For the Record, Op. 139: Jennifer Koh; cellist Matt Haimovitz
Welcome to "For the Record," Violinist.com's weekly roundup of new releases of recordings by violinists, violists, cellists and other classical musicians. We hope it helps you keep track of your favorite artists, as well as find some new ones to add to your listening!
New releases: left, cellist Matt Haimovitz's "Mon Ami, Mon amour"; right, violinist Jennifer Koh's "Bach & Beyond, Part 3."
Bach & Beyond, Part 3
Jennifer Koh, violin
This double album of solo violin works offers J.S. Bach's Sonatas No. 2 and 3 for solo violin, as well as Luciano Berio's "Sequenza VIII" and the world-premiere recording of John Harbison's "For Violin Alone." The release follows Koh's Bach & Beyond, Part 1 (2012) and Bach & Beyond, Part 2 (2015), all of which are based on her recital series of the same name. "My Bach and Beyond project presents the works of Bach that I have long loved, in communion with the music of contemporary composers who I am dedicated to championing," Koh said. BELOW: a track from the album: Koh plays Harbison's "For Violin Alone": III. Air.
Mon Ami, Mon Amour
Matt Haimovitz, cello
Mari Kodoma, piano
An experience with the Poulenc Sonata set in motion the idea for "Mon Ami, Mon amour": In 2016, while working with a student on this sonata, Haimovitz reached for the score and lost his balance. His priceless 1710 Goffriller cello crashed to the ground, dramatically breaking in two. After the attentions of an expert luthier, the cello emerged 15 months later to new life. The cello and Haimovitz are reunited on this recording. "It feels like a dream ... making music without a care in the world – certainly with no worry of viruses and social distancing," Haimovitz said. "We played the music of French masters to our heart’s content ... the memories of friendship, and once again being transported to this pictorial sound world, takes me out of the oppression of this moment." The album also includes works by Fauré, Debussy, Ravel, Milhaud and Lil and Nadia Boulanger. BELOW: Haimovitz performs Fauré's "Après un reve" with pianist Mari Kodama.
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If you have a new recording you would like us to consider for inclusion in our Thursday "For the Record" feature, please e-mail Editor Laurie Niles. Be sure to include the name of your album, a link to it and a short description of what it includes.
You might also like:
- For the Record, Op. 138: Nicholas Cords; Jenna Sherry; Violins of Hope
- For the Record, Op. 137: Steven Isserlis; Isabelle Faust and Jean-Guihen Queyras
- For the Record, Op. 136: Calidore String Quartet; Sirius Quartet
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November 14, 2020 at 06:09 PM · The cover photo of the new Jennifer Koh album is interesting for showing how she uses her chinrest basically as a center-mounted one, although it isn't such a model. This confirms earlier chinrest models which just were minimal and merely provided something for your chin to hook after. That is all she needs! I feel quite good about this actually, because I also tend to hold my violin much to the left. Anne-sophie Mutter does it too. I'm in good company :-)