It’s not every day that a new alto record makes its way into the stores. Moreover, with the excellent Marina Thibeault, one of the best practitioners of the instrument in Canada. To add to the pleasure, she is surrounded by conductor Nicolas Ellis and his Orchester de l’Agora, who are making their recording debut.
Posted at 5:30 p.m.
Viola Borealis’ program, recorded by ATMA last October, also has everything to make your mouth water: the Viola Concerto in G major by Telemann, considered the oldest for this instrument, followed by the very recent Concerto for viola and string orchestra by Pēteris Vasks, created in 2016.
Why Borealis? Vasks is Latvian. That might be a bit of a stretch for Telemann, but after all, Hamburg is about the same height as the town of Radisson on James Bay! To add a more local touch, Marina Thibeault has inserted between the two concertos two pieces for solo viola composed by Melody McKiver.
Vasks’ concerto alone is worth the cost of the disc. The work in four movements has of course already been recorded at BIS by its creator, the Ukrainian Maxim Rysanov. Marina Thibeault, who ensured the North American premiere in Toronto and who collaborated with the composer, nevertheless offers a very personal version, with a thousand colors and an investment of every moment.
Nicolas Ellis is an ideal partner, molding himself discreetly and intimately to Thibeault’s game. The sound recording, closer and more detailed than that of BIS, allows us to grasp all the subtleties of the orchestra’s playing.
This one goes chameleon in Telemann with a completely different sound and style. The phrasings and tempos of the soloist and conductor are always natural and flow from source. Only downside: a sound recording that relegates the first violins to the background.
McKiver’s two pieces, designed for a residential school play, create a bridge between the two concertos. The arrangements of the violist François Vallières give added value to these pieces first improvised on the violin.
Classical music
Viola Borealis
Marina Thibeault, Nicolas Ellis and the Agora Orchestra
ATMA Classic