MIRIAM SOLOVIEFF plays Fauré, Prokofiev, Tartini, Bloch, Ravel and Bartók
Fauré: Violin Sonata No 1 in A Major, Op 13
Prokofiev: Violin Sonata No 2 in D Major, Op 94a
Miriam Solovieff ∙ violin
Jan Natermann ∙ piano
Recorded ∙ 28 February 1961 ∙ Hannover ∙ Studio A ∙ Landesfunkhaus Niedersachsen ∙ Norddeutscher Rundfunk ∙ Radio Studio Recording
Tartini: Violin Sonata in G minor, Bg10 ‘Didone abbandonata’
Bloch: Suite Hébraïque for Violin and Piano
Ravel: Pièce en forme de Habanera
Bartók: Six Romanian Folk Dances, Sz 56 (Arranged by Zoltán Székely)
Miriam Solovieff ∙ violin
Jan Natermann ∙ piano
Recorded ∙ 18 January 1960 ∙ Hannover ∙ Studio A ∙ Landesfunkhaus Niedersachsen ∙ Norddeutscher Rundfunk ∙ Radio Studio Recording
Article number: MC 2030
UPC barcode: 791154054345
Recording date: 1960 – 1961
Release date: July 2016
Booklet: 8 Pages
Total timing: 79:01
From the Original Masters ∙ © 2016 Meloclassic
September 2016 ∙ MusicWeb International ∙ Miriam Solovieff plays Fauré, Prokofiev, Tartini, Bloch, Ravel and Bartók
Miriam Solovieff has been the subject of a previous disc from this label. As usual from this company the fine booklet is graced by first-class photographic material from diverse sources. This kind of detail is important. Altogether this is another excellent addition to the label’s violinistic roster – filling discographic gaps and expanding knowledge.
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February 2017 ∙ MusicWeb International ∙ Miriam Solovieff plays Fauré, Prokofiev, Tartini, Bloch, Ravel and Bartók
Miriam Solovieff’s commercial discography is meagre to say the least. The recordings on this latest release derive from two studio/radio broadcasts from January 1960 and February 1961. I’m amazed at how fine they sound, with both violin and piano equally balanced in the mix. Jan Naterman, a pianist I can find no information on, is a superb collaborator, making light of the virtuosic demands of some of the pieces. The Fauré Sonata’s opening movement is played with burning ardour and sincerity, yet the passion isn’t overdone. It works well. The Andante is eloquent and sufficiently languorous. In the playful Allegro vivo that follows, the syncopations are rhythmically precise and Solovieff’s spiccatos have bite and crispness. The finale is relaxed and flowing. Solovieff’s tone isn’t the warmest I’ve heard, rather it has a silvery quality, moderated by a mid-range vibrato. Her intonation is spotless, which adds to the pleasure. The Prokofiev Sonata, the other work aired in the 1961 broadcast, started life as a flute sonata. David Oistrakh requested that the composer transcribe it for violin, and Prokofiev duly obliged; it was premiered by Oistrakh and Oborin in Moscow in June 1942. There’s plenty of warm lyricism in the first movement, and wit and puckishness in the Presto. It’s the finale that I enjoy the most, and the players here deliver it with generous helpings of energy and skittish humour. The remaining four works were set down a year earlier. The performance of the Tartini Sonata has never been bettered. Following a seductively contoured opening, the Presto is played with gusto and panache, technical difficulties tossed aside nonchalantly. The Bloch calls for a broad tonal palette, and Solovieff’s range of colour is ideally suited to this three movement suite, here given an idiomatic reading, capturing fully the Jewish-inflected writing. Bartók’s Romanian Folk Dances are equally appealing and conveyed with true gypsy swagger.
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