Yesterday I listened again to a recording of the Cello concerto by Camille Saint-Saens. The soloist was Yo Yo Ma, and what excitement and other diverse moods he was able to establish and communicate! I enjoyed this music a lot.
I looked up the details of this recording, as shown on the image on the left side. While this CD was recorded by a much younger Mr. Ma, the age of a recording is – for me – not a major factor, as long as the performance is great.
On this CD:
1. Cello Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 33
Composed by Camille Saint-Saens
Performed by Orchestre National de France
with Yo-Yo Ma
Conducted by Lorin Maazel
2. Cello Concerto in D minor
Composed by Edouard Lalo
Performed by Orchestre National de France
with Yo-Yo Ma
Conducted by Lorin Maazel
For me Ma’s sound is very warm, sonorous, and satisfying. He is perfect playing the double and triple-stops in the first movement. The slow movement is very lyrical, and the attention to dynamics very sensitive and excellent.
Here is Camille Saint-Saens’ concerto for Cello and Orchestra, with Mstislav Rostropovich, Cello, and Carlo Maria Giulini conducting the London Philharmonic Orchestra. I could not obtain a video with Mr. Ma as the soloist.
Here now is Yo Yo Ma playing the Paganini Caprice #24 for violin, as transcribed for Cello:
If you’d like to purchase this recording at amazon, please click on the image below:
Tags: Yo Yo Ma, Saint-Saens, Lalo, Lorin Maazel