Information
Composer: Arnold Bax
- Fantasy Sonata for Viola and Harp
- Legend for Viola and Piano
- Concert Piece for Viola and Piano
- Sonata for Viola and Piano
Ivo-Jan van der Werff, viola
Hugh Webb, harp
Simon Marlow, piano
Date: 2001
Label: Koch Schwan
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ARTISTIC QUALITY: 9 / SOUND QUALITY: 9
This integral recording of Arnold Bax’s works for viola and piano is a splendid achievement. There’s just one minor concern: Such flawlessly sheened tone and rock-solid bow control sometimes makes this often unsettling music seem too relaxed. This effect is most evident in the Viola Sonata. Compare Ivo-Jan van der Werff’s account with the seminal Lionel Tertis recording (with Bax at the piano): the gritty struggle and urgency of the playing registers powerfully, and the piece actually sounds devilishly difficult, too. Another alternative, the 1937 remake by William Primrose and Harriet Cohen (available on Pearl) sounds more polished, but the old Revolution LP version by Herbert Downs and Leonard Cassini (prized by Bax enthusiasts) isn’t available on CD; so if you’re seeking a fine modern recording, van der Werff’s is the main contender.
In the Fantasy-Sonata, harpist Hugh Webb doesn’t arpeggiate the chords that open movement III as you hear in most other renditions, but this interesting alteration isn’t likely to affect your enjoyment of this attractively understated performance. Nor does the fact that the 1929 Legend already has been recorded five times prevent van der Werff from offering a fully worthy alternative rendition. Lastly, Bax’s 1904 Concert Piece gets an overdue premiere recording here, and Lewis Foreman’s informative essay completes the deal. Sonics are pleasingly balanced and immediate, with the piano never overshadowing the viola, even in its lower registers. [2/22/2002]
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Arnold Bax (8 November 1883 – 3 October 1953) was an English composer, poet, and author. His prolific output includes songs, choral music, chamber pieces, and solo piano works, but he is best known for his orchestral music. In addition to a series of symphonic poems, he wrote seven symphonies and was for a time widely regarded as the leading British symphonist. In his last years he found his music regarded as old-fashioned, and after his death it was generally neglected. From the 1960s onwards his music was gradually rediscovered, although little of it is regularly heard in the concert hall.
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Ivo-Jan van der Werff has attained accolades as a chamber player, recitalist, guest artist and teacher throughout Europe and North America. As a member of the Medici String Quartet for 28 years, he has performed in over 2,000 concerts in major festivals and venues world wide, broadcasting regularly on radio and television. Van der Werff has also performed as recitalist in New York, New Zealand and Hong Kong as well as numerous venues throughout the United Kingdom. He has been a professor of viola and chamber music at the Royal College of Music in London and is a full time professor of viola at Rice University.
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