Brahms: Double Concerto
Clara Schumann: Piano Trio
Anne-Sophie Mutter (violin), Pablo Ferrández (cello), Lambert Orkis (piano)
Manfred Honeck / Czech Philharmonic (Sony)
(scroll down for English review)
「DG人」慕特的新碟居然在Sony推出，還要是和新晉大提琴家費蘭迪斯齊名。Sony是費蘭迪斯的唱片品牌，雖然這碟的小冊子見不到有寫上鳴謝DG借出慕特，但要是慕特上月演奏的四重奏曲目，會在DG推出錄音而有費蘭迪斯的踪影，不會是意外，除非慕特要轉會或像Do姐想自由身。
慕特終於重錄了布拉姆斯《雙重協奏曲》，卡拉揚指揮、梅尼西斯大提琴那張已是1983年灌錄，可能是她未遇到適合的大提琴搭擋。上月聽慕特的四重奏演出，驚覺接近暮年的她，演奏更趨向激烈，所以這個《雙重協奏曲》錄音，慕特和費蘭迪斯真的拉得很誇張，幾乎把小提琴及大提琴的音樂從作品中抽出來，樂隊像是在一旁做啦啦隊。兩人的確擔得起這種演奏，不過要是沒有慕特的加持，我應該會受不了費蘭迪斯這種拉法。
錄音的後半是克拉拉舒曼《鋼琴三重奏》，鋼琴由慕特老拍檔柯基斯擔任，四個樂章是從不安到明朗的過程，中間的諧謔曲及行板都像小品，而頭尾兩個樂章，與其說是像舒曼（丈夫），不如說像早期布拉姆斯的躁動，不過是得一半火力的，話雖如此，假如有好的小提琴家的話，這是一首庸作以上、傑作未滿，值得演奏得更多的作品。
Mutter’s new album found her appearing on Sony, and on equal billing with cellist Pablo Ferrández, whose record label is Sony. Perhaps Ferrández would appear on a Mutter album on DG soon, or perhaps not.
Mutter finally re-recorded the Brahms Double Concerto almost forty years after the one with Karajan. Pablo Ferrández matched very well with her in their over-the-top interpretation of this concerto, now usually delegated to principal players in orchestras. The orchestra now seemed to be their cheerleader but Mutter and her young partner did have what it takes to support such extroverted performance. But I must admit, without Mutter’s presence I’d simply give up on Ferrández.
They were joined by Mutter’s regular accompanist Lambert Orkis in Clara Schumann’s Piano Trio of 1846. The booklet writer invites the listener to associate this work with Clara’s marital woes but I suggest otherwise, as the work’s trajectory from restlessness to optimism is just normal fare. The sturm-und-drang of the outer movements reminded me more of early Brahms than of Robert Schumann, and the middle movement are very enjoyable in their melodies and their lack of pretense. Not quite a masterpiece but way above mediocrity it is a work especially suited to Mutter in its flamboyant violin part.