BERNHARD ROMBERG: The Complete Cello Sonatas – Hannah Holman, cello/ Rene Lecuona, p. – Blue Griffin (2 CDs)

by | Jul 2, 2013 | Classical CD Reviews

BERNHARD ROMBERG: The Complete Cello Sonatas – Hannah Holman, cello/ Rene Lecuona, p. – Blue Griffin BGR 273 (2 CDs), 48:53, 42:48 [Distr. by Albany] ***1/2:

Bernhard Heinrich Romberg (1767 – 1841) was one of the most important cellists in history. A composer and pedagogue as well as performer, he made substantial changes to the instrument like lengthening the fingerboard, as well as the idea of shorter-sized instruments in order to facilitate training for younger players. He was one of the first performers to play from memory, and had an outstanding technical mastery of the instrument. He devoted whole concerts to only his music, and seems to have been in possession of a substantial ego as well. The young Beethoven admired him, and offered to write a cello concerto for him. Romberg answered that he only played his own compositions which were more popular and lucrative, and declined the offer, surely one of the most egregiously stupid acts in musical history. After his death his compositions were all but forgotten.

Today there is a smattering of albums dedicated to his music, though his concertos and symphonies in particular are much more substantial than these sonatas found here. For some reason Romberg resorted to the parlor for these six intimacies, even though it is rumored that Brahms found inspiration for his own cello sonatas after hearing the Romberg First in E-minor. I find that difficult to believe but I wasn’t alive then and anything is possible. But Romberg’s sonatas are intimate and relaxed without providing any real sense of development and musical tension. Technically they are challenging but not insurmountable, and make reasonable choices for mid-level recital pieces. Hearing them altogether like this is a bit of a chore as they are so unsophisticated and probably were designed to appeal to the less cultured home player or casual listener. Today, when hearing these works, it’s not hard to understand why they have faded from concert status and public consciousness.

None of this detracts from the really valiant effort that Hannah Holman and Rene Lecuona give in their readings. I can’t imagine them sounding any better, performed to perfection and taken about as seriously as they can be. The trouble is the substance just isn’t there. Holman, a member of the New York Ballet Orchestra and the Quad City Symphony, tries to infuse the music with something it can’t contain—depth. Accompanist Lecuona, Professor of Piano at the University of Iowa, is with her all the way in a losing cause. Recommended for those who love Romantic parlor music, or wish a more complete Romberg section in their collection. Blue Griffin captures the proceedings with warm, silken sound.

—Steven Ritter

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