Moments of Love - Dominique Labelle and Yehudi Wyner show real chemistry

Moments of Love
Ravel, Saint-Saens, Wyner, Hahn, Britten
Dominique Labell, sporano
Yehudi Wyner, piano
Bridge Records

Dominique Labelle and Yehudi Wyner have put together an engaging program with "Moments of Love." Labelle's voice has a warm lower register and a very clean upper register that she uses to great effect in this musical examination of love's multiplicity. There's a real chemistry between singer and accompanist that makes the listening experience even more enjoyable.

Featured on the recording is Ravel's "Trois Poems de Stephane Mallarme" and a selection of songs by Saint-Saens. Labelle's voice is well-suited to this French repertoire, sounding slightly mysterious in the Ravel, and inviting and charming with Saint-Saens' selections.

There's something about the composer playing his own work -- especially one as accomplished a performer as Wyner. "The Second Madrigal: Voices of Women" was originally written for soprano and chamber ensemble. His adaptation of the work for voice and solo piano is quite effective. The composition seems to borrow gestures from mid-century atonality, but still (to my ears) rooted around tonal centers. The result is music that conveys deep emotion though apparent dissonance -- emotion Labelle expresses quite effectively.

Reynaldo Hahn's youthful art songs are sung with a simple beauty entirely appropriate to the material, and the disc ends with four songs from Britten. Jazz and tin-pan alley rubs shoulders with classical in these numbers, and Labelle delivers with a wink and smile.

Raise a glass as you tune in this Friday!

We often celebrate musical birthdays and anniversaries, but I don't recall ever doing an entire show before in which every single work has significance in that regard.  This Friday, that's exactly what we have on Vivace.

We'll celebrate some major birthdays this week.  The first hour will be taken up with an entire performance of the ballet Daphnis and Chloe, as we celebrate the birthday of French composer Maurice Ravel, and later, we'll hear a short work performed by the composer himself.  We'll also celebrate the anniversary of the first performance of The Nutcracker Suite, with an unusual arrangement for classical guitar. 

At about 7:30 am, we'll begin a major celebration to mark the 300th anniversary of the birth of CPE Bach.

Just after 8 o'clock, we will reach out to the people of Ukraine with some special music, and in the final hour we'll also raise a glass to Dame Kiri te Kanawa, who celebrates her 70th birthday this week.

Party hats and champagne are not required, but are always useful to have on hand as you enjoy a sparkling, celebratory edition of Vivace this Friday, right here on WTJU-Charlottesville.  I look forward to the pleasure of your company.

"French Impressions" Impresses

French Impressions 
Josha Bell, violin; Jeremy Denk, piano
Sony Classics

Good chamber music is a conversation – and French Impressions is just that. A conversation between two old friends enjoying themselves. It’s no accident that both violinist Joshua Bell and pianist Jeremy Denk get equal billing. In the three works presented both artists contribute equally to the performance.

The album beings with Camille Saint-Saens' Sonata No. 1 for Violin and Piano, completed in 1885. It's the  most formally constructed of the three works on the CD, but there’s nothing stuffy about it. Bell and Denk play the work with a light touch and real animation. They also don’t mind slightly lingering over the beautiful harmonies, calling the listener’s attention to the sumptuous sound.

Speaking of sumptuous, the Cesar Franck Sonata for Violin and Piano in A major is even more so. Bell and Denk make a compelling case for this often-recorded work, and provide a fresh take on this familiar music.

Maurice Ravel incorporated some American blues into his 1922 Sonata for Violin and Piano. Many performers approach the movement from a classical tradition, and downplay the music’s inspiration. Not so Bell and Denk. They relish the jazz elements, and play them with such elan that the movement positively swings.

Although stylistically diverse, the three sonatas make a cohesive and interesting program thanks to Bell and Denk. It’s difficult to put into words, but they bring out the inherent Frenchness of these compositions.

I never really thought much about these sonatas before. I mean, they were OK, but not especially engaging personally. Joshua Bell and Jeremy Denk have changed my mind, giving me a new appreciation for these compositions.That's impressive.