The disc opens with
Françaix’s Quintet No. 2.
As ever, his music is charming, cheeky
even, with amusing quirks. The first
movement is marked Allegrissimo,
and begins with an entertaining opening
flourish. This single short episode
is rife with contrast; romantic melodies
and rubato are heard in juxtaposition
with angular, rhythmically precise lines.
The second movement continues in the
same manner, with an opening rhythmic
drive replaced by a lyrical flute melody.
Françaix uses the instruments
fairly equally, with solo lines for
each of the players creating a wide
palette of colours. The Notturno
opens with a well controlled quiet melody,
more serious in feel that the previous
two movements. The final movement, a
Rondo, features a simple melody,
first heard on the flute and then passed
around the other instruments. There
is much to admire about Françaix’s
writing here; he has a real understanding
of orchestration and his neo-classical
style is well formed and mature. This
piece has the feel of entertaining salon
music, with a sense of wit, but just
enough poise and elegance to be taken
seriously. The performance here is a
good one, with high-quality playing
from each of the individual members
of the ensemble.
Charles Bordes, probably
the least well-known of the composers
presented here, was a composition student
of César Franck, but spent most
of his career working as a teacher and
musicologist. His Suite Basque
was composed as a result of a study
of the music of the Basque region. Dedicated
to Vincent D’Indy, this has a distinct
folk feel to it, with melody lines doubled
at the octave contributing to the underlying
solemnity of the opening movement. The
flute is often used low in its register,
giving a particularly dark sound quality.
The Intermezzo is an energetic
dance, interrupted in the middle by
a less complex and slower lilting melody.
The simple Paysage conjures up
images of the Basque countryside, while
the final movement, Pordon Dantza
is a strongly rhythmic and moderately
paced dance with strong off-beats, which
breaks way into an energetic coda over
a drone. Although perhaps not compositionally
the strongest on the disc, this is an
interesting work, which demonstrates
the versatility of these players. They
capture the essence of the work admirably,
with a good sense of balance within
the ensemble.
The Suite by
d’Indy is a complete contrast, with
a return to the French romantic style.
There is some lovely flute playing in
the Air Désuet, against
unusual scoring in the accompaniment.
The strong influence of old music can
be heard in d’Indy’s writing; the work
as a whole is based on Baroque dances,
but the harmonic language is distinctly
late-romantic. The playing is again
well controlled and there are some lovely
moments of phrasing and richness of
tone.
The work by Pierné
feels altogether more flowing and compositionally
coherent. There is a strong sense of
structure, and prominent parts for the
harp and flute, both of which are played
with panache. The string writing is
more unified than d’Indy’s, allowing
for greater richness of sonority. This
is a charming work, which is formed
of several short movements, allowing
the character to be changed enough throughout
its 12 minute duration to maintain interest.
There are some virtuoso moments which
are handled well by the ensemble, and
some beautifully phrased solos, including
an extended duo for cello and harp [6:36].
The disc ends with
Jolivet’s Chant de Linos, heard
in its original version with strings
and harp. The work has an orchestral
feel in this combination, with the accompaniment
perhaps more prominent and certainly
more colourful than in the version with
piano. The dramatic moments come to
life with an array of sounds, while
the slow, haunting melodies are sensitively
played. There is a drive and energy
in the faster sections, although the
accompanying parts do not always follow
the same articulations as the solo line,
which can be distracting at times. The
flute part is always convincingly played,
and this performance has strength and
passion from all of its performers.
Carla Rees
for details
Carlo Jans (flute), Kateřina
Englichová (harp)
