Volume 8 Issue 7 - April 2003

Editor's Note: Heather Schmidt's
Cello Concerto is one of the five
JUNO nominees in the category
"Best Classical Composition".
J. S. Bach: Cantatas 131, 152, 161
Suzie LeBlanc; Daniel Taylor; Jan
Kobow; Stephen Varcoe
Theatre of Early Music
ATMA ACD2 2279
These "early cantatas," written before
he moved to Leipzig, already
display strong evidence of Johann
Sebastian Bach's compositional
genius.
In the "non-stop" Cantata 131 Aus
der Tiefe rufe ich, Herr, zu dir, the
Theatre of Early Music's one-to-apart
approach (used throughout) reveals
the intricate counterpoint
through a crystalline, detailed and
nuanced performance. Even with the
intensity of the energetic final chorus
(perhaps like a conference call
in your car during rush hour?), the
DISCS OF THE MONTH: OUR JUNO ROUNDUP, continued from page 60
musical information does not go unnoticed.
In fact, the clarity is almost
startling. Try listening to this with
headphones!
Cantata 152 Tritt auf die Glaubens~
bahn differs from the other cantatas
in that this one has no choruses, uses
only two voices (soprano and bass),
and is accompanied by only a few
instruments. Washington McClain
provides an exquisite oboe d'amore
obbligato to Stephen Varcoe's richly
expressive singing which is frequently
challenged by the music's low
range.
Countertenor Daniel Taylor and
tenor Jan Kobow are the featured soloists
in Cantata 161 Komm, du silsse
Todesstunde. Their singing is both
sensitive and refined. One rarely
hears this music sung as beautifully
as this. The music-making throughout
this recording sparkles and tingles.
Highly recommended.
Frank T. Nakashima
Editor's Note: This recording is
nominated for a JUNO in the category
"Classical Album of the Year,
Vocal or Choral Performance". ~
Liszt: Paganini Studies & Schubert
Transcriptions
Marc-Andre Hamelin
Hyperion CDA 67370
Once again, Marc-Andre Hamelin
has demonstrated complete mastery
over some of the most fiendish piano
music ever written: the Six Grandes
Etudes de Paganini of 1851, and a
rarely heard set of three Schubert
marches arranged by Liszt in 1846.
Hamelin throws himself into the
Paganini arrangements with panache
and style, unabashedly treating these
etudes as the showpieces that they
are. No. 1 (Tremolo) boils and roils
with energy like a living creature.
No. 2 (Octave) is, by contrast, all
poise and elegance. The famous No.
3 (La Campanella) is an astounding
display, building relentlessly to its
thundering conclusion. No. 4 (Arpeggio)
is all effervescence, and
Hamelin artfully exploits the
narrative qualities of No. 5 (La
Chasse). Finally, with No. 6 (Theme
and Variations) we return to the
"Campanella" theme for a dazzling
exploration of wildly contrasting
textures. The Montreal-born pianist
makes it all sound easy, while at the
same time giving the impression
there is nothing he cannot do.
The Schubert march transcriptions
are remarkable works - but I find
the contrasts between Liszt's brilliant
pianism and Schubert's more intimate
music somewhat problematic.
I can't help thinking that Liszt made
the Viennese saloniste into something
he was not. For Hamelin, this
is a practical as well as a philsophical
problem - is he to approach these
arrangements as works by Liszt or
Schubert? His solution seems to be
to offer us a mixture of the two:
Schubertian simplicity and
sentimentality combined with Liszt's
drama and power. The results are
perhaps more interesting than
satisfying.
Colin Eatock
Editor's Note: This disc is nominated
for a JUNO in the category
"Classical Album of the Year, Solo
or Chamber Ensemble" .
Concert Note: Marc-Andre Hamelin
is featured in the OnStage series
at Glenn Gould Studio on April 8.