A charm of lullabies that avoids the saccharine
THE STRAD RECOMMENDS
The Strad Issue: November 2024
Description: A charm of lullabies that avoids the saccharine
Musicians: Emmanuelle Bertrand (cello) Pascal Amoyal (piano) Alma Amoyal (violin)
Works: Music by Brahms, Bridge, Dvořák, Falla, Fauré, Glière, Grieg, Ravel, Schubert, Schumann and Tchaikovsky
Catalogue number: HARMONIA MUNDI HMM902387
This disc grew from a programme aimed at very young children that Emmanuelle Bertrand and Pascal Amoyal created for the festival La Folle Journée de Nantes. As they thought of the music they shared with their own daughters at bedtime, the idea of a programme of lullabies took shape, with the cello taking the place of the human voice.
There is a feeling of freedom and fantasy about the whole project, and a simplicity and innocence to the performances. Many of the tracks are arranged by the players from piano pieces, including Schubert’s ‘Wiegenlied’, in which the couple’s elder daughter, now grown into an accomplished violinist, touchingly joins in the music making.
The cello has, of course, inspired plenty of lullabies of its own. Bridge’s Berceuse opens the programme, Bertrand’s mellow sound and calm, beautifully inflected playing setting the tone for the whole CD. Fauré’s Berceuse, another favourite, is totally charming, Bertrand finding a whole range of tone colours in her cello. Falla’s hypnotic ‘Nana’ from his Seven Popular Spanish Songs and Ravel’s Berceuse sur le nom de Fauré keep the disc from becoming overly sweet, the former loose and languid and the latter mysterious and modal.
The sound is well balanced and immediate, catching every little subtlety of tonal shading.
JANET BANKS
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