Benjamin Britten: Three Suites for Cello (2008)

Like others before them, Benjamin Britten's Three Suites for Solo Cello hearken back to the original masterworks of the genre, Bach's Six Suites for Solo Cello. While direct references are less overt than those found in other solo cello suites, Britten's reverence for the master is certainly there to be found. The three suites, each written for cellist Mstislav Rostropovich over the course of some seven years, have distinctly contrasting characters. The first of the three suites is by far the most abstract, filled with ... Read More

Like others before them, Benjamin Britten's Three Suites for Solo Cello hearken back to the original masterworks of the genre, Bach's Six Suites for Solo Cello. While direct references are less overt than those found in other solo cello suites, Britten's reverence for the master is certainly there to be found. The three suites, each written for cellist Mstislav Rostropovich over the course of some seven years, have distinctly contrasting characters. The first of the three suites is by far the most abstract, filled with extensively double-stopped cantos. While the second suite leans slightly toward a more Classical aesthetic, the third and final suite is largely based on obscured (and sometimes directly stated) Russian folk melodies. Successful performances of these pieces require the utmost in technical acumen, musical sensitivity, and broad palate of tones and timbres. Surprisingly few cellists have recorded these three suites, perhaps because of the demands placed on the performer or perhaps because... Read Less