JAVS Summer 2000

48

VoL. 16 No. 2

j OURNAL or THE A '-1ERICAN VIOLA SOCIETY

Lawrena Power and David Dalton

the memory of rwo French violists of the past was invoked: Crerian Urhan, who premiered Harold after Paganini defaulted, and Casimir ey, who lefr us etudes of rranscendenral diffi culry. Possibly more literature, etudes and con cerr pieces have been wrirren or "discovered" in the 20th cenrury than ever before. Might the roo familiar complaint against the "pauciry of viola literature" be more an indication of igno rance of the subject rather than the truth? The evening performances usually rook place in the Conservaroire, the first being a recital where Gerard Causse and Bruno Pasquier shared a program of rewarding play ing. Subtle rones of the viole d'amour and music for the viola, bur played on the arpegi na by executants Pierre-Henri Xuereb and Jean-Paul Minali-Bella respectively, made for an unusual pallette of color. The facile Minali Bella, it was explained to me, has come into demand with his modern instrument which adds a fifth string capable ofdescending a fifrh below the usual viola C, albeit with a some what ropy sound. One of the morning con certs, billed "Homage to Vieux, Terris, and Primrose," had four of the principals of vari

ous Parisian orchestras playing works dedicat ed ro, or recorded by, that grand trio of vio lists. Though all these principals were per formers of considerable skill, I wished in sev eral instances that their renditions had come closer to the prororypes set in some examples by Terris and Primrose. The daytime events rook place a hundred yards or so away in the Cite de la Musique. The adjoining Cafe de la Musique provided a welcome respire and gathering spot and some real gastronomic delights. If the morning's last announcement stared that the first afternoon event would starr ar "quarorze heures precises," ir became a lirde less precise depending on the qualiry of the Cafe desserr and the liveliness of the con versation among amiable colleagues. Nevertheless, Rencontres ran smoothly, and hospitaliry was in abundance, no doubt helped along in planning and execu tion by others of Dupin's staff at the Conservaroire (Stephanie Decronumbourg, his secretary, comes to mind) and members of the I.:Amis de !'Alto Qacques Borsarello, the executive secretary, for instance). Also, I couldn't help bur be impressed with the cornforrable and