JAVS Spring 2010

R ECORDING R EVIEWS

by Carlos María Solare

blends combining the viola’s lower register with the double bass play ing in its upper ranges. Howard’s dark and fruity viola tone gives the lie to any prejudices about “moon lighting” violinists, sounding con vincingly alto-ish in quality. The Sonata for Violin and Piano from 2004 brings aural reminiscences of Brubeck or Chick Corea in its bluesy harmonies (its movements are headed “Allegro di Funk” and, indeed, “Bluesy”!). The perform ances by all concerned are defini tive, with Proto extracting unsus pected lyrical qualities from a potentially recalcitrant instrument. The recordings were made in dif ferent locations in and near Cincinnati and are uniformly excellent. I’ll make sure to catch up with the previous installments of this series. Reflection—Violacentric Chamber Music of Scott Slapin: Tune; Reflection; Soliloquy; Elegy, Song and Dance; Nocturne; Lullaby; Triptych; Processionals . Scott Slapin and Tanya Solomon, viola; Margi Ramsey, cello; Bill and Harold Slapin, double bass. Eroica Classical Recordings JDT3327. A family affair in the best sense of the word, this recording features compositions by violist Scott Slapin, performed by him, his viola-playing wife, his late mother (a cellist), as well as his father and uncle, both double bass players. The liner notes are reticent about

exactly who is performing in which piece, and thanks to Slapin’s idiomatic writing, the music’s full textures often suggest that more people might be involved than is actually the case. Most of the pieces, however, are viola duos and are in the safe hands of the com poser and his wife ( Nocturne , writ ten in memory of Scott’s composi tion teacher, Richard Lane, has already been released on the CD Sketches from the New World , JDT3250). The CD opens with the punningly titled Tune . This is the first part of a Suite for two vio las, the remaining movements of which are scattered along the CD. Yet another duo, a two-movement piece called Processionals , concludes the CD. Tanya Solomon stars in the unaccompanied Soliloquy . A searing Elegy is scored for two vio las and double bass, while the three parts of the Triptych feature vari ously viola, cello, and double bass. As Slapin admits in his introducto ry remarks, an atmosphere of “melancholy or reflection … does prevail for a lot of the disc,” as might have been expected from the instruments involved. Welcome exceptions, however, include the Triptych’s last section, inimitably titled The Hassid and the Hayseed . Slapin’s ear for string colors is evi dent throughout this beautifully played and lovingly produced recording, which I have enjoyed immensely.

Frank Proto: Sonata for Violin and Piano, Duo No. 2 for Violin and Double Bass, Duo for Viola and Double Bass. Larrie Howard, vio lin and viola; Michael Chertock, piano; Frank Proto, double bass. Red Mark CD 9233. Double bassist and composer Frank Proto (b. 1941) is nothing if not prolific: this latest in an ongo ing series of recordings of his chamber music is labeled as vol ume 6! Proto himself features in the two pieces involving his own instrument, as he has throughout the series. His long-time colleague in the Cincinnati Symphony, Larrie Howard, is featured in the three works included, both as a violinist (her main instrument) and as a viola player in the most recent composition included, the Duo for Viola and Double Bass from 2007. Proto’s musical lan guage assimilates within a basically tonal sound-world elements of jazz and Latin music. Letting his early experience as a jazz musician shine through, he also provides frequent cues for improvised sections (most ly for the bass player!). This is par ticularly the case in the Duo for Viola and Double Bass, which in this performance lasts over twenty five minutes (the proviso is neces sary, since the improvised bits make up such a large part of this piece). In the written-out sections, Proto achieves some nice timbral

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