Quite a
bit of staff paper has been devoted to Paganini’s last of
24 Caprices for Violin. Brahms gave a good deal of quality
time to it; enough for two sets of variations. Then there’s
Casella and Liszt and the composers represented on this disc.
T. Patrick
Carrabré opens the disc with the classical music version
of a ‘mash-up’, even down to the beginning of the title — Paganini
vs. Chopin. Construction noises are heard at the outset,
complete with electric drill, ostensibly to show the artist,
either the composer or - perhaps especially, the pianist
- working at his craft. Practice scales ensue before the
famed Caprice theme takes over, which then is wiped out by
Chopin’s etudes with snatches of Hanon’s exercises for keyboard,
and the tea-with-crumpets pairing with the Dies Irae theme
on tolling bells. This is in turn upstaged by Hanon again,
then Chopin. It’s all rather like listening to a radio with
multiple personality disorder, cycling through various classical
music stations while one stares at the speakers, the newspaper
forgotten in lap. The piece has wit and humour, though to
these ears the frame of the construction sounds seems somewhat
contrived. The composer refers to this piece as a “romp” in
the liner notes, and it is certainly that, a quite enjoyable
crowd-pleaser that will likely have classical music fans
smiling at some of the in-jokes and juxtapositions.
Following
that comes more familiar ground: the Rachmaninov Rhapsody,
here given a serviceable performance. The opening and other
areas have less sparkle than other performances that you
will already have, but likely you won’t be purchasing this
disc for the Rachmaninov anyway, but for the lesser-heard
ones that bracket it. My preferred performances remain Rubenstein’s
with Reiner and the Chicago Symphony and Entremont with Ormandy’s
Philadelphia Orchestra.
Requested
by Felicja Blumental (whose recordings have lately been getting
reissued on Brana records), Lutosławski wrote his own
set of variations in 1977, which begins as if right in the
middle of a larger set. The brass builds, then subsides
with a variation that evokes Vaughan Williams’s Tallis Fantasia. The
orchestral forces do a lovely job here, with a wonderful
tone under the baton of David Lockington, as the music rears
up before the short coda.
Unlikely
to have been heard before by most - though not touted as
a world premiere performance as the Carrabré - is the closing
set of variations by Alexander Rosenblatt for solo piano. Dedicated
to Alexander Tselyakov, we have here the familiar theme -
and by now we’ve been listening to it a while, haven’t we?
- channelled through Gershwin and Keith Jarrett. The first
variation is a syncopated bravado statement leading into
a more lyrical second variation that never loses its sense
of agitation. The fortissimo outbursts here seemed more
overloud than necessary, treading heavily on the line between
surprise and irritation. Those of you who listen with the
music turned up already have been warned. Gershwin’s playfulness
takes over in the variations that follow before Liszt makes
a precipitate appearance. Unexpectedly it’s a short fugal
treatment of the theme before the piece ends.
Recorded
for broadcast for the CBC, the sound quality for this release
is very good. The brass in the Lutosławski doesn’t
overpower; the orchestra is well-balanced with the solo instrument
and the separate recording session for the Rosenblatt variations
matches well the sound of the sessions with orchestra.
As I mentioned
earlier, this is quite a lot of listening to Paganini’s
24th Caprice. Listening to this disc all the
way through may challenge even the most rabid lovers of this
often-treated theme. All in all though, an enjoyable disc,
recommended for the new sets included here.
David Blomenberg
AVAILABILITY
Tselyakov
website
Alexander
Tselyakov (Piano) 
