Composer: Grigory Frid
Performer: Isabelle van Keulen, Oliver Triendl
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Challenge Classics
Catalogue: CC72953
Release: 2023
Size: 324 MB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: cover
Divertimento, Op. 45 No. 1
01. I. “Prelude” Moderato energico – Cantabile – Tempo I – L’istesso tempo
02. II. “Stroll and Storm” Allegretto – Poco sostenuto
03. III. Andante sostenuto
04. Andantino
Violin Sonatina, Op. 32
05. I. Allegretto
06. II. Andante
07. III. “Theme with variations”. Allegro
The Calendar of Nature Op. 17, No. 2
08. I. “Spring is Arriving” Andantino
09. II. “The Little Bird” Allegretto
10. III. “Spouts” Marciale
11. IV. “Autumn” Andante doloroso
12. V. “The Rivulet” Leggiero. Poco meno mosso
13. VI. “Sunset” Moderato
14. VII. “A Sparkling Drop” Moderato cantabile
15. VIII. “Bunny” Moderato sostenuto
16. IX. “The Wasps Feel Cold” Andante cantabile
17. X. “Fox Hunting” Allegro molto. Poco meno moso
Violin Sonata No. 1, Op. 27
18. I. Allegro
19. II. Andante sostenuto
20. III. Allegro moderato
Violin Sonata No. 2, Op. 51
21. I. Allegro
22. II. Lento
23. III. Allegro
24. Violin Sonata No. 3, Op. 57
Except for an opera, The Diary of Anne Frank, the music of Soviet composer Grigory Frid is all but unknown, apparently even in Russia. Frid’s long life encompassed both the Russian Revolution and the rise of Vladimir Putin. He composed in several idioms, including serialist, but the music here, from earlier in his career, is simpler in nature, running from the tonalities of Shostakovich and in the Violin Sonata No. 2, perhaps Prokofiev to Romantic harmonies. Yet it has a distinctive melancholy flavor, attributed by the performers here, who have single-handedly rediscovered much of the music, to anti-Jewish discrimination Frid suffered in Stalin’s Soviet Union. The Violin Sonata No. 2, with its long-breathed lines, certainly fills this bill, but equally strong are the short pieces of The Calendar of Nature, Op. 17, short natural scenes fully rooted in the Romantic era yet not derivative of anything in the large repertory of compositions on this theme. They’re delightful. Violinist Isabelle van Keulen and pianist Oliver Triendl seem to have lived with this music for a while, and their performances beautifully capture the mood in the long lines of the two violin sonatas. A major draw is Challenge Classics’ sound, recorded at the Deutschlandfunk Kammermusiksaal in Cologne, and catching all the textures of van Keulen’s violin as it finds its way through this new music, much of which isn’t simple technically. Any of the pieces on this album could profitably be included in chamber recitals in the future.