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SOUNDS OF AMERICA I G J A N D R I G E T A A N T J E : P H O T O G R A P H Y Barokkbandið Brák bring buckets of character and joyful chamber interaction to an album combining High Baroque and modern Icelandic music whether here or in their separate solo works: Aubrun in the fierce Élégie, Tsan in the moving, technically challenging Invocation (2009, written for that year’s Rostropovich Cello Competition) and Vanhauwaert in the Quattro Intermezzi (2003) which, taking their cue from Brahms’s late set, make no effort to emulate his style. Vanhauwaert also shines in the invigorating, toccata-like Nouvelle Étude (2015), written especially for him; it would make a terrific encore piece. By chance, the Trio was released recently in a fine rival version performed by Roseanne Philippens, Edgar Moreau and David Kadouch (Erato, 8/22). I have to say I prefer the richer, more full-bodied sound of Aubrun, Tsan and Vanhauwaert, beside whom their Erato rivals seem rather thin in tone. The present version’s slightly more expansive tempos in places also pay dividends in making the most of the music’s expressive profile. Aubrun and Martin Chalifour also have competition in the bracing Sonata for two violins (2001) from Chouchane Siranossian and JeanMarc Phillips-Varjabédian (Oehms). The latter almost blow one away in the brief opening span, taking 1'58" compared to Chalifour and Aubrun’s 2'28"; the latter, however, are safer in intonation and ensemble and better recorded. The same follows in the other two movements. Velocity is no substitute for expressivity. Guy Rickards ‘The Kreutzer Project’ Beethoven Kreutzer Concerto (Violin Sonata No 9, Op 47, arr C Jacobsen)a Clyne Shorthandb C Jacobsen Kreutzings Janáček String Quartet No 1, ‘The Kreutzer Sonata’ (arr E Jacobsen, orch Atkinson) a Colin Jacobsen vn bKaren Ouzounian vc The Knights / Eric Jacobsen Avie (AV2555 • 75’) Anna Clyne’s quotation from Tolstoy as the inspiration for her Shorthand – ‘music is the shorthand of emotion’ – serves well as the inspiration for The Knights’ new recording, ‘The Kreutzer Project’. A concept album released for their major European tour, it unites the Russian novelist, Beethoven and Janá∂ek in bursts of emotion and audacious creative energy. Colin Jacobsen’s vividly surrealist arrangement of Beethoven’s Kreutzer Sonata amplifies and enhances the original with a wide variety of colourful instrumental choices. The massed strings transform the first movement’s arpeggiated 16th notes from the piano part into something awesome. Jacobsen uses the woodwinds and brass just like Beethoven does – with quirky differences. There’s both a sumptuous cello solo and a children’s woodblock variation in the Andante. Jacobsen plays with fierce enthusiasm and lean, athletic technique. The Janá∂ek arrangement by Eric Jacobsen and Michael P Atkinson feels like a completely organic response to the string quartet original, and is played with the sense that The Kreutzer Sonata was always meant to be an orchestral work. From the great opening sigh, it attempts to faithfully create Janá∂ek’s sound world, and has the feel of a vast exotic poem with sounds of nature and fluttering birds all around. Colin Jacobsen’s Kreutzings takes off with Beethoven’s 6/8 patterns and triangulates itself through technicoloured dimensions. Recorded after its world premiere, Clyne’s gem for solo cellist Karen Ouzounian and string quintet, drawing on motifs in Beethoven, paints swathes of colour over a mixture of pastoral transcultural influences and just some sheer beauty. Laurence Vittes ‘Two Sides’ Agrell Sinfonia, Op 1 No 3. Violin Concerto in G Corelli Trio Sonata, Op 1 No 4 Hjálmarsson Recitar cantando/Speaking in Song Karlsson Fold Kristinsson BRK Stradella Trio Sonata in D minor Sammartini Concerto grosso, Op 5 No 4 Snæbjörnsdóttir Quorum Sensing Vivaldi Concerto, RV565. Il Giustino – Sinfonia Barokkbandið Brák Sono Luminus (SLE70026 b • 97’) gramophone.co.uk GRAMOPHONE NOVEMBER 2022 III

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