Daniel Müller-Schott, Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, André Previn - Elgar, Walton: Cello Concertos (2006) CD-Rip

Rich, deep, warm, soulful, and totally as one with the music, these performances of the cello concertos of Elgar and Walton by cellist Daniel Müller-Schott are surely among the best either work has ever received. Of course, both works have received some immensely impressive recordings over the years -- for the Elgar, one thinks immediately of Jacqueline du Pré's, and for the Walton, one thinks inevitably of Gregor Piatigorsky's, the work's dedicatee -- but Müller-Schott has something to say about both works that has not been said before. In the Elgar, Müller-Schott is less overtly passionate than du Pré but more intimately emotional, and his interpretation seems more quintessentially elegiac, and thus more under the skin of Elgar's final masterpiece. In the Walton, Müller-Schott is less obviously dramatic than Piatigorsky but more profoundly lyrical, and his interpretation seems more subtle and elusive and thus closer to the composer's late style. And in both works, Müller-Schott's tone, technique, and intonation are, for all intents and purposes, flawless -- something that, for all their excellences, cannot be said of either du Pré or Piatigorsky. With conductor André Previn, Müller-Schott has an ideal partner. Long an advocate of English music, Previn's accompaniments are deeply affectionate and profoundly sympathetic. Although the Oslo Philharmonic's tone may be just a shade too lean for fans of the fuller sound of English orchestras, the ensemble and technique are first-rate and its willingness to go with the soloists is admirable. Captured in Orfeo's amazingly realistic 2005 digital sound, anyone who loves either work -- and that should include anyone who loves English music or cello music -- should hear this disc.