Anne-Sophie Mutter plays Dutilleux, Bartok, Stravinsky (APE)

Performer: Anne-Sophie Mutter
Orchestra: Orchestra Nationale de France, Boston Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonia Orchestra
Conductor: Kurt Masur, Seiji Ozawa, Paul Sacher
Composer: Henri Dutilleux, Bela Bartok, Igor Stravinsky
Audio CD
SPARS Code: DDD
Number of Discs: 1
Label: Deutsche Grammophon
Size: 294 MB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes

# Sur le même accord, nocturne for violin & orchestra
Composed by Henri Dutilleux
Performed by Orchestre National de France
with Anne-Sophie Mutter
Conducted by Kurt Masur

# Violin Concerto (No. 2) in B minor, Sz. 112, BB 117
Composed by Bela Bartok
Performed by Boston Symphony Orchestra
with Anne-Sophie Mutter
Conducted by Seiji Ozawa

# Violin Concerto in D major
Composed by Igor Stravinsky
Performed by London Philharmonia Orchestra
with Anne-Sophie Mutter
Conducted by Paul Sacher

My favorite Mutter CD

I could subtract 1 star because this CD is mostly a reissue, but I won’t, because I believe it includes some of Mutter’s worthiest concerto recordings.

Say whatever you like about her image and marketing style – I have heard her live many times at Davies Hall and her artistry needs no excuses. She is especially convincing with Stravinsky, in a rare partnership with Paul Sacher, and her Bartok ranks with the best of her peers – Chung, Tetzlaff, Menuhin, etc. Both have been previously issued separately, then issued together in the 3-CD Mutter Modern compilation. With the exception of her Lutoslawski, now available in DG’s 20/21 series, I believe this disc reissues the best from the 3-CD set, which has apparently been phased out of circulation.

While this CD is attractive for simply combining Mutter’s Stravinsky and Bartok, the new Dutilleux makes it irresistable for me. Dutilleux is one of my favorite living composers (I consider Metaboles to be a top-drawer masterpiece) and I’m pleased that Mutter ordains him the world’s greatest in her liner notes. He is not prolific but produces high quality compositions with a listener-friendly use of modern tonalism.

Sur Le Meme Accord was dedicated to Mutter who seems to be its ideal ambassador. Its a short piece for violin and orchestra that exhibits many of Dutilleux’s impressionistic trademarks – being colorful, sophisticated, bold and adventurous with neo-classical restraint, his music belongs firmly in the modern tradition without ever becoming unpleasant to listen to – not unlike late Lutoslawski or Rautavaara, following the trail of Bartok and Sibelius.

If you already have Mutter’s Bartok and Stravinsky, you might be annoyed by the repackaging scheme that burdens this release. But for me and perhaps others, its a chance to acquire some of Mutter’s best without the usual filler, and a very compatible combination on 1 CD.