Saint-Saëns: Cello Concerto No. 1 | Lalo: Cello Concerto in D Minor

Album review

The two concertos on this release by cellist Maja Bogdanovic are standards of the repertory; as Bogdanovic notes, they were staples of her French conservatory training and competition regime, but Bogdanovic has what it takes to stand out. Enjoy the cover image, for it gives a taste of this cellist's confident flamboyance. There are two shorter pieces by Saint-Saëns as an entr'acte, and one could begin by sampling those; the familiar Swan from The Carnival of the Animals has a rare warmth, and the Allegro appassionato, Op. 43, an infectious swing. The concertos, virtuoso works, are both accurately played, with the kind of interaction between soloist and orchestra that comes only when the performers know each other well. The Cello Concerto in D minor, especially as it descends into low-register snarls, has a rare kind of command over the listener. A negative here is the sound, which is not usually a problem with the Challenge Classics label; Bogdanovic is placed up front in the mix, which supports her interpretation, but the Kolarac Concert Hall gives her instrument an unpleasant edge in louder passages. Additionally, there is a burst of what seems to be street noise near the beginning of the first movement of the Lalo concerto, but it is worth putting up with these issues, for this album reveals to the world an arch-Romantic cellist who is still on the way up.

© James Manheim /TiVo