Search - Gabriel Faure, Roglit Ishay :: Fauré: Complete Works For Cello & Piano

There are some appealingly distinctive sonorities on this rewarding Opus 111 anthology, which gathers together Fauré's entire output for cello and piano. Peter Bruns plays on a really lovely, gut-strung Tononi cello once owned by the great Pablo Casals, while Roglit Ishay employs an Erard piano (a make particularly beloved of this composer). The interpretations stand out from the crowd as well. Both the sonatas date from late in Fauré's life and are lent searching advocacy by these intelligent performers. These are defiantly unsentimental readings, profoundly touching in their classical purity and strength, and exceptionally convincing in terms of both architecture and crystal-clear harmonic logic. Perhaps these artists' comparatively ascetic approach is less well suited to the winsome charm of the miniatures, though there's absolutely no missing the integrity and refreshing sense of new discovery on show. Good sound, the microphones capturing Bruns's occasionally audible breathing with merciless fidelity. No matter, a most distinguished recital. --Andrew Achenbach