Energico
Niccolò PAGANINI (1782-1840)
Grand Sonata in La maggiore, M.8.3 (1803) [18:36]
Miguel LLOBET (1878-1938)
Canciones populares catalanas (1899-1918) [11:40]
Scherzo-Vals (1909) [3:47]
Rory BOYLE (b. 1951)
Partita a quattro (2009) [12:56]
Toru TAKEMITSU (1930-1996)
Wainscot Pond (1995) [4:56]
Over the Rainbow (1977) [3:16]
Yesterday (1977) [3:35]
Marco Ramelli (guitar)
rec. April 2012, Villa Montevecchio, Samarate, Italy.
NIMBUS ALLIANCE NI 6218 [58:46]
Fans of the guitar are pretty well looked after these days, with ‘Laureate’
series’ from labels like Naxos regularly presenting the latest award-winning
stars for our delectation. The soloist in this superbly produced release is
an Italian virtuoso who has numerous prestigious awards under his belt, most
recently winning the 2012 Seville International Guitar Competition. This was
held at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland who hold copyright on the recording,
hence the logo on the front of the booklet.
This is a highly attractive programme, opening with Paganini’s Grand Sonata,
from which a relatively insubstantial violin part has been left out according
to current tradition. This piece is very charming easy on the ears, with the
lyrical lines in the central Romanze allowing Ramelli space to give
us some delicious expressive vibrato. Another important composer, Miguel Llobet,
was one of the leading figures who ensured the status of the guitar in the
late 19th and early 20th centuries. The Popular
Songs of Catalonia are amongst his most often heard pieces, and the often
simple character of the music is given a great deal of subtlety and character
by Ramelli. The poetic and narrative qualities of the Popular Songs
contrasts with the witty Scherzo-Vals, a parody in which Ramelli
relishes the little glissandi and leaping variations which make the piece
so appealing.
The jump to contemporary music is a reasonably gentle one, Rory Boyle’s very
fine Partita a Quattro having its dissonances and dramatic dynamic
gear changes, but in a traditional idiom with plenty of familiar hand-holds.
The first movement gives us the title for this CD, Energico, followed
by a gorgeously pensive and melodic Languido. The clues to the character
of the music continue in a penultimate Nervoso, and the final Insolente
which does indeed have rude elements, but in the nicest possible way. The
last three pieces by Takemitsu are deeply representative of his remarkable
ability to embrace Western influences while retaining an Eastern point of
view. Poignantly, In the Woods was his last original work, written
just a few months before he died, and the movement Wainscot Pond
is a quiet, landscape inspired piece with a mood of melancholy. The final
two pieces are part of Takemitsu’s Transcriptions for Guitar, and
yes indeed, you can easily recognise both tunes in these elegantly arranged
versions.
A lack of track numbers in booklet or on the back of the case is a minor irritation.
For fans of guitar and just of good music in general this release ticks all
boxes, and there is plenty of decent repertoire to get your teeth stuck into.
The Energico title is perhaps a little misleading, though I for one
was glad to hear a minimum of spectacular string-scrubbing and a maximum of
marvellously subtle and sensitive playing.
Dominy Clements
Excellent recital and superb playing.
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