Bohuslav Martinů: Complete Duos and Trios for Strings (Remastered) Beethoven String Trio

• Bohuslav Martinů (1890 - 1959): Duo No. 1 for Violin and Cello, H. 157:
• 1 Martinů: Duo No. 1 for Violin and Cello, H. 157: I. Praeludium. Andante moderato 04:19
• 2 Martinů: Duo No. 1 for Violin and Cello, H. 157: II. Rondo. Allegro con brio 08:07
• String Trio No. 2 for Violin, Viola and Cello, H. 238:
• 3 Martinů: String Trio No. 2 for Violin, Viola and Cello, H. 238: I. Allegro 07:16
• 4 Martinů: String Trio No. 2 for Violin, Viola and Cello, H. 238: II. Poco moderato - Vivo - Allegro ma non troppo 07:12
• Three Madrigals (Duo No. 1) for Violin and Viola, H. 313:
• 5 Martinů: Three Madrigals (Duo No. 1) for Violin and Viola, H. 313: I. Poco allegro 04:07
• 6 Martinů: Three Madrigals (Duo No. 1) for Violin and Viola, H. 313: II. Poco andante 05:44
• 7 Martinů: Three Madrigals (Duo No. 1) for Violin and Viola, H. 313: III. Allegro 05:45
• Duo No. 2 for Violin and Viola, H. 331:
• 8 Martinů: Duo No. 2 for Violin and Viola, H. 331: I. Allegro 04:38
• 9 Martinů: Duo No. 2 for Violin and Viola, H. 331: II. Lento 06:16
• 10 Martinů: Duo No. 2 for Violin and Viola, H. 331: III. Allegro (poco) 03:47
• Duo No. 2 for Violin and Cello, H. 371:
• 11 Martinů: Duo No. 2 for Violin and Cello, H. 371: I. Allegretto 02:41
• 12 Martinů: Duo No. 2 for Violin and Cello, H. 371: II. Adagio 03:58
• 13 Martinů: Duo No. 2 for Violin and Cello, H. 371: III. Poco allegro 03:19
• Piece for two cellos, H. 377:
• 14 Martinů: Piece for two cellos, H. 377: (Poco allegro) 01:03
• Total Runtime 01:08:12

Info for Bohuslav Martinů: Complete Duos and Trios for Strings (Remastered)

It doesn’t look promising: a whole disc of string duos and trios (notoriously demanding media) by a composer that even his warmest admirers admit was both over­prolific and uneven. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that Martin² was a string player himself‚ but the level of invention here is very high‚ and it often emerges in the forms of nervous‚ energetic toccata and singing‚ folk­rooted lyricism that those admirers will recognise as ‘real Martin²’. The Three Madrigals‚ for the apparently austere combination of violin and viola‚ in fact combine both those veins with such a sheer enjoyment of virtuoso string technique that you will be convinced that at least four players are involved. In the central movement an archetypal Martin² melody blissfully emerges from clouds of trills and double­stopping‚ while in the third he delightedly manages to suggest that Domenico Scarlatti was very probably born in Moravia. There are pleasures like those in most of the movements here. Even the second movement of the Second Duo for violin and viola‚ whose repetitive rhythm is a little too ostinato‚ manages to intensify its subdued lyricism to real eloquence. Martin² quite often‚ notably in his only surviving String Trio‚ rewards his players for negotiating his energetic toccatas with brilliant but never merely showy cadenzas‚ and these fine players respond with ample tone and real sympathy for his idiom and for the touching nostalgia that often underlies it (all this music‚ spanning a period of over 30 years‚ was written by a homesick expatriate). The recording is satisfyingly full. Warmly recommended.

Pavel Hůla, violin
Josef Klusoň, viola
Michal Kaňka, cello

Digitally remastered

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Booklet for Bohuslav Martinů: Complete Duos and Trios for Strings (Remastered)