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Posted by John Drexel
on January 29, 2009, 11:08 pm, in reply to "Elgar's Chamber Music: definitive recordings???"
64.24.25.193
I love all three of these works, particularly the string quartet.
Like Len, I can recommend the Maggini/Donohoe recording without any reservation. The performances and recording quality are excellent; and at the Naxos price, you can hardly afford not to buy it.
In fact I have three CDs that pair Elgar's String Quartet and Piano Quintet; the other two are:
Chilingarian/Roberts (EMI)
Medici/Bingham (Whitehall)
All three recordings give me much pleasure, but if forced (unhappily) to discard two of them, I would probably keep the Maggini/Donohoe.
There are more recordings of the Elgar Violin Sonata than you might imagine, and I wouldn't fret too much over trying to select the "definitive" version. I don't have a particular favorite, but of the three admittedly lesser-known versions in my own collection--Bisengaliev/Frith (Black Box), Robertson/Bingham (Whitehall), and Kato/Eguchi (Denon)--it is the Bisengaliev/Frith disk to which I listen most often. However, that may be because of the other pieces by Elgar on the CD. (Among other rareities, the CD contains the lovely, wistful Szigeti arrangement of "Adieu," incorporating a theme from Elgar's Volin Concerto. Moreover, Bisengaliev uses Elgar's own violin and bow, which surely lends a touching authenticity to this recording.)
Regards,
John
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