Search - Delmoni, Ysaye, Kreisler :: Solo Violin Works

A discriminating artist scores 5

Bill Parker | Saint Paul, MN United States | 12/07/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Violinist Arturo Delmoni plies his craft at somewhat of a lonely distance from the high-octane, jet-setting world of many virtuosos. It should be no great surprise then to find him recording alone, at night, in a deserted monastery as he does here-and as always, with distinctive results.



Instead of trying to knock himself out going head-to-head with the media hogs, Delmoni has judiciously carved out a special niche for himself as a fully-equipped but carefully discriminating artist. There is no question of his mastery of the instrument. He plays a mellow Guadagnini violin made in 1780; it makes a uniquely sweet but sturdy sound quite unlike a Stradivarius or Amati. One senses in his playing a questing intellect seeking to pull something unique or personal from the printed notes, yet without twisting or abusing the composer's intentions. And though a thinker, he does not hesitate to dig the bow in deep and to sing out with full-throated Romantic tone.



In this album he tackles three of the greatest violinists of the past and their works, but not at random. He has deliberately chosen a program in which the three disparate compositions seem to complement each other and even form a kind of cycle. No mere showing off here, but music that stimulates real reactions and makes one see connections perhaps previously unnoticed.



He opens with one of the brilliant six sonatas for solo violin by the great Belgian virtuoso Eugène Ysaÿe, His Op. 27/2, subtitled "Obsession." The first movement quotes from one of J. S. Bach's solo partitas; elsewhere he refers several times to the grim "Dies Irae" theme from the Latin Requiem, as Rachmaninov was to do so obsessively himself, years later. This is a strikingly dramatic sonata that makes you sit at attention, and Delmoni plays it with fiery intensity.



At the other end of the program is one of Bach's solo partitas; characteristically, Delmoni does not opt for the pat and obvious choice of the E major which inspired Ysaÿe, but No. 2 in D minor. Forming a bridge between these two pillars is an unusually serious Recitativo and Scherzo by Fritz Kreisler, played with velvet tone and remarkable expression. In the Bach, Delmoni doesn't affect a "period" approach, but neither does he play without regard to the music's fixed parameters. It is a latter-day interpretation, but a highly respectful one that fully convinces, displaying vividly all the nuances of this great music. Especially thrilling is Delmoni's rock-solid traversal of the final vast Chaconne.



The recording is clear, warm, and close, and only enhanced by the slight extra reverberance of the monastery walls. [It was originally released on another label, but has been remastered for JMR.] On several counts this album is a rarity, but principally because it provides a full-course nourishing dinner instead of a mere smorgasbord of random appetizers. It held my rapt attention, and the next day I put it on again and couldn't tear myself away. Can't say that about many violin recitals!

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