Bohuslav Martinů
Bohuslav Martinů’s chamber music mixes folk-rooted melody with neo-classical drive: the Impromptu for violin and piano flashes with skittish dance and motor energy, while the Variations on a Slovak Theme give the cello a long, singing line of real warmth.
His writing sits among the Czech and Central European voices that favour accessibility without blandness. Short movements can turn on a dance rhythm or a sudden lyrical breath; longer sets of variations keep the folk contour audible while the harmony and figuration stay alert and clean. On disc the music rewards players who catch both the vigour and the tenderness, and listeners who want something outside the usual recital warhorses yet wholly engaging.
Compositions by Bohuslav Martinů appear on
Souvenir
An engaging collection of violin and piano works, several drawn from the Australian Music Examinations Board violin syllabus, spanning salon pieces, spirituals and early Mozart.
Evocations: The Poet
David Pereira (cello) and David Bollard (piano) offer an unusual selection from the romantic cello repertoire, with short lyrical works by Fauré, Delius, Kodály, Dvořák and others.