A Grand Journey
Navona, 2023
8/10
The Trio Casals, i.e. Alexandr Kislitsyn (violin), Ovidiu Marinescu (cello) and Anna Kislitsyna (piano), bring their inimitable delivery to modern chambers pieces by Richard E Brown, Bruce. Babcock, Elizabeth Vercoe, André E. Godsey, John Summers and Brian Field, and it’s a technical, timeless and exciting body of work.
Babcock’s “Nevertheless” opens the listen with the rumbling keys amid the dynamic and exciting string interaction in the cinematic delivery, and “Sonatina for Cello and Piano”, by Brown, follows with a graceful beauty that flows with much attention to detail thanks to the warm melodies.
In the middle, Vercoe’s “Sonaria” is a solo cello piece that has the unpredictable strings emitting a charming beauty as well as quivering with mysteriousness, while Godsey’s “String Trio No. 1”, the album’s best selection, uses the strings and keys with very expressive, poetic gestures that tug on the heartstrings.
The final track, Fields’ “...and all that jazz...”, pairs the violin and cello in frisky, exciting and rhythmic ways that make for an all too soon exit, and an ideal way to finish the meticulous affair.
A listen that alternates between time honored classical bouts to jazz fueled rhythms and uses mixed meters and even bare, intimate moments, the Trio Casals never disappoint, and this body of work is no different.
Travels well with: Georgina Rossi- Chorinho; Meira Warshauer- Ocean Calling