Faculty members 听Edward Dusinberre, violin and David Korevaar, piano听have just released a new recording of Beethoven鈥檚 Violin Sonatas Nos. 9 鈥淜reutzer鈥� & 10 on Decca. This recording was funded by grants from the Council on Research and Creative Work and from the Graduate Committee on the Arts and Humanities at the University of Colorado. The recording can be ordered from听. Read two of the great reviews below.
CD of the Week review by Hugh Canning in the听London Sunday Times 7/25/2010
The ways of the multinational classical labels become ever more mysterious. The British violinist Edward Dusinberre (right) may not be a household name, but he leads one of the world鈥檚 outstanding and best-known string quartets: the Takacs. They used to record for Decca, but defected to Hyperion after completing their acclaimed set of Beethoven quartets. Now here is Dusinberre, with the fine American pianist David Korevaar, in the same composer鈥檚 last two sonatas, the most famous of them all, the virtuosic, concerto-like 鈥淜reutzer鈥�, in A major, of 1803, and its successor, in G, of 1812. You have to read the small print to see that the recording has been made with grants from the University of Colorado, where the Takacs Quartet are 鈥渋n residence鈥� and Korevaar is professor of piano. Universities are perhaps the most important advocates of chamber music in America, so this is hardly the equivalent of 鈥渧anity publishing鈥�, and the music-making is of exceptional quality. Neither player is a big soloist personality, but both appreciate the 鈥渃ompetitive鈥� aspect of the Kreutzer鈥檚 huge opening adagio-sostenuto, bringing an argumentative quality to their dramatic exchanges. The contrast with the G major鈥檚 allegro moderato could hardly be greater 鈥� Dusinberre calls it a 鈥渃onversation between friends鈥� 鈥� and both musicians capture the later sonata鈥檚 pastoral tone, especially in the beautiful adagio espressivo. The Dusinberre/Korevaar partnership is so rewarding, one hopes they will record Beethoven鈥檚 eight other sonatas for this combination of instruments.
And a 7/15/2010 review by Andrew Clements in听:
Edward Dusinberre brings the same wonderfully subtle and intensely musical qualities to these two violin sonatas as he does to Beethoven鈥檚 quartets in his day job as leader of the peerless Tak谩cs Quartet. There鈥檚 no suggestion here that Dusinberre is using听the sonatas just as a showcase for听his own violin playing; even in the more flamboyant passages of the Kreutzer Sonata Op 47 there is nothing flashy or self-regarding about his playing, and his partnership with pianist David Korevaar is very much one of equality. The emotional core of their performance of the Kreutzer is the set of听variations that forms the central slow听movement, and while other partnerships might bring more drama to听the first movement, Dusinberre and Korevaar judge the contrast between that and the variations that follow perfectly. They are perfectly attuned to the rather conversational exchanges of Op 96, too; it鈥檚 an elusive work, on the brink of Beethoven鈥檚 late period, and these players judge its pastoral intimacies exactly.
