Russian Mood

When trying to characterize Russian music, you almost inevitably arrive at descriptions such as "soulful", "melancholic" or "full of emotion", qualities that could equally apply to the sound character of the cello. Benjamin Kruithof and the Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie under the direction of Conrad van Alphen perform Tsjaikovski's short, tasteful salon piece Pezzo Capriccioso, the cheerful, elegant and temperamental Rococo Variations, the Nocturne in C-sharp minor from his piano cycle Opus 19 and the slow movement (Andante cantabile) from his String Quartet No. 1 op. 11 - plus Glasunov's Chant du Ménestrel op. 71 and Davidov's peaceful and flowing Sunday Morning op. 20. Popper's Fantasy on Little Russian Songs op. 43 combines the lyrical softness with the almost infallible bravura that also characterized Popper's own cello playing. Rachmaninov's Vocalise op. 34, no. 14 rounds off RUSSIAN MOOD.

Reviews

"Cellist Benjamin Kruithof masters the runs of this work just as well as the 'Pezzo capriccioso', but what lingers even more in the memory is his sensitive way of soulfully intoning the solemn songs in Glazunov's 'Song of the Troubadour' or in Tsjaikovski's indestructible 'Andante cantabile'." (Fono Forum, January 2022)