[ Philips ABC Australian Eloquence / 2 CD ]
Release Date: Wednesday 15 August 2007
'Some of Grumiaux's soft playing will take your breath away. Likewise in the Debussy and Ravel sonatas with István Hajdu, all models of sensitively negotiated chamber playing.' Gramophone
"Central recommendations then for this Franco-Belgian repertoire. You can never go wrong with Grumiaux - it's just a question of how much you have, and how much more you need"
(MusicWeb Feb 2008)
'Faure-lovers have long prayed for a CD reissue of the two sonatas from Grumiaux and Paul Crossley. And they won't be disappointed. The sound itself is pleasing--better, even, than I remember it on LP. And there is a radiance in the playing suggesting an unerring understanding of structure and style that somehow goes hand in hand with the joyous spontaneity of new discovery. The hyper-sensitive suppleness of Grumiaux's shading and phrasing is a particular delight, as is his awareness that just as much of the musical message comes from the piano--particularly in the Second Sonata. As for Crossley, not for nothing has he come to be recognized as one of this country's most dedicated Faure specialists. It would certainly be difficult to over-praise the subtlety of the two artists' interplay in both works.' Gramophone
'Some of Grumiaux's soft playing will take your breath away. Likewise in the Debussy and Ravel sonatas with István Hajdu, all models of sensitively negotiated chamber playing.' Gramophone
FAURÉ: Violin Sonata No. 1 in A major, Op. 13
FAURÉ: Violin Sonata No. 2 in E minor, Op. 108
FRANCK: Violin Sonata in A major
LEKEU: Violin Sonata in G major
YSAYE: Rêve d'enfant, Op. 14
VIEUXTEMPS: Ballade et Polonaise, Op. 38
DEBUSSY: Violin Sonata in G minor
RAVEL: Violin Sonata in G major