Pablo de Sarasate - Music for Violin & Orchestra Vol. 3 (Tianwa Yang; Ernest Martinez Izquierdo)

Information

Composer: Pablo de Sarasate

1. Fantaisie sur "La Flute enchantee" de Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Op. 54
2. Navarra, Op. 33
3. Muñeira, Op. 32
4. Nouvelle fantaisie sur "Faust" de Charles Gounod, Op. 13
5. Gondoliéra veneziana, Op. 46
6. Introduction et Caprice-Jota, Op. 41

Tianwa Yang, violin

Orquesta Sinfónica de Navarra

Ernest Martínez Izquierdo, conductor

Date: 2011

Label: Naxos

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Review

Despite doing without any of his most popular pieces, this third instalment of Sarasate’s music for violin and orchestra makes a most attractive programme. Sarasate may not be a very ambitious composer, relying on uncomplicated melodic forms and simple harmonies, but he’s constantly inventive.

The most famous piece here is Navarra (recorded by David and Igor Oistrakh). Tianwa Yang plays both the virtuoso violin parts and her performance is bright and spirited, sounding entirely natural and “real”. Her account, however, is not quite as exciting as the notably spontaneous concert performance by Gil Shaham and Adele Anthony (Canary Classics, 1/10).

Yang is splendidly equipped as a Sarasate violinist, with her clear tone, pure intonation, impressive dexterity and light touch. The opening unaccompanied drone passage of Muiñeiras is startlingly beautiful. The two opera fantasies are lively and entertaining, especially that on The Magic Flute where, for the most part, Sarasate sensitively keeps to the original harmonies while cleverly developing and decorating Mozart’s melodies. The Barcarolle introduces subtle orchestral touches to heighten the mysterious nocturnal atmosphere. With the Introduction and Caprice-Jota, Tianwa Yang comes into competition with Sarasate himself, who recorded (with piano) a shortened version in 1904. She is more accurate than he, especially with regard to tuning, and of course, thanks to modern recording strengths and colourful orchestration, the sound is much more beautiful. But I missed the composer’s manic energy, as well as his graceful, elegant portamentos. For all that, Yang’s playing is consistently lovely, capturing an essential part of the music’s spirit.

— Duncan Druce

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Pablo de Sarasate (10 March 1844 – 20 September 1908) was a Spanish violin virtuoso and composer whose exceptional technique and pure, sweet tone earned him international acclaim. Beginning violin at five, he debuted publicly at eight and later trained at the Paris Conservatory. From 1859 onward, extensive concert tours established his global reputation. His artistry inspired leading composers such as Saint-Saëns, Bruch, Lalo and Dvořák to write works for him. Sarasate also composed virtuoso pieces for violin, the most celebrated being Zigeunerweisen (1878), a gypsy-style fantasy that remains a staple of the repertoire.

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Tianwa Yang (杨天娲, born 8 April 1987) is a Chinese classical violinist. She studied with Lin Yaoji at the Central Conservatory of Music. Yang debuted in Europe in 2001, performing with the Czech Broadcasting Symphony Orchestra in Prague. Her North American debut was in the 2007-2008 season when she performed at the Virginia Arts Festival with the Virginia Symphony. Yang recorded her first CD in 2000, at the age of 13, with a recording of Paganini's 24 Caprices, on the Hugo Classical label. In 2004, she began recording for Naxos, starting with a series of the complete works of Pablo de Sarasate.

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