THE CD PLAYER PLUS - Ultra High Fidelity Magazine

Bach: Cello Suites, vol. 1
Martin Zeller
M•A M073A
Simon: Get it for the sound. Period.
That’s it. No need to add anything else.
You’ll be stunned.
When I heard the gorgeous sound
of that cello, my jaw dropped. It’s not
just that it was “right there,” it felt more
as though I were right there, within
touching distance of the instrument.
And what a wonderful cello this one is,
crafted around 1673 by Austrian Jacobus
Stainer, a superb violin maker who may
have had an association with the great
makers of Cremona. It was lent to Zeller
for this recording. You’ll know what I
am talking about when you listen to the
first suite’s slow Sarabande on track 4, for
instance, and literally feel the richness
of the chords, deeply resonating in your
chest if you sit close enough to Martin
Zeller…I mean to your loudspeakers.
Speaking of this young and talented
Swiss cellist, he is currently principal
cello at the Kammerorchester Basel, and
among his many other responsibilities,
teaches Baroque cello at the Musikhochshule
Zurich.
His particular interest in Baroque
music gives a unique feeling of authenticity
to his playing. It is striking right from
the beginning, in the first bars of Suite
1. He attacks the Prelude with surprising
speed (compared to, say, historic recordings
by Casals or Starker), and I smiled
spontaneously at his unusually marked
downbowing, which gave the piece a
liveliness I had not expected. You can
listen to the beginning of that Prelude
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Software Reviews
by Gerard Rejskind
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on the M•A Recordings web site (www.
marecordings.com), and make sure you
have a decent pair of headphones on or
a good connection to your system.
Listening with amazement to the
rest of the movements and the other
two suites, I noticed the meticulous care
Zeller took in clearly outlining each
note, whether it be part of a flourish or
as soft as a whisper, and it seemed true to
what it must have sounded like in Bach’s
time, that it evoked images such as finely
ornate Baroque paintings and elegantly
carved furniture. You’ll understand
exactly what I mean when you listen
with delight to the Minuet in Suite 2, for
example.
The same care has gone into the
production of this absolutely remarkable
88.2 kHz High Sampling recording
using M•A’s custom-made, line-level
DC-powered microphones. It even
features striking cover photographs by
Peter Han (I hope you’ll appreciate the
differences in the three cover shots).
The second volume of the Bach Suites
is scheduled to be recorded sometime
during the fall of 2009.
If you are not familiar with these
suites, you’ll discover a monument to
the art of the cello and to music, as they
have been arranged for countless instruments,
including a version for saxophone.
Describing them properly would be like
describing the Mona Lisa to someone
who has never seen it (let’s see now, “a
bust of a woman, no eyebrows, head covered,
hands crossed, a slight smile”).
Warning: after you hear the sound
quality of this CD and Martin Zeller’s
unique interpretation, other versions
may sound thin and lacking in heart and
genuineness.
If, however, you are familiar with
the Bach Suites for Unaccompanied Cello,
this album is a must, and I don’t say that
lightly. I dare say this version might even
successfully challenge all your previous
references.
It did in my case.
Deserts
La Nef
Fidelio FACD026 (or downloadable at
www.fideliomusique.com)
Simon: This unique album is the result
of a collaboration between Claire Gignac
of La Nef and Pierre Hamon, flutist
and joint artistic director of the French
ensemble Alla Francesca, bringing
Medieval music back to life. Contralto
and player of various instruments, Claire
Gignac is also joint artistic director of
La Nef, a Montreal-based musical and
production company dedicated to Early
and World Music, with an added interest
in New Music including multimedia
productions, music theatre and school
workshops. It’s all a wonderful example
of music without borders.
Deserts is a collection of original compositions
inspired by the landscapes and
peoples of North Africa, Asia and the
Americas, plus three traditional pieces.
It is a musical exploration of the world’s
vast and windswept landscapes.
Rub al Khali opens with a cascading
series of notes on the santoor by Shawn
Mativetsky, answered by the hauntingly
low sound of one of Pierre Hamon’s
flutes, and soon joined by composer
Andrew Wells-Oberegger on oud. The
contrasting textures of high and low
drums that soon surround them carry us
into a desolate, treeless land somewhere
in Asia Minor or North Africa. You can
almost feel the welcome coolness of an
early evening, the starry sky, with shades
of pink lingering on the western horizon,
and the tiny, crackling fire surrounded