Craig Marchitelli - Songs from Early Baroque Italy - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

After tackling Schumann, Liszt, Brahms, Schoenberg and Hindemith, Ulf Wallin and Roland Pontinen now focus their attention to the late-romantic English composer Edward Elgar. 'Mot d'amour', which takes it's title from one of his early compositions for violin, presents a substantial part of Elgar's output for violin and piano, which spans his entire career. Best known for his symphonic and choral works, Elgar is also the composer of chamber works that, although few in number, attain a high standard. The Violin Sonata, a mature composition contemporary with his two other major chamber pieces, is regarded by Elgar connoisseurs as one of his masterpieces. Inspired by Brahms's sonatas, Elgar's own, composed in the peaceful surroundings of his rented cottage in the countryside, is a work of wide expressive range and emotional impact in which every superfluous note has been eliminated from the overall design. As for the other pieces that appear here, they show a lighter side to the composer, sometimes playful, sometimes melancholy. Unashamedly belonging to the genre of salon music, these works testify to Elgar's versatility as well as to his melodic gift and his ability to turn a seemingly light genre into a vehicle for secret emotion, often charming but always devoid of sentimentality.

Until the mid-sixteenth century, the cello was only used for accompanying purposes. It was not until around 1660 that the cello came into it's own, thanks to some alterations that were made to the instrument by luthiers in Bologna. Therefore it is no surprise that the first composers for the cello were Italian. The first disc of this anthology presents the origins of the solo literature, with works by Domenico Gabrielli, Bononcini and Marcello. The second features sonatas by Geminiani and Vivaldi. Roel Dieltiens is the soloist on this fascinating collection.

Sadness, sorrow and melancholy are not preferred vacation destinations, but they do make for interesting postcards. Especially when delivered from the hands of an artist such as Seattle's Graig Markel, a singersongwriter, guitarist for-hire and former frontman for the late '90s band New Sweet Breath. His latest collection of solo material sounds like one long, moody ode to doldrums but is actually comprised of 11 dreamy parts. While rich and expansive from start to finish, the acoustic-based songs ebb and flow into one another with ease while shimmering layers of lap-steel and electric guitar give each track it's own distinct, soaring melody. -- Shawn Telford.