The list of works composed for and premiered by cellist Mstislav Rostropovich is awe-inspiring in its sheer length. Among these masterworks id Benjamin Britten's C major Sonata for Cello and Piano, the Three Suites for Solo Cello, and both of Shostakovich's cello concertos. Although Shostakovich's cello sonata was not written for Rostropovich, he frequently performed the works together and made the benchmark recording of the work. This album features Shostakovich's and Britten's sonatas for cello and piano, as well as the ...
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The list of works composed for and premiered by cellist Mstislav Rostropovich is awe-inspiring in its sheer length. Among these masterworks id Benjamin Britten's C major Sonata for Cello and Piano, the Three Suites for Solo Cello, and both of Shostakovich's cello concertos. Although Shostakovich's cello sonata was not written for Rostropovich, he frequently performed the works together and made the benchmark recording of the work. This album features Shostakovich's and Britten's sonatas for cello and piano, as well as the third of Britten's solo suites. Fittingly, they are performed by cellist Karine Georgian who was herself a student of Rostropovich. Despite this noble lineage from composer to Rostropovich to student Georgian, these performances are surprisingly uninspiring and rather dull. Georgian plays with almost none of the power and intensity of her teacher and far less precision in intonation. Particularly in the Shostakovich sonata, Georgian comes across as disinterested in her own playing,...
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