Composer: Paul Ben-Haim
Performer: Itamar Zorman, Amy Yang
Orchestra: BBC National Orchestra of Wales
Conductor: Philippe Bach
Audio CD
Number of Discs: 1
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Bis
Size: 1.11 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
01. Ben-Haim: Evocation, Op. 32
Ben-Haim: Songs Without Words
02. No. 1, Arioso
03. No. 2, Ballad
04. No. 3, Sephardic Melody
Ben-Haim: Violin Concerto
05. I. Allegro
06. II. Andante affettuoso
07. III. Vivo
Ben-Haim: Studies
08. No. 1, Vivo
09. No. 2, Fuga
10. No. 3, Presto e molto leggiero
11. Ben-Haim: Berceuse Sfaradite
Ben-Haim: Five Pieces, Op. 34
12. No. 5, Toccata (Arr. M. Zorman for Violin & Orchestra)
Paul Frankenburger left his native Germany in 1933 in response to the National Socialists’ rise to power. After arriving at the British Mandate of Palestine, not only did he change his name to Paul Ben-Haim, but his compositional style underwent a profound change as well. Devised by the young violinist Itamar Zorman, this album tracks how the music of the region gradually became an integral part of Ben-Haim’s compositions. Six works spanning four decades represent different stages in this process of synthesis between East and West, the transformation of Frankenburger into Ben-Haim. Zorman, a prize-winner in the 2011 Tchaikovsky Competition, is supported by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and Philippe Bach in the opening Evocation (Yizkor) from 1942, and the Violin Concerto, as well as in the arrangement of a Toccata, originally composed for the piano. These are interspersed by Three Songs without Words and Berceuse sfaradite, one of Ben-Haim’s most popular works, in which Itamar Zorman is partnered by pianist Amy Yang.