Beethoven: Sonatas & Variations for Cello & Piano (2016)

The Capuçon brothers, cellist Gautier and violinist Renaud, have been darlings of the English and Continental recital circuits with performances that have a lot of flair, effortless technical control, and an overall feeling of freshness. All those traits are in evidence in this traversal of Beethoven's music for cello and piano by Gautier Capuçon and Frank Braley, which includes three rarely heard variation sets from the early part of the composer's career. Those make for something of a letdown if you listen to the set from ... Read More

The Capuçon brothers, cellist Gautier and violinist Renaud, have been darlings of the English and Continental recital circuits with performances that have a lot of flair, effortless technical control, and an overall feeling of freshness. All those traits are in evidence in this traversal of Beethoven's music for cello and piano by Gautier Capuçon and Frank Braley, which includes three rarely heard variation sets from the early part of the composer's career. Those make for something of a letdown if you listen to the set from beginning to end, for Capuçon and Braley excel in the two late sonatas, the Cello Sonata No. 4 in C major, Op. 102, No. 1, and Cello Sonata No. 5 in D major, Op. 102, No. 2. The pair shifts gears admirably through the cycle, with the graceful Classical approach of the pair of early Op. 5 sonatas contrasting sharply with the likes of the thorny final fugue in Op. 102, No. 2. The weak point here is the Cello Sonata No. 3 in A major, Op. 69, where Capuçon and Braley seem to try... Read Less