What strikes the listener on this debut release by Brandon Patrick George, until now known as a flutist of the Imani Winds chamber ensemble, is the chances he takes. Until the final Flute Sonata, Op. 94, of Prokofiev, George plays perilously virtuosic works, with every detail of his playing exposed by hyper-clear sound from the Profil label. George chooses an intelligent program that begins with the Flute Partita in A minor, BWV 1013, on par with the solo violin and cello sonatas among the purest technical showpieces Bach ever composed. George's crisp, sharp-edged performance is masterly. The pieces by Pierre Boulez and Kalevi Aho not only extend the virtuoso challenges but tie into the implied Baroque counterpoint of Bach's Partita. Only with the Prokofiev Flute Sonata, a joyous work ironically composed during the depths of World War II, does the music relax, and George with it. It's an exceptionally well-structured program, flawlessly executed. Recorded outside New York City in 2017 and 2018, they make one hungry to hear what George has achieved over the years since.
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