Dvorak: Cello Concerto in B minor, Op. 104

“what really makes this disc a winner is a thoroughly exciting reading of the Dumky Trio… There's a clarity and intelligence in this performance that puts it up with the very best.” The Independent on Sunday (Outstanding)

“The accompanying performance of the Dumky Trio is completely captivating; indeed their rendition of the four middle movements is among the finest available” BBC Music Magazine

“There have been a number of outstanding recordings of the Dvorák Concerto since this DG record was made, but none to match it for the warmth of lyrical feeling, the sheer strength of personality of the cello playing and the distinction of the partnership between Karajan and Rostropovich. Any moments of romantic licence from the latter, who's obviously deeply in love with the music, are set against Karajan's overall grip on the proceedings. The orchestral playing is superb.
You've only to listen to the beautiful introduction of the secondary theme of the first movement by the principal horn to realise that the BPO is going to match its illustrious soloist in eloquence, while Rostropovich's many moments of poetic introspection never for a moment interfere with the sense of a spontaneous forward flow. The recording is as near perfect as any made by DG in that vintage analogue era. It gives the cello a highly realistic presence, and if the passionate fortissimo violins lose just a fraction in fullness, and there seems to be, comparably, just a slight loss of resonance in the bass, the sound picture has an impressively clear and vivid focus.
In the coupled Tchaikovsky Rococo Variations, Rostropovich uses the published score rather than the original version. However, he plays with such masterly Russian fervour and elegance that any criticism is disarmed. The music itself continually demonstrates Tchaikovsky's astonishing lyrical fecundity, as one tune leads to another, all growing organically from the charming 'rococo' theme. The recording is marvellously refined.
The description 'legendary' isn't a whit too strong for a disc of this calibre.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“two great musicians performing with complete sympathy for each other: Rostropovich on top form and Karajan an attentive partner” Gramophone Magazine (James Jolly)

“The intensity of lyrical feeling and the spontaneity of the partnership between Karajan and Rostropovich ensures the position of their DG disc at the top of the list of recommendations.” Penguin Guide, 2011 edition

“Schiff ... matches the superb accompaniment of Sir Colin Davis in combining a measure of individual poetry with a generally fresh and direct approach. So the second subject with Schiff is easy and songful...it is Schiff who implies deeper emotions, as he does too in the slow movement."” Gramophone Magazine

“Fournier and Szell's Cello Concerto performance is high pressure but quite wonderful. In the Eight Symphony Kubelik balances introspection and uproarious merriment superbly.” BBC Music Magazine, February 2013 *****

“On this disc the orchestral sound in the hall is well captured, in good stereo with a lifelike balance and dynamic range…I am glad to have discovered [Saša Večtomov’s] playing, for on this evidence he was a world-class artist … [his] aristocratic playing deserves a hearing, and the disc should certainly be of interest to cellists and collectors of multiple versions of the concerto” Fanfare, May/June 2010

“as the concerto develops it’s clear that Večtomov, so august a member of the Czech Trio, was certainly a big enough concerto soloist, but one who does not seek to impose his personality onto the music. Instead he illuminates it from within.” MusicWeb International, June 2010

“Večtomov is an excellent cellist … the performances are worth listening to, and of historical importance” American Record Guide, July/August 2010

“[Večtomov] was one of the finest Czech cellists of his generation but his work as a soloist is not as well known as it deserves to be. That he was a great player is confirmed by the performance of the Cello Concerto here: despite boxy acoustics (a consequence of the concert being given [in] quite a small theatre), this is a memorable account and it is captured in realistic sound. Few of Večtomov’s commercial recordings are available at the moment, making this release particularly valuable.” International Record Review, June 2012

“Večtomov plays with a noble dignity that is at its most poetically eloquent during the sublime Adagio slow movement...considering the concert was recorded virtually on the hoof in an unaccommodating old town hall it has come up sounding remarkably good.” The Strad, July 2012