Venice

by Anastasia Kobekina

Overview

Recitals devoted to Venice are common, although less so for the cello. Perhaps no other city in the world carries with it such a sense of a glorious past, of hidden riches waiting to be experienced. A Venice program is a bold choice for a cellist making her major label debut, but cellist Anastasia Kobekina meets the challenges with an unusual and often brilliant recital. Some of the pieces, like Vivaldi's cello concertos, are directly connected to La Serenissima, while with others, the tie is less direct, although it is always there in one form or another. This flexibility allows Kobekina to bring in 20th century and contemporary pieces that offer a delightful sensation of walking around Venice and discovering a new vista at every corner. Sample the "Abendserenade" of Valentin Silvestrov, a welcome presence, or the "Canto della Buranella" from Nino Rota's soundtrack to Fellini's Casanova; finding the latter piece shows real initiative on Kobekina's part. Another interesting find is the Ariadne's Lament of Vladimir Kobekin, who is Kobekina's father; it is a sort of expansion/fantasy on the Monteverdi Lamento d'Arianna that opens the program. Many of the pieces are arranged for solo cello; in those with orchestra, the Kammerorchester Basel stays firmly in the background. Kobekina plays both Baroque and modern cellos, another bold move. This is an entrancing debut, marred only by overly intimate sound; Sony Classical records Kobekina in the oversized La Fenice opera house and then tries unsuccessfully to compensate by miking her very closely. The album rightfully landed on classical best-seller charts in early 2024. ~ James Manheim

Product Details

Release Date:	02/02/2024
Label:	Sony Classical
UPC:	0196588280726
Rank:	4714

Tracks

1. Lamento d'Arianna
2. Concerto for Cello, Strings and Basso continuo in A minor RV 419~III. Allegro
3. Stille Musik~Abendserenade
4. Go, crystal tears from The First Booke of Songes
5. Concerto for Cello, Strings and Basso continuo in D minor RV 405~I. [Allegro]
6. Concerto for Cello, Strings and Basso continuo in D minor RV 405~II. Adagio
7. Concerto for Cello, Strings and Basso continuo in D minor RV 405~III. Allegro
8. Limestone & Felt
9. Concerto in D minor after Alessandro Marcello BWV 974~II. Adagio
10. Suite for Solo Cello No. 3 Op. 87~IV. Barcarolla
11. Concerto for Cello, Strings and Basso continuo in E-flat major RV 408~II. Largo
12. Il Casanova~Canto della Buranella
13. Che si può fare?
14. Emerald and Stone
15. Árnyak
16. Concerto for Cello, Strings and Basso continuo in G minor RV 416~I. Allegro
17. Concerto for Cello, Strings and Basso continuo in G minor RV 416~II. Adagio
18. Concerto for Cello, Strings and Basso continuo in G minor RV 416~III. Allegro
19. Les berceaux Op. 23/1
20. L' Orfeo~Orfeo, tu dormi
21. L' Orfeo~Se desti pietà
22. Concerto for Cello, Bassoon, Strings and Basso continuo in E minor RV 409~III. Allegro
23. Ariadne's Lament

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Anastasia Kobekina   Primary Artist,Cello
Martin Zeller   Viola da Gamba
Kammerorchester Basel   Orchestra
Azul Lima   Lute,Theorbo
Fran Petrac   Double Bass
Mariana Doughty   Viola
Leonardo Bortolotto   Viola da Gamba
Julia Schroeder   Conductor
Maximilien Ciup   Bass

Technical Credits

Gyoergy Kurtag   Composer
Johann Sebastian Bach   Composer
Leo Abrahams   Composer
Barbara Strozzi   Composer
Nino Rota   Composer
Brian Eno   Composer
Gabriel Faure   Composer
Antonio Vivaldi   Composer
John Dowland   Composer
Benjamin Britten   Composer
Jon Hopkins   Composer
Claudio Monteverdi   Theme,Composer
Matthias Spindler   Arranger
Valentin Silvestrov   Composer
Caroline Shaw   Composer
Maximilien Ciup   Producer,Mastering Engineer,Recording Producer,Engineer
Anja Hoppe   Artwork
Jack Ryan Smith   Executive Producer
Johanna Berghorn   Photography
Ken Pasciak   Arranger
Antonio Sartorio   Composer
Vladimir Kobekin   Composer