CHARM, PASSION, AND ACROBATICS / Navona Records / Review

CHARM, PASSION, 

AND ACROBATICS

MISHA GALAGANOV, Viola

JOHN OWINGS, Piano

Navona Records NV6434  

 

How should one title a disc of viola works by French composers who are not household names? The French Viola does not sound particularly inviting, and perhaps La Viola Française has a certain ring about it. But what about Charm, Passion and Acrobatics? A little cheesy, but truth be told, all the six works in this album have a high quotient of these qualities.

 

Take Charm, for example. The programme opens with the Nocturne (1905) by composer-conductor Désiré-Émile Inghelbrecht (1880-1965), originally a work for cello. It is possessed with a rare lyrical beauty that never outlives its welcome. In fact, it ends all too soon, but the slightly longer works, Prélude et Saltarelle (1907), the latter a fast tarantella-like dance, and the more austere Impromptu (1922), reminiscent of chromatic late Fauré, provide more than adequate compensation.

 

Inghelbrecht, Kunc and Chausson,
French composers who deserve to be better-known.

The major discoveries here are works by Pierre Kunc (1865-1941), a contemporary of Debussy, whose hitherto sequestered (and hence never re-printed) scores were made recently available for general viewing and study. His Viola Sonata (1921) is a major work, in four movements which play for almost 35 minutes. Comparisons have been made with Cesar Franck’s famous Sonata in A major (1886), but it is closer in spirit to the masterly Sonata in G major (1892-93) of the tragically short-lived Guillaume Lekeu (1870-1894).

 

Passion is written all over the massive opening movement (Très modéré), its brooding particularly well captured by the viola’s dark and dusky tone. The brief second movement Intermède, also titled Schumann, is march-like, with an insistent quality redolent of the great German composer. The last two movements just exceed the opening movement in duration, beginning with an absolutely gorgeous slow movement (Très lent) followed by an ecstatically-charged finale (Assez animé) that radiates pure joy. Acrobatics? There’s lots of it too.

 

Rapsodie (1939), in three continuous movements, is Kunc’s last work. Despite its late date and inexorable rise of modernist movements, it retains all the tonal devices and virtuosic demands of the late Romantics. Charm, passion and acrobatics, all rolled into one. Violists all around the globe ought to be beating down the door to master these rare and precious gems.

 

Undoubtedly the best-known of the three Frenchmen was Ernest Chausson (1855-1899), whose Poème is one of the violin repertoire’s most celebrated works. His Piece (1897, interchangeable for viola, violin and cello) does not quite plumb the same depths, but makes for a satisfying lyrical end to this excellent recital.

 

Russian-American violist Misha Galaganov’s tonal lustre and committed advocacy of these works is touching, and is well supported by American pianist John Owings, no mere accompanist but a true partner in championship. This is an invaluable recording of viola works that deserve to be heard, and be afforded a permanent place in the violists’ repertory.

You can sample / purchase this recording at:

Charm, Passion, And Acrobatics – Navona Records