This CD of duets for violin and cello features two of the classics of the genre and one new arrangement. The
Ravel Sonata, written between 1920 and 1922, exemplifies the composer's commitment to economy of means. His intention was to maintain interest purely by means of the interweaving of melodies, rather than depend on harmony to drive the musical logic. The Sonata is a lean and concise piece that successfully fulfills the composer's purpose, but in which instrumental color also plays a prominent role, which should be no surprise coming from an orchestrator as skilled as
Ravel. Violinist
David Chan and cellist Rafael Figueroa, concertmaster and principal cellist of the
Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, turn in wonderfully colorful performances. Both have exceptionally sweet tone quality, which is ideally suited to this music, but when required to, they can dig in and deliver the necessary punch. Their playing is nuanced to the point that it sometimes sounds as if they were improvising together. They bring the same energy and interpretive flair to
Kodály's 1914 Duo, as well as a sense of roughhousing fun. Their reading of a transcription of a Handel Passacaglia is appropriately elegant, but no less lively than their approach to the twentieth century repertoire. The sound is clean and crisp, if perhaps a little too close.