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Track(s) taken from CDA68204

Nocturne

composer
Lili Boulanger (1893-1918)
1911; for violin or flute and piano

Alina Ibragimova (violin), Cédric Tiberghien (piano)
Studio Master FLAC & ALAC downloads available
CD-Quality:
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Recording details: January 2018
Henry Wood Hall, London, United Kingdom
Produced by Andrew Keener
Engineered by Simon Eadon
Release date: March 2019
Total duration: 3 minutes 14 seconds

Cover artwork: Femme au bord de l'eau (1910). Léon Spilliaert (1881-1946)
Private Collection / Bridgeman Images
 

Other recordings available for download

Janine Jansen (violin), Itamar Golan (piano)

Reviews

‘Superb playing and ravishing engineering intertwine here to stunning effect … from Ibragimova a sweet, even sound that’s light-toned without being lightweight, supported by a touch from Tiberghien at the keyboard that sounds like mellow, amber-hued raindrops … this is wall-to-wall wonderful’ (Gramophone)

‘This is simply superb in every way. Franck's Sonata in A usually dominates any violin recital, especially when the performance is as wonderful as this, yet here it is but one component in an exquisitely balanced programme … a generously-filled disc that ends all too soon’ (BBC Music Magazine)» More
PERFORMANCE
RECORDING

‘This is simply superb in every way. Ibragimova and Tiberghien’s nuanced performance of Franck’s evergreen Violin Sonata is among the finest, balanced in this impeccable programme by Vierne’s equally captivating Sonata, the disc exquisitely framed by Ysaÿe’s intense Poème elégiaque and Lili Boulanger’s entrancing Nocturne’ (BBC Music Magazine)

‘One of the most emotionally responsive, flexible and passionate modern performances [of the Franck] I’ve heard … Ibragimova barely playing above a whisper to begin with—such a sweet, tremulous sound, growing and fading in the first [movement] … so well-paced and balanced. Even at its most exuberant the piano never quite swamps the violin, and Ibragimova’s sound holds its sweet centre … even in a crowded field this comes up fresh, and add outstanding performances of the less well-known things … it’s my Record of the Week’ (BBC Record Review)

‘Ibragimova excels at sweeping along, hotly feeling every bar on every track, from the mix of whispered lyricism and incendiary blaze in Ysaÿe’s Poème élégiaque to the delicate pianissmo highwire act of Lili Boulanger’s Nocturne, the most delectable of encores. What a pleasure dome this album is’ (The Times)» More

‘The Franck is played with the kind of refined elegance you’d expect from this duo. Tempo decisions are good, and they are careful not to allow movements to drizzle into each other, as less perceptive duos are apt to do; each movement retains its own definitive sense of character. The greater burdens in this work are borne by the pianist and Tiberghien proves a laudable exponent. Ibragimova makes a few expressive position changes, especially in the second movement Allegro and there is a clarity and directness to the reading … full of correspondences and inter-connections this finely recorded recital disc makes fine programming sense, no matter how many recordings of the Franck you may have and will be especially valuable for the Ysaÿe and Vierne’ (MusicWeb International)» More

‘This is a release that will surely further enhance Ibragimova’s and Tiberghien’s reputations as among today’s most intelligent and imaginative artists, and it will appeal to chamber music lovers everywhere’ (The Europadisc Review)» More

‘This is an exceptional release’ (Classical Source)» More

‘Ethereal and exquisite: Ibragimova and Tiberghien treat the entire work [the Franck Sonata] with a lucidity and delicacy which looks forward to Debussy’s Violin Sonata of three decades later … the music’s Romanticism is never short-changed, but rather than powering through the big climaxes with muscle and full-throttle vibrato the pair simply give them room to unfold naturally, and the improvisatory freedom of the third movement seems to infuse the performance as a whole. Tiberghien’s passage-work throughout has a silvery clarity that wouldn’t be out of place in Haydn or Mozart, and the final movement unfurls with simple, almost folksy charm that’s utterly beguiling … Ibragimova and Tiberghien despatch it [the Vierne] with such flair, wit and affection that it’s difficult to fathom its comparative neglect’ (Presto Classical)» More

‘It’s difficult to think of a more exciting duo than violinist Alina Ibragimova and her long-time pianist partner Cédric Tiberghien … [Ysaÿe's Poème élégiaque is] a rhapsodic, passionate work that perfectly showcases this duo’s strengths: tone, nuance, intelligence, passion, commitment, and flawless technical assurance … a CD of music-making of the highest order’ (The Whole Note, Canada)» More

«Dans la sonate de Franck comme dans son Szymanowski, Alina Ibragimova « touche au plus imperceptible des pianissimos » dans une introduction étonnamment étale, pour mieux déchaîner, dans le deuxième mouvement, une vague d’énergie dont sa corde de sol semble renfermer d’infinies réserves … quant à la magnifique sonate de Vierne, elle trouve enfin sa référence : la sécheresse implacable des accords répétés à un tempo vertigineux, la pudeur qui apparente le mouvement lent au Concerto en sol de Ravel, la précision d’horloger de l’Intermezzo, le tragique du finale nous marqueront pour longtemps. Alors ? Comme s’exclamait l’ami Jean-Michel:« Exaltant, vous dis-je! »» (Diapason, France)» More

«Dans la sonate de Franck, ils effectuent des choix assez hardis, pré sentant un premier mouvement plutôt lent et finissant en apothéose avec un finale aussi puissamment bouillonnant que le deuxième mouvement. Cela donne à l'ensemble une orientation fortement structurée, avec un troisième mouvement dans lequel Cédric Tiberghien déploie des trésors de poésie. Une nouvelle pierre blanche dans la discographie jusqu'ici sans faille de ce duo» (Classica, France)» More

„Das instrumentale Zusammenspiel ist wohlproportioniert, besticht durch Differenziertheit und Eleganz“ (Concerti, Germany)» More
Lili Boulanger wrote the Nocturne aged eighteen, in 1911. It shows, in its clean lines, lightish texture and the almost ironically sudden dismissal of its pseudo-romantic climax, a move back in tone towards the music of earlier French composers, while the little quotation at the end from Debussy’s Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune surely looks forward to a future in which Wagner would no longer hold the reins of power.

‘Alors messieurs, dames … after your seriously satisfying meal, will you take a sorbet?’

from notes by Roger Nichols © 2019

Lili Boulanger écrivit le Nocturne à l’âge de dix-huit ans, en 1911. Mais il montre, dans ses lignes pures, sa texture claire et le refus subit, presque ironique, de son sommet pseudo-romantique, un recul en sonorité par rapport à la musique des compositeurs français antérieurs, alors que la petite citation à la fin tirée du Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune de Debussy anticipe sûrement un avenir dans lequel Wagner ne détiendrait plus les rênes du pouvoir.

«Alors messieurs, dames» … après votre très copieux repas, prendrez-vous un sorbet?

extrait des notes rédigées par Roger Nichols © 2019
Français: Marie-Stella Pâris

Alle drei hier eingespielten Werke zollen dem musikalischen Denken des 19. Jahrhunderts auf ihre Weise Tribut—ihre Texturen sind recht dicht verarbeitet und sie verströmen eine Ernsthaftigkeit, die den jungen Ästheten des Paris der Nachkriegsjahre zum Gräuel werden sollte, so etwa Jean Cocteau, der gegen die Art von Musik eiferte, „die mit dem Kopf in den Händen anzuhören“ sei. Das Nocturne von Lili Boulanger kann strenggenommen nicht zu dieser Bewegung gezählt werden, da sie es 1911 (im Alter von 18 Jahren) schrieb. Jedoch deuten die klaren Linien, die lichte Struktur und das fast ironisch-plötzliche Abbrechen des pseudoromantischen Höhepunkts eine tonale Rückkehr zu der Musik der früheren französischen Komponisten an, während das kleine, am Ende erklingende Zitat aus Debussys Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune sicherlich auf eine Zukunft verweist, in der Wagner nicht mehr an den Schalthebeln der Macht sitzen sollte.

„Alors messieurs, dames“ … wollen Sie nach Ihrem gehaltvollen Mahl nun ein Sorbet einnehmen?

aus dem Begleittext von Roger Nichols © 2019
Deutsch: Viola Scheffel

Other albums featuring this work

Beau Soir
Janine Jansen (violin), Itamar Golan (piano)
Studio Master: 4782256Download onlyStudio Master FLAC & ALAC downloads available

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