Penguin CD Guide 2009
Philip Glass Cello Concerto
GLASS, Philip (bon 1937) (I) Cello Concerto; (ii) Concerto Fantasy for 2 Timpanists and Orchestra
Dunvagen Music (ASCAP) 0014. (i)Julian Lloyd Webber; (ii) Glennie, Hass; RLPO, Schwarz
Glass’s Cello Concerto opens darkly and atmospherically; but the work’s warmly lyrical strain is immediately apparent, and Glass’s writing is genuinely melodic, hauntingly so, especially In the central movement, which brings what the soloist describes as ‘an almost trance-like serenity’. A remarkable work, marvellously played.
The Concerto Fantasy is in four movements, all dominated by thundering timpani, with the third a cadenza duet for the two soloists. It is very noisy and invigorating. You will find it either thrilling or sonically overwhelming. Both performances here are surely definitive.
