The English Viola

"More germane to this review it announces another highly impressive young violist and duo. Finally the Bliss recording is a strongly recommendable one and the Delius in its viola incarnation is rare." (MusicWeb Feb 2010)

The viola, with its plangent tone, subtle sonority and lyrical qualities, is often overshadowed by its more brilliant-sounding sibling, the violin.

An accomplished violist himself, Frank Bridge wrote little solo music for this instrument; only the Pensiero and Allegro appassionato were published in his lifetime, the other works on this disc being the composer's arrangements of some of his violin pieces.

Similarly, Delius's Third Violin Sonata is heard here in an effective arrangement by the celebrated violist Lionel Tertis, the dedicatee of Bliss's expressive Viola Sonata.

"A violist of the highest calibre". Yuri Bashmet