This is only the second CD by Naxos of Sofia Gubaidulina's music,
and is well overdue. The last one was released more than fifteen
years ago - and was also dedicated to her music for accordion.
On this latest release the more distinctive bayan replaces the
accordion in two works, one orchestral and brand-new, one older
chamber, that explore the expressive capabilities of a panoplied
instrument that has been puzzlingly neglected by classical musicians.
The single-movement Fachwerk is predominantly mysterious
and cogitative in nature, with one or two dramatic incidents
along the way - most notably in the last five minutes, when
the bayan suddenly takes a turn for the demonic. The scoring
might hint at avant-garde 'crash-bang-wallop' effects, but in
fact the percussion is overwhelmingly low-key. This allows the
bayan time and space to be heard and appreciated in what is
fundamentally a tonally inclined work. Fachwerk is not
really a concerto, however: there is little sense of its being
pitted against the orchestra, and its colours often lower themselves
luxuriously into a bed of strings.
Gubaidulina dedicated Fachwerk to Norwegian soloist Geir
Draugsvoll, who gave the world premiere in 2009. Draugsvoll
repays the compliment in full with a marvellously nuanced account
of a marvellously nuanced work. The strings of the Trondheim
Symphony Orchestra, hardly famous but making music for over
a century now, give a focused, attentive performance under Øyvind
Gimse's direction.
The booklet notes seem to indicate that Gubaidulina herself
translates the title as 'Timber Framing', a reference to the
architectural style characteristic of Germany and other parts
of Europe, but in musical terms, 'Framework', or more ambiguously
'Truss', is a more literal and possibly more satisfying English
title.
This is the premiere recording of Fachwerk. Perhaps surprisingly
though, it is not the first recording of Silenzio.
In fact NEOS released a triple CD (11106-08) of Gubaidulina's
double bass-based chamber music at around the same time as this
Naxos disc, which included a version of Silenzio in which
the bass replaced the cello. The bayan there was played by the
Swiss virtuoso Elsbeth Moser, who also appeared on a 1995 Naxos
recording of Silenzio (8.553557). The previous year on
BIS (CD-710) the soloist, this time on the classical accordion,
was ... Geir Draugsvoll. BIS have, more than any label, supported
Gubaidulina over the last decade or more, and another BIS CD
(810) quickly followed with a further recording of Silenzio,
this time with Friedrich Lips on bayan, opulently co-starring
Gidon Kremer on violin (review)
- Kremer having previously brought Gubaidulina to international
attention through his premiering of her violin concerto Offertorium.
As the title suggests, Silenzio is a largely quiet piece,
low-key and gentle pianissimo rather than silent, although Gubaidulina
makes repeated and effective use of rests. The five short or
shortish movements are more suggestive than descriptive, evocative
of vast mysterious twilit landscapes, or the claustrophobic
uneasiness of preternatural dreams. Like Fachwerk, Silenzio
is more or less tonal and should be accessible to most listeners.
There are numerous snippets of melody of sorts, and though the
sound-world of the bayan is decidedly exotic, it is always skilfully
regulated by Gubaidulina in the score and beautifully interwoven
by Draugsvoll, Lotsberg and Gimse ex vivo.
Sound quality is very good. The CD booklet sports one of Naxos's
occasional modern-look covers. The notes are brief but reasonably
informative. There is a slightly bizarre photo of Draugsvoll
with a bayan that appears to be attached to the back of his
head.
Byzantion
Collected reviews and contact at reviews.gramma.co.uk
See also reviews by Rob
Barnett and Mark
Sealey
Geir Draugsvoll (bayan) 