Composer: Johann Sebastian Bach, Arthur Benjamin, Johannes Brahms, Johan Halvorsen, George Frideric Handel, Roy Harris, Niccolò Paganini, Franz Peter Schubert
Performer: William Primrose, Marian Anderson
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Naxos
Catalogue: 8111383
Release: 2012
Size: 156 MB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
Paganini: 24 Caprices, Op. 1 (arr. W. Primrose for viola and piano)
01. No. 24 in A minor
Handel: Trio Sonata in E major, Op. 2, No. 9, HWV 394
02. Adagio
03. Halvorsen: Passacaglia for Violin & Cello / Viola (after Handel)
04. Bach: Komm, susser Tod, BWV 478 (arr. V. de Tar for viola and organ)
Paganini: 24 Caprices, Op. 1 (arr. W. Primrose for viola) (excerpts)
05. No. 13 in B flat major
06. No. 5 in A minor
Brahms: Two songs for contralto with viola obbligato, Op. 91
07. No. 1. Gestillte Sehnsucht (Longing at Rest)
08. No. 2. Geistliches Wiegenlied (Virgin’s Cradle Song)
Brahms: Chorale Prelude Op. 122 No. 10 ‘Herzlich tut mich verlangen’
09. No. 9. Herzlich tut mich verlangen (arr. W. Primrose for viola and organ)
Paganini: 24 Caprices, Op. 1 (arr. W. Primrose for viola and piano)
10. No. 17 in E flat major
11. Schubert: Litanei auf das Fest Allerseelen, D343
Benjamin: Sonata for Viola & Piano (1942)
12. I. Elegy
13. II. Waltz
14. III. Toccata
Harris: Soliloquy and Dance
15. Soliloquy
16. Dance
Considered the first really modern violist, legendary Scottish musician William Primrose first came to prominence with the violin in the 1920s, turning to the viola on the recommendation of his greatest mentor, Eugène Ysaÿe. This programme includes four Paganini Caprices, which did more than any other of Primrose’s recordings to spread his fame among his peers, as well as two major works written especially for him: Arthur Benjamin’s Sonata, and Roy Harris’s Soliloquy and Dance. Primrose performs here with numerous noted accompanists, and alongside Jascha Heifetz in Halvorsen’s Passacaglia. This is the second of two volumes, the first of which is on 8111382.
The recorded legacy of William Primrose is well known, but newly re-mastered editions from our Historical catalogue always generate interest. The sonic results with this recital by ‘absolute stars’ (MusicWeb International on 8120607) producer David Lennick and restorer Graham Newton makes this the new standard bearer for these legendary recordings. This release joins volume one on 8111382 to make an eminently collectable pair.