Schubert: Fantasie in C major for violin and piano, D934

“Characteristic Schubert, played with penetrating subtlety by the two young Germans Fischer and Helmchen...The CD ends with the D940 Fantasia for piano duet, with Fischer partnering in a powerful performance: one moment fiery, the next caressing. And all such heavenly music.” The Times, 22nd May 2010 ****

“They give a magnificent account of this inspired work [the F major Fantasy]...It's a challenging piece...yet Fischer and Helmchen present as fine as any account on disc...They are a marvellous team, evidently giving each other ideas as they go along.” BBC Music Magazine, August 2010 *****

“Yamada in particular is outstanding throughout, always poised, pertly eloquent, alert and conscientious in the drawing together of threads so that these three contrasted idioms do some weaving of their own upon the listener's imagination.” Gramophone Magazine, September 2010

“This debut recital disc stands out for high-quality playing but also for the inclusion of three fascinating early works by Messiaen” The Observer, 28th February 2010

“I found the Fantasy, especially, remarkably convincing in its new guise. The transposition to cello...enhances the sense of virtuosity as Wispelwey triumphantly surmounts each hurdle...As expected from these artists, the performance of the Arpeggione Sonata is most accomplished.” Gramophone Magazine, April 2010

“The song-variations at the heart of the Fantaisie put on a good show of polite drawing-room charm, but the strange tremolando introduction strays close to a very late-Schubertian emotional cliff-edge. Isabelle Faust and Alexander Melnikov are particularly successful in that strange, haunting opening.” BBC Music Magazine, March 2006 ****

“In nearly every respect this is outstanding. The Rondo and the Fantasie, both written for the virtuoso duo of Karl von Bocklet and Josef Slawik, can sound as if Schubert were striving for a brilliant, flashy style, foreign to his nature.
Both are in places uncomfortable to play (when first published, the Fantasie's violin part was simplified), but you would never guess this from Faust's and Melnikov's performance; they both nonchalantly toss off any problem passages as though child's play.
The Fantasie's finale and the Rondo are irresistibly lively and spirited, and this duo's technical finesse extends to more poetic episodes – Melnikov's tremolo at the start of the Fantasie shimmers delicately, while the filigree passagework in the last of the variations that form the Fantasie's centrepiece have a delightful poise and sense of ease.
The Sonata's more intimate style is captured just as convincingly; in all three performances Faust and Melnikov observe Schubert's often very detailed, careful expression marks, not as a matter of duty, but as a stimulus to the imagination, as a way of entering more deeply into the music.
The one slight reservation concerns Isabelle Faust's manner of expression. She makes the most of any passionate phrases and is equally convincing at cool, mysterious or dreamlike moments.
But the lyrical phrases in the Rondo's introduction surely demand a more heartfelt utterance.
In the Sonata, too, there are places where one longs for more warmth. This quibble aside, it's a lovely disc, one to listen to over and over again.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“The Fantasie's finale and the Rondo are irresistibly lively and scripted, and this duo's technical finesses extends to more poetic episodes - Melnikov's tremolo at the start of the Fantasie shimmers delicately, while the filigree passagework in the last of the variations that form the Fantasie's centrepiece have a delightful poise and sense of ease.” Gramophone Magazine, May 2006

“Alexander Melnikov's bright, at times almost puckish, piano playing is perfectly matched by the violinist Isabel Faust. She is one of the few violinists who virtually always hits the note dead-centre, and her rapport with Melnikov is clear.” Rob Cowan, The Independent

“The disc is worth hearing just for the way in which Widmann colours that opening [of the C minor Fantasie] alone, reducing her tone to the slenderest thread, minimising her vibrato and gradually breathing life into the work. It's extraordinary playing, full of imagination and profound intelligence, and just as powerfully effective in the smaller-scale works.” The Guardian, 16th February 2012 *****

“This is a fascinating Schubert recital...It is arguably in the more intense passages of these two works that these players are most compelling, though there's no shortage of virtuosity either, particularly in the finale of the Fantasie. As a duo there is much impress too, not least in their sensitive approach to rubato...a highly reactive, involving interpretation [of the Sonata] and a reminder of the riches that Schubert bequeathed to the violin.” Gramophone Magazine, May 2012

“Widmann and Lonquich are happy to take each piece on its own terms, to mainly winning effect.” BBC Music Magazine, May 2012 ****

“both violinist and pianist seem deeply committed, and they do the best they can to make the music come alive.” MusicWeb International, June 2012