Frédéric Lodéon (cello)
Le Flamboyant
The Complete Erato & EMI Recordings
rec. 1973-1986, various locations
ERATO 9029654625 [21 CDs: 18 hrs]
This 21 CD set, featuring the complete discographic legacy for Erato and EMI of Paris-born cellist Frédéric Lodéon, coincides with his seventieth birthday, which he celebrates this year. Lodéon began his musical training under cellist Albert Tétard. He went on to study at the Paris Conservatory, taking first cello prize in 1969 (awarded unanimously by the jury). In 1977, he became the first Frenchman to win the Mstislav Rostropovich Competition. He later went on to study with Rostropovich and was also mentored by André Navarra. He has since widened his horizons to include conducting, and has become something of a radio personality. He has been the proud recipient of the Légion d'honneur and officier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres.
I’m amazed listening to these recordings, many of which are appearing on CD for the first time, how they have benefitted from the superb 192kHz/24-bit remasterings from the original tapes, expertly accomplished by Christophe Hénault of Studio Art & Son, Annecy. Each CD card sleeve is adorned with the original jacket. Now we can savour these very fine, vital and committed performances in the very best possible light.
Concerto recordings range from Vivaldi to Saint-Saëns. Vivaldi composed no less than 27 concertos for the cello, and we have a selection of five here. The cello is quite forwardly balanced throughout. The concertos are relatively short works, on average about ten minutes long. Their lyrical wealth reflects Vivaldi’s creative genius. Progressing to Haydn, the first concerto in C major Hob.VIIb/1 was only discovered in 1961 and has overtaken the D major Concerto in the popularity stakes. Lodéon takes the outer movements sprightly, whilst the slow movement benefits from his rich warm tone and exquisite phrasing. I have never enjoyed the D major Concerto as much. In some recordings I’ve detected some meandering and lack of direction, but not here. You’ll be more than rewarded by the positive sense of direction in this glowing account. Theodor Guschlbauer is marvellous in his inspired accompaniment. There are four Boccherini concertos on offer, spread over two discs. Nos. 9 and 10 were set down in 1976 and , once again, Theodor Guschlbauer is at the helm of the Bournemouth Sinfonietta. Nos. 2 and 3 were taped later in 1980 with Armin Jordan and the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra. The Concerto No. 9 in B flat major with its lyrical outpourings is the best known. Lodéon performs it with unruffled ease and intensity. The finale is particularly attractive with its wit and good humour.
The Schumann Concerto is given a convincing reading, at times dark and noble. The vexed question of Schumann’s orchestration being sparse and frequently exposed is irrelevant here. Guschlbauer underlines the beautiful woodwind passages and brings weight and strength to the orchestral part in the third movement. The Lalo Concerto is a terrific work and unjustly neglected in my view. Lodéon’s is a bold reading, making a considerable impression. There’s ample fire and intensity in the opening movement of the Saint-Saëns Concerto, with the middle movement imbued with glowing intimacy.
Chamber music constitutes a sizeable portion of the set. Collard, Dumay and Lodéon came together on two occasions in the 1980’s to record Schubert’s two piano trios. I find them the least successful of the chamber music recordings. Both are impulsive, hard-driven and unyielding, with the playing often sounding harsh and aggressive. I much prefer the more sedate and refined Beaux Arts. They make a much better job of the Ravel Trio, here heard in a compelling reading from 1980. The Mendelssohn trios from 1976 fare much better, For these the cellist teams up with Pierre Amoyal (violin) and Anne Queffélec (piano). Here, the listener can bask in some seductive music-making. The slow movement of No. 1 is particularly ravishing, with the Scherzo lithe and airy. Schumann’s three trios were recorded in Paris in 1978. Lodéon is joined by Jean Mouillère (violin) and Jean Hubeau (piano). The first trio is played with great passion, and the performance fully captures the romantic feel of the writing. No. 2, by contrast, is much more extrovert and upbeat. All in all, the trios present some full-blooded chamber music playing.
Fauré’s Piano Trio in D Minor, Op. 120 is one of his final masterpieces and, sadly, is not encountered that much. The performance, by Collard, Dumay and Lodéon is both clean and expressive. There’s ample restraint in the central Andantino, where the players approach it with a religious fervour. The finale is engaging and delectable. The group are joined by Bruno Pasquier on viola for an uplifting and stylish Piano Quartet No. 1. The opening movement of the Tchaikovsky trio is played with ardour, intensity and a sense of lyrical melancholy. The Variation second movement has plenty of style and variety.
Lodéon worked with several pianists throughout his recording career, but his most frequent collaborations were with a one time girlfriend, the late Daria Hovora (1947-2017). The two joined forces for sonatas by Schubert, Mendelssohn, Richard Strauss, Prokofiev and Shostakovich. Their earliest partnership was in 1973 when they set down their interpretations of the Strauss and Prokofiev sonatas. This recording is one of the CD premieres. The pair give a persuasive performance of Strauss’ early work, penned when he was only seventeen. The Prokofiev is dark-hued and assertive but with some radiant lyrical moments. The two Mendelssohn Sonatas were recorded two years later in 1975. The second is the best of the two. It has a stunning finale, and this recording, here on CD for the first time, stands shoulder to shoulder with the stunning Maisky/Tiempo recording on DG. The Shostakovich Sonata is particularly fine, an amalgam of lyricism and melancholy. Lodéon’s tone is rich, burnished and expressive.
The two Fauré sonatas benefit from Jean-Philippe-Collard’s “remarkable interpretations of the composer’s piano works”. The austere tread of the Adagio of the Second Sonata has a true funereal feel, whilst the finale is dispatched with infectious exuberance. CD 14 is dedicated to works by Chopin. Lodéon reminisces that Daria Horova should have been the pianist in this recording, but she advised the cellist to ask François-René Duchâble who, she considered, was a better interpreter of this composer.
There are one or two fascinating rarities in the collection. The French cellist and composer Jean-Louis Duport was a contemporary of Mozart and Haydn, but his music never gained the same popularity. His two concertos represented reflect the fact that he was an accomplished instrumentalist in terms of technical difficulty. Both are melodically rich and pleasing, and are enhanced by Lodéon’s stylish and idiomatic readings. The same can be said for the two duos, where Lodéon is joined by colleague Xavier Gagnepain. André Caplet’s Épiphanie is a world premiere recording. The work dates from 1923, two years before his death, and was his last completed composition. The composer described the work as “A musical fresco after an Ethiopian legend”, a reference to the Ethiopian folk music he employed in the score. It’s in three movements (Cortège, Cadence and Danse des Petits Nègres), though some regard it as two movements linked by a cadenza. The performance exudes exotic aromas, and Lodéon impresses in the centrally-positioned technically demanding cadenza. Charles Dutoit and the Philharmonia provide sympathetic support. Vincent d'indy’s Concert for piano, flute cello and strings is a work I’m not at all familiar with. It’s engaging, perhaps glancing back to Baroque times. Some may find it bogged down by conservatism. The slow movement is the most attractive, wistfully reflecting on times past. A nice balance is achieved between all three soloists.
This wonderful collection has a generous, wide and varied selection of repertoire on offer. In the accompanying liner notes, in French, English, and German, Lodéon reminisces on his long-time relationship with Erato and later with EMI. The booklet is tightly packed with an interesting array of black and white photos of the cellist. All told, this is a fitting tribute for a seventieth birthday.
Stephen Greenbank
Contents
Auric, Georges
Imaginees 2
Beethoven, Ludwig van
Triple Concerto in C major for piano, violin and cello, op.56
Boccherini, Luigi
Cello Concerto no.6 in D major, G479
Cello Concerto no.7 in G major, G480
Cello Concerto no.9 in B flat major, G482
Cello Concerto no.10 in D major, G483
Brahms, Johannes
Clarinet Trio in A minor, op.114
Caplet, Andre
Epiphanie (d'apres une legende ethiopienne), op.22
Chopin, Frederic
Cello Sonata in G minor, op.65
Grand Duo Concertant on a theme from Meyerbeer's 'Robert le Diable', B70
Introduction and Polonaise brillante, op.3
d'Indy, Vincent
Concerto for flute, cello, piano and strings
Duport, Jean-Louis
Cello Concerto no.2 in G major
Cello Concerto no.5 in D major
Duo no.2 in D major (arr. Frederic Robert)
Duo no.3 in G major (arr. Frederic Robert)
Faure, Gabriel
Cello Sonata no.1 in D minor, op.109
Cello Sonata no.2 in G minor, op.117
Elegie in C minor, op.24 (cello and orchestra)
Elegie in C minor, op.24 (cello and piano)
Papillon, op.77
Piano Quartet no.1 in C minor, op.15
Piano Trio in D minor, op.120
Romance in A major, op.69
Serenade, op.98
Sicilienne, op.78
Haydn, Franz Joseph
Cello Concerto in C major, Hob.VIIb:1
Cello Concerto in D major, Hob.VIIb:2 (op.101)
Lalo, Edouard
Cello Concerto in D minor
Mendelssohn, Felix
Cello Sonata no.1 in B flat major, op.45
Cello Sonata no.2 in D major, op.58
Piano Trio in C minor, op.66
Piano Trio in D minor, op.49
Prokofiev, Sergei
Cello Sonata in C major, op.119
Ravel, Maurice
Piano Trio in A minor
Saint-Saens, Camille
Cello Concerto no.1 in A minor, op.33
Schubert, Franz
Notturno in E flat major for piano trio, op.148 D897
Piano Trio no.1 in B flat major, op.99 D898
Piano Trio no.2 in E flat major, op.100 D929
Sonata in A minor, D821 'Arpeggione' (arr. cello and piano)
Sonatensatz in B flat major, D28
Schumann, Robert
Adagio and Allegro, op.70
Cello Concerto in A minor, op.129
Fantasiestucke (3), op.73
Fantasiestucke in A minor for piano trio, op.88
Kinderszenen, op.15
» no.7 Traumerei (arr. cello and piano)
Piano Trio no.1 in D minor, op.63
Piano Trio no.2 in F major, op.80
Piano Trio no.3 in G minor, op.110
Stucke (5) im Volkston, op.102
Shostakovich, Dmitri
Cello Sonata in D minor, op.40
Strauss, Richard
Cello Sonata in F major, op.6 TrV115
Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Ilyich
Piano Trio in A minor, op.50 'In Memory of a Great Artist'
Variations on a Rococo theme, op.33
Vivaldi, Antonio
Cello Concerto in A minor, RV420
Cello Concerto in B minor, RV424
Cello Concerto in C major, RV400
Cello Concerto in C minor, RV401
Cello Concerto in G major, RV413
Participating artists:
Pierre Amoyal (violin)
Jean-Philippe Collard (piano)
Michel Dalberto (piano)
Francois-Rene Duchâble (piano)
Augustin Dumay (violin)
Xavier Gagnepain (cello)
Daria Hovora (piano)
Jean Hubeau (piano)
Jean Moulliere (violin)
Bruno Pasquier (viola)
Michel Portal (clarinet)
Anne Queffelec (piano)
Jean-Pierre Rampal (flute)
Pascal Roge (piano)
Bournemouth Sinfonietta Orchestra
Ensemble orchestral de Paris
Nouvel Orchestre Philharmonique
Orchestre de chambre de Lausanne
Orchestre de chambre Jean-Francois Paillard
Orchestre National de l’Opera de Monte-Carlo
Philharmonia Orchestra
Conductors:
Charles Dutoit
Theodor Guschlbauer
Armin Jordan
Jean-Francois Paillard
Jean-Pierre Wallez
