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This is the 15th recording on Naïve by one of the label’s best selling artists, the renowned French cellist Anne Gastinel. On this new CD she is accompanied by her regular piano musical partner Claire Désert in three essential works of the French chamber repertoire, César Franck’s much loved Sonata in A major in the popular transcription for cello and piano, and Sonatas by Debussy and Poulenc.
Born in 1971, Anne Gastinel began playing the cello at the age of four while also studying the piano and the oboe. She gave her television début as concert soloist at the age of 10, and five years later finished in first place at the Music Conservatory in Lyon. She went on to complete her studies at the National Music Conservatory in Paris. In 1989, at the age of 18, Anne won first prize of the International Competition of Scheveningen and became the first French artist in forty years to reach the finals of the International Competition of Prague.
Over the past 12 years Anne Gastinel has performed with many internationally renowned orchestras and distinguished artists such as Kurt Sanderling, Semyon Bychkov, and Yuri Bashmet. Her recording career both in chamber and orchestral music has won her great acclaim from the international press and resulted in many international prizes, including the Victoires “Young Talent 1994”, Victoires “Best Recording of the year” 1995, the Prix “Fnac” in 1995 and 2000, and the Prix de l’Académie du disque et Classique d’Or by French Radio RTL in 1996 and 1998.
Cesar Franck: Violin Sonata in A major, M. 8 (arr. J. Delsart)
I. Allegretto ben moderato
II. Allegro
III. Recitativo: Fantasia
IV. Allegretto poco mosso
Claude Debussy: Cello Sonata in D minor
I. Prologue
II. Serenade
III. Finale
Francis Poulenc: Cello Sonata, FP 143
I. Allegro: Tempo di marcia
II. Cavatine
III. Ballabile
IV. Finale
January 2012
“Gastinel and Desert make a very good job of [the Franck] - the playing is natural and unforced. The Debussy Cello Sonata is excellent here, an account that captures the fleeting moods of the work extremely well. This is quite an individual performance, working convincingly towards climaxes...The Poulenc Sonata here is a winner but the whole disc is very impressive.”
March 2012
***
“highly articulate, sensitively shaped and technically mellifluous performances from two outstanding musicians, which on this occasion only catch fire intermittently.”
March 2012
*****
“[Gastinel] and Claire Desert have a wonderfully intuitive partnership and both draw on subtle, inimitable soundworlds....Gastinel brings the right note of nonchalant simplicity to Debussy's Sonata...Where Rostropovich and Britten's landmark recording of this work has panache and bite, this duo, with cat-like tread, bring out an utterly different quality - equally stylish, and quietly impressive.”
April 2012
“one of the notable aspects of the playing is its singing quality, the expressiveness that Gastinel draws from fine nuances of sound all seamlessly knit together in mellifluous lines...In her interpretative stance and application of colour Gastinel is ideally matched by Desert; the recorded balance is judicious and there is a real sense of a performance being created in complete accord.”
Click on any of the works listed above for alternative recordings.
I. Allegretto ben moderato
