Ehnes)

Information

Composer: Béla Bartók

1. Rhapsody No. 1, BB 94a: I. ('Lassu') Moderato -
2. Rhapsody No. 1, BB 94a: II. ('Friss') Allegretto moderato -
3. Rhapsody No. 1, BB 94a: [Agitato]
4. Sonata No. 2 in C major, BB 85: I. Molto moderato -
5. Sonata No. 2 in C major, BB 85: II. Allegretto
6. Rhapsody No. 2, BB 96a: I. ('Lassu') Moderato -
7. Rhapsody No. 2, BB 96a: II. ('Friss') Allegro moderato
8. Sonata No. 1 in C sharp minor, BB 84: I. Allegro Appassionato
9. Sonata No. 1 in C sharp minor, BB 84: II. Adagio
10. Sonata No. 1 in C sharp minor, BB 84: III. Allegro
11. Andante in A major, BB 26b
12. Alternative ending for Part II of Rhapsody No. 1: Accelerando - A tempo
13. Alternative ending for Part II of Rhapsody No. 1: [Agitato]

James Ehnes, violin

Andrew Armstrong, piano

Date: 2012

Label: Chandos

https://www.chandos.net/products/catalogue/CHAN%2010705

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Review

Ehnes follows Bartók concertos with sonatas and rhapsodies

Rather than opt for the sonatas first with the Rhapsodies as makeweights, or favouring a purely chronological route, James Ehnes and Andrew Armstrong have provided a valuable study in contrasts, letting us in gently with the affable First Rhapsody, then delving among the deeper shadows of the two-tier Second Sonata, emerging from there to the darker, more exotic-sounding Second Rhapsody before hurling us headlong into the swirling storms and nightscapes of the First Sonata. The early, Brahmsian Andante and alternative (actually more familiar) ending for the First Rhapsody serve more or less as encores.

The performances are assertive but never excessively forceful, tonally sweet (useful in this often acerbic music) and, from Andrew Armstrong’s standpoint, almost impressionist in their projection of nuance and tonal shading. Maybe the finale of the First Sonata doesn’t quite match the reckless bravura of Martha Argerich (for Gidon Kremer) or Sviatoslav Richter (for David Oistrakh), but control is a laudable virtue and the result is that one attends as much to the notes as to the effect they’re having. Interesting to have both endings for the First Rhapsody but the alternative finale to the Second would have been even more welcome, and of course there’s the early Sonata of 1903 which, like the 1902 Andante that we’re given, shows a budding Romantic before the seeds of dissonance had flown his way.

The only set to include all this material – all of Bartók’s music for violin and piano in fact – is a very generous two-CD collection on Zephyr with Sherban Lupu and Ian Hobson. Lupu is at his most ravishing and gypsy-like in the unaccompanied opening of the First Sonata’s slow movement (Ehnes’s purity is also attractive, though Lupu digs deeper), but elsewhere Hobson’s piano too often hogs the limelight. André Gertler and Diane Andersen, in their authoritatively interpreted four-CD Supraphon collection, offer us all three sonatas, the (orchestrated) Rhapsodies, the concertos and other works.

So, summing up, Ehnes and Armstrong provide an exceedingly generous programme (80'30"), expertly engineered, well planned, beautifully executed. Theirs is certainly an excellent place to start but do try if you can to investigate the very different alternatives mentioned.

-- Gramophone

More reviews:
MusicWeb International  RECORDING OF THE MONTH

https://www.thestrad.com/bartok-violin-sonatas-nos1-and-2-rhapsodies-nos1-and-2-plus-alternative-ending-for-no1-andante-in-a-major/748.article

https://www.allmusic.com/album/bart%C3%B3k-sonatas-rhapsodies-vol-1-mw0002278492

https://www.amazon.com/Bart%C3%B3k-Violin-Sonatas-Nos-Rhapsodies/dp/B0069TWDA6

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Béla Bartók (March 25, 1881 – September 26, 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist and an ethnomusicologist. Bartók is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century; he and Liszt are regarded as Hungary's greatest composers. Through his collection and analytical study of folk music, he was one of the founders of comparative musicology, which later became ethnomusicology. Bartók's music reflects two trends that dramatically changed the sound of music in the 20th century: the breakdown of the diatonic system of harmony, and the revival of nationalism as a source for musical inspiration.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B%C3%A9la_Bart%C3%B3k

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James Ehnes (born January 27, 1976 in Brandon, Manitoba, Canada) is a Canadian concert violinist. Ehnes began his violin studies at the age of four and at age nine became a protégé of the noted Canadian violinist Francis Chaplin. He studied with Sally Thomas at the Meadowmount School of Music and from 1993 to 1997 at The Juilliard School. Ehnes is Artistic Director of the Seattle Chamber Music Society and founder of the Ehnes Quartet. His recordings have won numerous awards and prizes, including 9 Junos, a Grammy, and a Gramophone Award. Ehnes performs on the 1715 "Marsick" Stradivarius.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Ehnes

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