Bottesini: Fantasias for Double Bass on “Lucia di Lammermoor” and “Beatrice di Tenda”; Grande Allegro di Concerto. Thomas Martin, double bass, Anthony Halstead, piano – Naxos 8.570399 (72 minutes).
Born in Crema, northern Italy, in 1821, Giovanni Bottesini was the finest double bass player of his age. Born into a family of accomplished musicians, he started to study the violin with his uncle at the age of five. Until he was 13 he sang as a treble in church choirs and played the timpani in local orchestras.
It was around this time that his father learned of two scholarships at the Milan Conservatory, one for bassoon, the other for double bass.
Asked to choose, the budding musician opted for the latter only because of his previous knowledge of stringed instruments, and during his audition, after only four lessons with Luigi Rossi, he so impressed the jury with his general musicianship that they ignored his lack of technique and awarded him the scholarship.
Thus began Bottesini’s legendary association with the instrument that was to bring him lasting fame. Although considered a natural virtuoso, Bottesini was also an extremely competent composer of songs and operas, including Cristoforo Colombo and Ero e Leandro, which were performed regularly.
He also travelled widely, including to St Petersburg, London, Dublin, Paris, Boston and Buenos Aires, where he was acclaimed as the one and only master of his beloved instrument.
In 1844 he started a friendship with Verdi that eventually turned into a mutual admiration, leading the latter to choose Bottesini to conduct the premiere of Aïda in Cairo in December 1871.
Bottesini died in 1889 aged 68 when he was still at the height of his career. When conducting operas he would often perform fantasies on the evening’s entertainment during the intermission. The two fantasies on this recording are virtuosic tours de force, in which the complex double bass figurations imitate the coloratura vocal writing of the day.
The Concert Allegro, on the other hand, hints at Mendelssohn’s style, and stretches the instrument to its absolute pyrotechnic boundaries.
The disc is completed by five other pieces full of colour and imagination to whet one’s musical appetite; it is a highly enjoyable album in excellent sound quality and informative notes.
Serra: Variations for Piano and Orchestra and other orchestral works. Emili Brugalla, piano; The Valles Symphony Orchestra conducted by Salvador Brotons – Naxos 8.555871 (58 minutes).
Born in 1907, Joaquim Serra is one of Spain’s most respected 20th century composers, especially in Catalonia, where he spent the first part of his life. Unfortunately, his music is hardly ever performed outside his native country, so this disc is indeed timely.
The most substantial piece on this issue is the 1931 Variations for Piano and Orchestra, a work full of imaginative writing for the instrument enmeshed in a symphonic fabric brimming with vibrant colours. The Countryside Impressions date from 1927, and each of the five movements describes a typical pastoral scene from the Catalan countryside such as the sun rising and children playing happily in the fields. Although typically Spanish, the work has a touch of French Impressionism, which gives it a slightly more cosmopolitan sound.
Romantica is a four-minute miniature full of passionate melodies for the strings punctuated by a short middle section that highlights three solo episodes. Two Symphonic Pictures is a work steeped in the popular national idiom of the time. Brilliantly orchestrated, both sections hark to the luscious Andalusian melodies that are so hypnotically effective on the ear.
Piugsolui, a short symphonic poem expressing hope and optimism is a rearrangement of a previous piece, and Serra only decided to orchestrate it three months before his death in 1957, aged only 50.
Although conductor and orchestra, pianist included, are not household names, the performances are utterly persuasive and full of that rhythmic energy and emotive fire usually associated with Spanish repertoire. Sound is excellent, but annotations are only in Spanish.
Still, this is a very satisfying issue dedicated to one of Spain’s underrated 20th century composers, whose well-crafted music deserves to be more heard and enjoyed.
Widor: Chansons de mer, Op. 75, and other songs. Michael Bundy, baritone, Jeremy Filsell, piano – Naxos 8.572345 (63 minutes).
Whenever the name of Charles-Marie Widor (1843-1937) crops up, one is immediately reminded of the modern French organ tradition which includes such names as Alexandre Guilmant, Marcel Dupré and Louis Vierné. Yet Widor was as prolific a composer even in other genres, although today his operas, symphonies, concertos and songs are largely forgotten.
Born in Lyon, his family lineage was part Hungarian and this, coupled with the fact that his main studies were with Lemmens in Brussels rather than at the Paris Conservatoire, led the musical world to consider him an outsider. Even the authorities at St Suplice would only employ him as an organiste provisoire, and so he remained for 64 years.
His precocious talent and self-confidence aroused jealousy and suspicion among his contemporaries, and although he always steered away from controversy, in clique-ridden late 19th century Paris he was bound to be finally mistrusted and ignored. Still, he worked doggedly on, and in the last four decades or so, his stock has started to rise.
This disc goes some way in vindicating the unfair way Widor was treated both during his lifetime and well after his death at the venerable age of 94. The melodie formed an important part of his output, and the consolidation of this serious art form owes much to Widor’s enterprising efforts, which comprise nearly 100 songs, the most eminent of which are the 14 that comprise the Chansons de mer, a cycle where the sea’s constant ebb and flow reflects life in its ever-changing moods and transitory elements.
The remaining five songs demonstrate Widor’s mature style in its diverse ways. The excellent Michael Bundy, ably supported by pianist Jeremy Filsell, sings with winning expressiveness and his perfect diction and subtle phrasing lend the programme a wholly Gallic flavour. Superb sound and instructive annotations complete an invaluable addition to the Widor discography.
These CDs were made available for review by D’Amato Record Shop of 98, St John Street, Valletta.