The Life And Times Of Catharina Pratten
Self-Released, 2025
9/10
Listen to The Life And Times Of Catharina Pratten
The Canadian classical guitarist Emma Rush brings her inimitable talents to these 17 well thought out tracks that showcase 7 previously unrecorded selections by Catharina Josepha Pratten alongside first recordings of music by her father Ferdinand Pelzer, her husband Robert Sidney Pratten, colleague Leonard Schulz, and student Frank Mott Harrison, plus pieces by her contemporaries Francisco Tárrega, Giulio Regondi, and Ernest Shand.
“Daisy” starts with a quick display of meticulous and warm guitar playing from Rush’s agile hands, and it isn’t long until “Absence” tugs on the heartstrings with its poetic and emotive progressions.
Further along, “Lágrima” makes an impression in 2 minutes thanks to the calm gestures amid much beauty, while “Evening Song” is even shorter but no less impactful via the harmonic dynamics and strong attention to mood.
Residing close to the end, “Danse Cappriccio” is a brief and rich moment of complicated but easily accessible melodies, and “Lucia di Lammermoor” exits with a hushed quality that’s soothing and nearly lullaby-esque.
An historically significant effort that’s romantic and technically stunning, in the area of solo guitar albums, it just doesn’t get much better than this.
Travels well with: Ken Whiteley- Unseen Hands; Evan Rotella- Last Train Home