The first track is the best! What a fantasic recording of the Bottesini Elegie.
November 24, 2007We can debate the merits of the tuning in 5th all day, but what's important is the music, and Quarrington's tone and his interpretation are both wonderful. This album belongs in the collection of every double bassist, certainly, and probably in the collection of every fan of string music as well.
April 1, 2006 |  | Is just a matter of tunning? |  |
I think that double bass technique is much more wide than a change of tunning, specially if you think that (for example)the 90% of the Elegie in D is played in ONLY ONE string. I think that other technical matters(Bow driving, fingering, vibrato)and musical matters(knowledge of Bottesini's language in relation to the instrument's possibilities) allow performers to make the audience forget about the instrument and enyoy this pure, simple and passioned music. This was what Bottesini did in his time; he could SING whith his instrument. Bottesini's playing was very close to "Belle Canto Italiano", he was a lover of the opera (his mother was a soprano and he was a close friend of Giusseppe Verdi). In my opinion Rinat Ibragimov is who is closest to this human, warm, passioned voice. I think that we must listen to all versions of Bottesini's works and discuse about these matters. Thanks.
April 19, 2004I am baffled at the conclusions of an earlier reviewer, for reasons of both historical innacuracy as musical ignorance. It is, first of all, a relatively modern idea that the bass must be tuned solely in fourths. The instrument, a descendent of the extinct "bass violion" (not the violone as is commonly misconcieved) was originally tuned in fifths, and players such as Dragonetti often experimented with their tunings. Regardless, this is still a bass--by tuning in fifths Quarrington has created such a sound more beautiful than Karr, Badila, or Levinson (ugh) could ever achieve. Secondly, music is not history, and therefore is not bound by "historical correctness." How can progress (like the music Joel has published here) ever be made without altering precendents? Joel often uses the solo tuning key (the key Bottesini intended)anyway--it is actually "incorrect" to play the music in orchestra tuning, if such a distintion must be made.
My point is that this is the new level of bass playing. Buy this cd. February 17, 2004
| | | bottesini is better than mozart | |
I'M Spanish and i don't speak very well english. I think bottesini is the best composer in the world. In this CD Joel Quarrington is fantastic, but Andrew is normal. This songs "expresan"(in Spanish) very much things. The first time I listen this CD I don't like it very much, but now I'm amazed. I play the double bass, and "insisto" Joel Quarrington is fantastic. I'm ungry because doesn't exist the Vol 2 of Bottesini music.
March 6, 2003More reviews at Amazon.com ...
(8 reviews)