Guitarist Paul Galbraith delights us once more

BACH: Four Suites for Orchestra, BWC 1066-1069; arranged for guitar quartet. Brazilian Guitar Quartet. Delos 3254.

Another winner from guitarist Paul Galbraith, this time with the Brazilian Guitar Quartet, an ensemble formed in 1998 and already known worldwide for its virtuosity and inventive repertoire.

Galbraith is widely known as the developer of the eight-string guitar (two more strings than the traditional six-string instrument), which has an end pin and is held between the knees as one would hold a cello. The increase in the number of strings gives it both a higher and lower range than regular guitars. Galbraith, both as a soloist and as one of the members of the Brazilian Guitar Quartet, is building an impressive discography playing the unusual instrument.

In addition to Galbraith, the members of the Brazilian Guitar Quartet are the brothers Edelton and Everton Gloeden and Tadeu do Amaral. On this recording both Galbraith and Everton Gloeden play eight-string guitars.

The order of the suites on this disc is Nos. 3 and 2, transcribed by do Amaral, and No. 1 by Everton Gloeden and No. 4, by Edelton Gloeden. The transcriptions are excellent. Had he heard them, Johann Sebastian himself would have led the applause. Certainly my applause is there. And indeed, I cannot but believe that even the most pure of Bach purists would have anything but praise for both the transcriptions and the virtuosity of the artists.

If this is your introduction to Galbraith, let me recommend his earlier recordings, all on Delos, of Bach`s Violin Sonatas and Partitas (DE 3232) and Lute Suites (DE 3258) and several of the Haydn Keyboard Sonatas (DE 3239), all played on the eight-string guitar. If it is the idea of a guitar quartet that appeals to you, might want to get the quartet`s debut recording on Delos, Essencia do Brazil, music of Villa-Lobos, Guarnieri, Mignone and Gomes (DE 3245).

With his development of the eight-string guitar, Galbraith his thrown the door of transcription possibilities for the instrument wide open. Watch for exciting music-making from Galbraith in the future, both as a soloist and with the Brazilian Guitar Quartet. It`s sure to come.

CELIBIDACHE: Straus, R.- Don Juan, Tod und Verklarung (Death and Transfiguration), Ein Heldenleben (A Hero`s Life). Respighi - Pina di Roma (Pines of Rome). Added disc: rehearsal of Tod und Verklarung and Pini di Roma. SWR Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra; Sergiu Celibidache, conductor. Deutsche Grammophon 453 190; two CDs plus rehearsal CD; stereo.

As promised a few weeks ago, here`s my review on Celibidache`s Richard Strauss; also his Respighi. But I don`t mean to suggest that the Respighi has been included as simply some kind of little coda, as I shall explain below.

To go through the Strauss:

Celibidache gives "Don Juan" a fine reading. The orchestra plays in the appropriate romantic manner, and the famous horn call is executed most skillfully. One could have hoped for better sound reproduction. But, this recording was not intended for commercial release. Indeed, the conductor specifically forbade commercial release of any of his recordings. He simply did not like the medium. After his death, his heirs decided to release certain recordings of his concerts that had been made, for one reason to combat unauthorized releases and also to make his work available to a much larger audience than it had known while he was alive.

Celibidache does all that can be done with "Ein Heldenleben:" He plays the brilliant parts of the work wonderfully and he does the best that can be done with the others. In other words, he approaches the work as do all conductors, even the very best.

"Heldenleben" always has been a work that has its problems. Its six movements are titled: "The Hero," "The Hero`s Adversaries," "The Hero`s Companion," "The Hero`s Battlefield," "The Hero`s Works of Peace" and "The Hero`s Retreat from the World and Fulfillment."

Celibidache develops each section with skill and a thorough understanding of the score. It is a score whose demands just about run the gamut of orchestral possibilities. All sections of the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra respond most appropriately to the conductor`s requirements.

It seems I add this preference of mine to every review I do on "Heldenleben:" Just eliminate the third section, "The Hero`s Companion." Who is this companion, Strauss`s own Till Eulenspiegel or maybe Cervantes` rustic squire Sancho Panza? It just doesn`t seem to fit the rest of the work; I speak only of the first half of the section.

And, for that matter, who is Strauss` hero? Many have believed the hero is Strauss himself. And we could get into a long discussion about that, but let`s don`t.

In sum, there is great music in "Heldenleben," and we wouldn`t want to miss it. And if you might care to join me in seeing the first part of "The Hero`s Companion" as comic relief, you are most welcome to do so. Comic relief - we really need it even in the most serious of works, do we not? Even in Shakespeare`s "Hamlet." Even in his "Macbeth."

With "Tod und Verklarung," we reach Strauss at zenith, and as Celibidache plays it, we hear just about the epitome of its performance possibilities. Nothing is too small for the maestro`s minute consideration. Every phrase is crafted so as to follow the one that preceded it and prepare for the one that will come next. In this regard, Celibidache was a conductor to whom the phrase was everything. His reading of a score went back to the practice of conductors of earlier times. There was nothing metronomic about Celibidache`s conducting. Which is to say, he was as far from the practice of, say, Toscanini and conductors of that ilk as he could be. The feel of the music was what mattered to Celibidache.

The conductor`s "Tod und Verklarung" is simply a glory. He molds it into an intense experience. The opportunity to hear it alone is worth the price of the entire album.

The surprise of the album is what Celibidache does with "Pini di Roma." The four-part work - "The Pines of the Villa Borghese," "Pines near a catacomb," "The Pines of the Janiculum" and "The Pines of the Appian Way" - offer endless opportunity for orchestral virtuosity. I don`t believe Celibidache misses one of them.

I particularly was impressed with:

The abrupt transition from "The Pines of the Villa Borghese" and "Pines near a catacomb." As Celibidache plays it, it`s artistry at its highest level. How he could evoke such a hush so abruptly from his orchestra once again shows him to be a very great master of the baton. And the mood of "catacomb"; it is hauntingly - for want of a better word - eerie.

The ever-so-soft beginning of "The Pines of the Appian Way" to its crashing conclusion. The section is one long crescendo, led by the timpani, increasing in volume bit by bit until you think the timpanist might pound right through the skin of his drum. It is overpowering. It is as though he is pounding on your heart.

Now, if, in your mind`s eye, you do not see the invincible Roman legions, marching in ranks with their centurions astride their steeds - I always see them on white steeds - leading them, battle banners flying, helmets glistening in the hot Roman sun, you just may have a problem with either your ears or your imagination, or both.

This section of "Pines of Rome," played well, always has taken my breath away. The way Celibidache plays it, he threatens not to give it back.

(c) Copley News Service

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Author: King Durkee