Wendy Warner - Samuel Barber: Cello Concerto - Medea Suite - Adagio for Strings (2014) [Hi-Res]

The RSNO, under the award-winning baton of Marin Alsop, returns to the music of Samuel Barber in this second installment of his orchestral music on Naxos. The first volume received critical praise and was awarded a rosette in the 2000/2001 Penguin Guide Yearbook, which eulogised “Marin Alsop is a shooting star in the firmament of international conductors… Her performances of these two Barber symphonies are electrifying”.

This exciting disc features the key works from Barber’s 1940’s output. The technically demanding Cello Concerto, written in 1945 (which won the New York Music Critics Circle Award in 1947), is paired with the Adagio for Strings, Barber’s best known work. Also featured on this disc is the orchestral suite from Barber’s ballet Medea (Op. 23, 1947).

„It's amazing that an accessible, lyrical yet thoroughly modern mid-twentieth century cello concerto had only two recordings before 1983. The last nineteen years has seen the situation remedied with several recordings, yet the work hasn't enjoyed the popularity of it's sister Violin Concerto, which is played and recorded often by today's violinists, knowing that today's audiences will love it. The Cello Concerto was written in 1945 and first performed by Raya Garbousova in 1946 with Koussevitsky and the Boston Symphony. It is structurally traditional (three movements ­ Allegro, Andante, Molto Allegro), with the emotional center of the work is the Andante, lyrical and touching in the best Barber tradition. The outer movements are written with vigor and just enough lyrical astringency to make it challenging and interesting. Wendy Warner, winner of the Fourth International Rostropovich Competition in Paris in 1990, plays competently, but I wanted more passion and intensity, especially in the middle movement. Marin Alsop and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra accompany her with a spirited performance. The balance of the recording favors the orchestra, but otherwise the sound is adequate if not exceptional.“

„Barber's ballet Medea was originally written for Martha Graham in 1946 under the title 'The Serpent Heart,' later changed to 'Cave of the Heart,' and then back again to the original title. Barber orchestrated the work in at least two versions, including a one movement piece called 'Medea's Meditation and Dance of Vengeance.' The version recorded here is a seven movement suite that uses ancient mythological figures 'to project psychological states of jealously and vengeance which are timeless,' in Barber's own words. Alsop's performance lacks the bite and manic extremes of Hanson's classic Mercury recording (aesthetically matched by the 42 year old, close, astringent recording). Her vision is more expansive, with a distant sonic picture that, ironically, reveals more orchestral detail. The performance by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra is excellent. Barber's most popular work, the Adagio for Strings, completes the disc ­ a well paced but rather tepid interpretation. This is a good place to start for those unfamiliar with Barber ­ and especially those not familiar with the wonderful Cello Concerto.“ (Robert Moon, Audiophile Audition)

„Wendy Warner concentrates on i[the Cello Concerto's] sometimes wry lyricism, and she articulates with brilliant point in the gentle scherzando passage of the finale. Alsop is a persuasive partner, relishing the often plangent orchestral backcloth and securing a splendidly committed response from the Scottish players” (The Penguin Guide)

Wendy Warner, cello
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Marin Alsop, conductor

Remastered by René Laflamme, 2xHD Mastering