Bach: Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin
Akiko Suwanai (violin) (Decca)
(scroll down for English review)
諏訪內晶子去年夏天於荷蘭巴恩「白教堂」錄了這套巴哈無伴奏，印象中也是她第一次錄無伴奏。這套錄音我又聽不出有甚麼特別詮釋，如何帶出舞曲節奏、用甚麼揉音、怎樣分句之類，賣點還是技術。諏訪內招牌的巨大聲音，在無伴奏巴哈照樣大聲，但重點是我認為她並沒有為了呈現大琴音，而在速度上及音符的完整上遷就，更是拉得快也能拉得出這種聲音。
例如奏鳴曲的終曲（軌四、16、25）她不單止拉得夠快，聲音夠響，音符還有相當的跳躍力，不是一味地鋸。三首賦格（軌二、14、23），她的速度基本上是原音派的速度，但她拉的卻是現代小提琴的豐滿聲響，尤其是第三首賦格，你應該找不到另一個不用九分鐘，還這麼大聲又實淨的演奏。與其說是聽諏訪內怎樣詮釋巴哈，不如說是聽她用巴哈來表現諏訪內。坦言我覺得她的實力被低估，因為同一世代、喜歡標榜自己很勤力博命的日本女小提琴家搶去不少風頭。
Akiko Suwanai recorded this set of solo Bach in summer 2021, in the White Church of Baarn, Holland. If I’m not mistaken this is also her first solo album. But I couldn’t catch any unique take on dance rhythms, vibrato (or not), phrasings etc. The thing to watch out is her technique. Her very distinctive big tone didn’t lost its power even in solo Bach, yet the key point is she didn’t slow down nor cut short on the notes to retain such big tone.
The sonata finales (tracks 4, 16, 25) aren’t just rapid and loud the notes were also bouncy. She took the fugues (tracks 2, 14, 23) in tempi usually adopted HIP violinists but she played them all with a full romantic tone. In particular, where could you find a modern-style violinist tackle the third fugue in under nine minutes? And in such robust tone throughout? In my opinion, this recording is less of how Suwanai plays Bach but more of displaying Suwanai with Bach. I felt Suwanai has been unjustly overshadowed by that same-generation Japanese violin superstar who flaunts her industriousness and hustle but doesn’t really deliver as well as Suwanai.