(…) First up on the agenda is Sarasate’s Concert Fantasy on Bizet’s Carmen, as good a curtain raiser as any. Just don’t expect a whiz-bang, gung-ho interpretation along the lines of a Ruggiero Ricci in his famous old Decca set. Reinhold and Zedler are more moderate than that; they don’t try to generate a ton of excitement or dazzle the listener with their pyrotechnic skills. Their Carmen Fantasy sets the tone for the rest of the program by sounding traditional, well judged, thoughtful, and expressive. Now, this doesn’t mean that the musicians don’t have a good time with it. Indeed, it’s all quite vital and pleasantly exhilarating. They simply don’t go after the „wow“ factor that must be so tempting in a work like this (although, to be fair, they end the piece in a flurry of emotional flair).
And so it goes, with Reinhold’s violin carrying the day and Zedler’s piano accompaniment always lending firm support. I can’t say I liked some of the more-literal passages they take, yet they more than make up for it with the tasteful sensitivity of their playing. As this is mostly opera music, the players ensure that we hear the singers behind the notes, the violin and piano doubling for any number of voices from quiet solos to big choral numbers. (…)
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