Search - Jean Nicolas Savari, Jacques Ibert, Jules Auguste Demersseman :: Miniatures: Music for Saxophone and Piano

This way to mastery -------->

O. Angel Negrin | Austintown, OH, USA | 06/30/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In the liner notes of Gauthier's last album, his teacher (the master) Londeix says that Gauthier will be a master of his instrument (I'm paraphrasing). True to Londeix's prediction, this CD contains fire, tenderness, playfulness -- a whole smorgasbord of moods eloquently conveyed by the soloist Daniel Gauthier.I am rather partial to the music written for saxophone in the time of its inventor Adolphe Sax, and was happy to see not one, but two, pieces on this CD that were written in that time period. The Savari and Demersseman are masterfully presented. In the fashion that Gauthier treats the Savari, you would think that the only music to which he listens is Weber operas. He plays the Demersseman brilliantly as a showpiece, the purpose for which it was undoubtably written.The Piazzolla is performed with fire and flair, the Ibert with enough nuance to make it the most interesting saxophone performance of the work. The real jewel of this CD is the second commercial recording of Swerts "Klonos". Talk about a piece of music that gets right up in everyone's face and refuses to leave. And that's exactly how Gauthier treats it. I was assigned this piece some months ago, and I didn't really believe in it at that time (thought it was just another showpiece). Listening to this performance of the Swerts truly opened my eyes to the artistic potential of this work (the fire, the colors, the accessibility to non-musician audiences, the undeniable in-your-face quality that is not often found in the saxo repertoire).Anyway, highly recommended disc. Daniel Gauthier is an artist.OANegrin"