Firstly, the Repertoire: Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 1 in E Minor Op.38 by Johannes Brahms. It was composed in 1862-65 and was dedicated to Brahms’ friend Josef Gänsbacher, singing professor at the Vienna Academy and amateur cello player. The Sonata is divided into three movements: the first - Allegro ma non troppo – shows the typical features of the “sonata form”, where the structure is divided into three parts (exposition, development and recapitulation). It is characterized by a sensual and lively beauty of the opening and second subjects and the intriguing and elaborated harmonic progression of the development, followed by the “Allegretto quasi Minuetto”. It is a journey throughout the Baroque musical styles, especially in the research of ornaments and the third fugue-style movement “Allegro”, reminding one of the pattern of Bach’s “Art of Fugue”. The following piece is one of Bach’s most beautiful works - Partita No. 2 – probably dating back to between 1717 and 1723 in memory of his first wife, Mary Barbara. In particular, the fifth movement – Ciaccona – is known for its technical difficulty, and was originally written for the violin. Nevertheless, it became the testing ground for a number of different transcriptions, including Ferruccio Busoni’s for piano or Andres Segovia’s for guitar. Finally, Sergey Rachmaninoff’s Sonata for Cello and Piano op. 19. It was written in 1901 and dedicated to the cello player Anatol Brandukov and is divided into four movements. It is an absolute example of the merger of the purest Romantic inspiration, echoing Schumann’s particular style and the technical attention for the instrument - see the Allegro Scherzando showing the piano skills of the author and, in this recording, the expression of Mr. Andrew Campbell – and Russian musical nationalism, Tchaikovsky and Rimsky Korsakov above all, at the beginning of the XIXth century, offering all the shades of a modern melodic and harmonic sensuality. Three compositions that, as we see, in spite of time and cultural distances, show a number of analogies. Firstly, the virtuoso technique that placed them in their own rights among the classics of repertoire, not only for their respective instruments, but also, especially in the case of the Ciaccona, for other instruments. Then, the clear tendency to use lively and typical harmonic progressions that, by moving, form the basis of the main formal structure, where the counter-part writing, the fugue style of the melody and the variation and dilatation of the melody itself comprise the form of the main development. Then, a subtle and ideal historical-semiological thread, according to a scheme linking the work of Bach to the Romantic Brahms, great lover and expert of the Kantor’s works, moves towards one of the most relevant protagonists of musical Romanticism, the pianist Sergey Rachmaninoff.

The Interpretation. It is clear that the attention paid to the selection of the repertoire by Maestro Rotaru cannot uniquely be bound to the mere virtuoso aspects. It is a precise stylistic choice, rooted in a performing practice that identifies him as one of the most interesting chamber musicians currently performing, in particular as far as Romantic music is concerned. There are some elements that confirm this concept. Firstly, the choice of a slower metronome speed for the Allegro ma non troppo in Brahms’ sonata, here presented according to Joseph Prunner’s double bass version. Secondly, a musicological perspective that sees in this movement all the melodic, rhythmic and agogic features of a slower speed, like the Andante. This practice was first presented in the historical recording by Jacqueline Du Pre and Daniel Barenboim, for the EMI label. Moreover, in both the sonatas, the choice was of maintaining the original register of the cello score, with smooth and imperceptible changes. Finally, the beautiful transcription of Bach’s Ciaccona, whose counterpart of the original version for violin has been re-arranged for double bass and cello, is here played by Thomas Landschott. The underlying idea is the research of an acoustic blend oriented to a sound which may be able to seem an orchestral full sound. On this respect, it is important to point out that one of the most famous transcriptions of this Ciaccona is the one by Leopold Stokowsky.

Lastly, the Performance. Never forgetting its framework, it is always consistent with the repertoire, both for the accurate expressive choices and the technical ability, which allow entering a new territory for the double bass, considering the years in which these compositions were written. It shows the progresses of the teaching science for double-bass and provides these works of art with new life and colours. A special mention should also be made on the professionalism of the musicians taking part in this project: Thomas Landschoot (cello), Andrew Campbell and Baruch Meir (piano).

This album should be heard not only for its sensual listening pleasure or for the important extension of the double bass repertoire. It pays great attention to a meditated and careful interpretation approach, which Rotaru, who is an intelligent and virtuoso musician, never forgets to concentrate on.