59.00 PLN

CD:

Nr kat.: QTZ2015
Label  : Quartz (Anglia)

The British-trained Lebanese flautist Wissam Boustany impressively tackles 20th-century concertos ‘shaped, inspired or influenced by the spirit of angst that has prevailed all over the world’. It is a noble thought, reflected in the depth of feeling he brings to each work, even if their musical depth falls rather short of the high assessment. Khachaturian’s piece, an arrangement of the Violin Concerto made at the composer’s suggestion by Jean-Pierre Rampal, cannot match the dramatic weight that the violin brings with its many passages of double-stopping, but it is a brilliant and attractive work in its own right. It says much for Boustany that in sheer virtuosity he matches Emmanuel Pahud, even if his tone is not quite so full or sensuous. In a way that is an advantage: in con- junction with a better-balanced, less ‘up-front’ recording, the definition of rapid passage- work is clearer and, in the central Andante, Boustany brings out the yearning mystery of the melancholy melodies more intensely. Orchestral detail is clearer, too, in this disc engineered by Houtaf Khoury, whose own Mirror of Eternity aims to reflect life in the Arab world ‘where society remains closed and entrenched’. The opening brings an oriental-sounding flute melody, starting in the low register, over a static accompaniment. It builds up and fades away, leading into the central Allegro, which brings a similar melody over a syncopated accompaniment on staccato strings with timpani comment, reflecting ‘the material life of cabarets and dancers’. The final Largo is a mirror image of the first movement, becoming slower and slower until it finally stops. Each of the three linked movements in Stankovich’s Chamber Symphony bears an allegro marking, although this is misleading. The first two start on the same brisk repeated-note motif but that leads to meditative music that is agreeably lyrical, even if one can hardly subscribe to the composer’s reference to its ‘awesome power and emotional depth’. What matters is that it gives Boustany ample opportunity to play with total dedication and to display his virtuosity. An unusual, adventurous disc, well recorded. https://www.gramophone.co.uk/review/mirror-of-eternity