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| Decca (Full price) (CD) 410 019-2DH. From SXDL7568 (11/82). Also issued as (Cassette) KSXDC7568. |
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Almost all Compact Discs are striking for producing an improvement in presence coupled with luminous inner detail, which greatly enhances the listener's sense of realism. However, a number of them also have a bright sharpness in the treble which does not always flatter the upper string sound, bringing a degree of glare or edginess. This Decca coupling of Cello Concertos by Saint-Saens and Schumann is striking for the naturalness of its upper range. Of course the orchestral scoring in both works is modest in scope, but the sound picture is impressively free from artificial lighting and the solo cello image is wholly truthful and well focused. The balance is forward; ideally I would have liked the orchestral image just a little further back. But the soloist stays convincingly projected and the overall layout is spacious and well detailed. There is an attractive ambient warmth. Joan Chissell emphasized the comparable immediacy and freshness of the LP. "Every orchestral thread gleams" while "the cellist's most confidential whisper (and there are many) is never lost." They are fine performances both, spontaneously catching the markedly differing styles of the two works.
IM