Search - Frank [1] Martin, Daniel Fuchs :: Frank Martin: Musique de Chambre

The Sonata No. 1's the Thing...

Nicholas A. Deutsch | New York, NY USA | 02/03/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is the first CD appearance of Martin's 1912/13 Sonata (No. 1) for Violin and Piano (the only other performance I know of is on an Opus One LP). No one put to the blindfold test would guess the composer, I think. Lasting nearly a half hour, this is the work of a talented 20-something working in a late-Romantic harmonic idiom: not an imitator or pasticheur, but a gifted individual speaking a received language. With hindsight, we can recognize the definite melodic gift, a sensitive ear for harmony, and above all a preoccupation with finding a convincing form for his material. And we can enjoy all these things for themselves, especially in this committed and expressive performance.

Sonata No. 2 (1931/32) shows a variety of sophisticated new influences, all handled with skill and verve, and this too gets a lively reading. With the 4 Short Pieces for Guitar (1933) Martin dips his toe in the water of Schoenberg's 12-tone theory, the final exploration that was to result half a decade later in the achievement of his highly individual harmonic language. The guitar pieces are part of that instrument's repertoire, and the delightful, toe-tapping (Piano) Trio on Irish Folk Tunes has also become very popular; both of these have been recorded many times, and these versions, good as they are, may not rank quite at the top of the list. Also, there is an excellent version of the Sonata No. 2 on a first-rate ASV CD of Martin's chamber music (Britten-Pears Ensemble). So I would recommend this CD primarily to Martin 'completists,'

who will be interested to hear how one of the 20th century's finest composers began his journey."