Arthur Honegger - Cello Works (Christian Poltéra)

Information

Composer: Arthur Honegger

• Concerto for Cello and Orchestra, H. 72
• Sonata for Cello and Piano, H. 32
• Sonatina for Cello and Piano, H. 42
• Sonatina for Violin and Cello, H. 80

Christian Poltéra, cello

Malmö Symphony Orchestra

Tuomas Ollila-Hannikainen, conductor

Kathryn Stott, piano

Christian Tetzlaff, violin

Date: 2007

Label: BIS

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Review

It seems such an obvious idea to combine all of Honegger’s works for cello on one disc but I do not recall ever seeing such a programme before. The Sonatina, H42 (1921‑22), was originally written for clarinet, it’s true, and is not otherwise available, but then none of these works are exactly in the front rank of popularity, which is a shame. The single-movement Concerto (1929) has received several recordings before – two by Rostropovich, no less – but remains in one of the repertoire’s side-alleys.

Poltéra’s firm, warm tone is well suited to Honegger’s muscular writing with its occasional reminiscences of Hindemith and early Stravinsky, but he is fully alive to the Swiss composer’s delicate strain, as in the lilting opening theme of the Concerto, or the Sonatina for Violin and Cello’s spectral Andante. In the latter work, written in 1932, Tetzlaff proves a stimulating partner and their scintillating account comes close to that of Zimmermann and Schiff, although I prefer the acoustic and instrumental balance on ECM’s disc.

Poltéra’s tempi are refreshingly swift throughout and his dexterity matched by his accompanists, not least Ollila-Hannikainen and the Malmö SO, who prove to be sensitive and forceful as required. Kathryn Stott performs wonders ensuring the piano does not obscure the cello, even in the quieter, more lugubrious sections in the excellent 1920 Sonata, perhaps the deepest work here. Its three compact movements – playing for less than the Concerto’s modest quarter-hour, contain a good deal of expressive ground and an appealing fusion of substantial melodic lines with cogent structural design. Excellent sound, as usual.

-- Guy Rickards

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Arthur Honegger (10 March 1892 – 27 November 1955) was a Swiss composer who spent most of his life in France. He studied at the Zürich Conservatory and after 1912 at the Paris Conservatory. After World War I he was associated with a group of young composers known as "Les Six". Honegger was a prolific composer and made notable contributions to opera, ballet, orchestral, choral, chamber and film music. His music is written in a bold and uninhibited musical idiom that combines the harmonic innovations of the French avant-garde with the large forms and massed sonorities of the German tradition.

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Christian Poltéra (born 1977 in Zürich) is a Swiss cellist. He studied with Nancy Chumachenco, Boris Pergamenschikow and Heinrich Schiff. As a soloist he works with eminent orchestras such as the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra and Los Angeles Philharmonic, under such conductors as Bernard Haitink, Riccardo Chailly and Andris Nelsons. He also devotes himself intensively to chamber music, being a founding member of the Trio Zimmermann. Poltéra teaches at the Lucerne University. He plays a Antonio Casini cello from 1675 and the famous "Mara" Stradivari from 1711.

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