2023-10-14 02:14:42
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Robert Schumann (1810-1849): Fantasiestücke for cello and piano, opus 73. Eugène Ysaÿe (1858-1931): Sonata opus 27 no. 3, “Ballade”, transcription A. Khramouchin. Sergei Rachmaninov (1873-1943): Vocalise opus 34 no. 14. Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953): Sonata for cello and piano in C major opus 119. Michel Lysight (born in 1958): Three sketches, version for cello and piano . Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924): After a dream, opus 7 no. 1. Claude Debussy (1862-1918): Sonata for cello and piano L.144. Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750): Cello Suite No. 3 in C major BWV 1009, excerpt: sarabande. Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921): the Swan, extract from Carnival of the Animals. Aleksandr Khramouchin, cello; Eliane Reyes, piano. 1 CD Etcetera. Recorded in public between 2019 and 2023. Presentation notice in English and French. Duration: 82:00
Etcetera
On May 13, the cellist of Belarusian origin but living in Belgium for a long time, Aleksandr Khramouchin, died unexpectedly at the age of barely 43. Four months following his disappearance, under the Etcetera label appears this tribute, ideally remastered, bringing together extracts from recent concerts.
Aleksandr “Sasha” Khramouchin was born in Minsk in 1979, into a family with a long musical tradition. His training is shared between his homeland and his adopted countries (Belgium, Netherlands) where he followed his family at a very young age. He perfected his technique and musicality with renowned cellist teachers such as, among others, Janos Starker or Boris Pergamenshikov and won numerous first international prizes: he reached the final rounds of the Tchaikovsky competition (Moscow) in 2002. His career was then divided between the orchestra – he was appointed principal cellist at the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of 19, a position he held for nearly twenty seasons – chamber music, either as a soloist in his own right, or as a member of the quartet Louvigny strings (from the Luxembourg Philharmonie), then the Aviv Quartet, but also had a rich career as a teacher, notably with the international Musica Mundi foundation. Between two series of concerts, at the beginning of May 2023, he contracted a relatively ordinary infection following a foot injury. This quickly degenerated into septicemia and the musician died in the prime of life, following septic shock, following a few days of hospitalization in intensive care.
As a chamber musician, Aleksandr Khramouchin recorded several records for the Timpani label around twenty years ago (Ohana, Cras, Pierné, Le Flem, etc.) either in a quartet or in the company of prestigious chamber musicians (Christian Ivaldi, Pascal Devoyon, Marie-Josèphe Jude…) and much more recently, in the company of Éliane Reyes, released a beautiful album with an almost classical coupling (César Franck/Serguei Rachmaninoff) for Azur Classical. The couple in town and on stage, in addition to numerous concerts in Europe, had several recordings planned for future seasons. The ace ! A disastrous fate decided otherwise.
Surrounded by a group of friends, the pianist wanted to perpetuate the memory of her companion by publishing a few public recordings captured between 2019 and 2023, splendidly remastered and published by the Etcetera label. This disc was symbolically presented to the press on September 13, World Day Against Sepsis and Septic Shock. A charity concert for the benefit of the scientific research fund of the Erasmus Hospital and its infectious disease department will be given immediately on October 21 at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels, in tribute to the musician: among others Misha will be announced Maïski, Martha Argerich, Tedi Papavrami… all close friends and admirers of the late cellist.
Throughout the 82 minutes of music, we can only admire this musician who is as sensitive as he is demanding. The articulation of the speech or the clarity of the statements are infallible; the fingerings and bowing strokes seem studied, precise, in the sense of optimal expressiveness in full service of the text. This gives us, when opening the disc, Fantasy pieces op.73 by Robert Schumann of dreams, intensely poetic in the diversity of intentions, beyond a purity of imperial intonation. From the same concert (August 17, 2021 at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts in Brussels), the sonata op.119 by Prokofiev, by turns dreamy and grumpy, framed and unbuttoned, lyrical and disturbing under this imaginative bow, in addition to the extremely famous Vocalise op.34 n°14 by Rachmaninov given as an encore, reveals an artist at the top of his art, in osmosis with his partner.
Aleksandr Khramouchin was a musician curious regarding everything and very tempted by challenges: of Eugène Ysaye – rather than interpreting the sonata op.28 dedicated to his instrument – he chooses to transcribe and defend the sonata Trouble for solo violin op.27 n°3, the one dedicated to Georges Enesco: the result, captured in public at the Conservatoire de la Ville de Luxembourg in 2019, is exhilarating in its natural virtuosity and involvement.
The performer also defended today’s music. Certainly the three sketches, one of the best-known and most successful works of the “neo-consonant” composer Michel Lysight may seem very wise to those who advocate modernism at all costs. Even! The melodic qualities, the harmonic subtleties of the work – recorded here during the creation of the version for cello and piano – are admirably defended here by the two musicians, accomplices and dedicates.
The final recital, given on April 29 at Ervy-le Chapel – two weeks before the artist’s death – miraculously benefited from a beautiful recording (signed by Clément Sellerin): of Debussy’s sonata, rarely will we have heard a version as close to the versatile, Verlainian intentions of the composer: our performers hit the mark with the declamatory poetry of the prologue, with the almost impromptu and “fantastic” wink of the serenade and with a saucy and poisonous finale, really “nervous” – as suggested by Claude de France. Extract from the same recital, the sarabande of the third Suite BWV 1009 by JS Bach takes on, through its meditative and hieratic stretching, an almost unsuspected metaphysical aura. The Swan by Saint-Saëns, final encore (and forever), as a goodbye forever, shows the artist in a more smiling and sassy light, offering himself the pleasure of one or the other in passing bearing of good faith.
Aleksandr Khramouchin’s recordings allow us to rediscover his art once more and once more, such as “ following a dream » to paraphrase the famous melody by Gabriel Fauré, given here – and sublimely – during a recital in 2022 at the Monnaie in Brussels.
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More details
Robert Schumann (1810-1849): Fantasiestücke for cello and piano, opus 73. Eugène Ysaÿe (1858-1931): Sonata opus 27 no. 3, “Ballade”, transcription A. Khramouchin. Sergei Rachmaninov (1873-1943): Vocalise opus 34 no. 14. Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953): Sonata for cello and piano in C major opus 119. Michel Lysight (born in 1958): Three sketches, version for cello and piano . Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924): After a dream, opus 7 no. 1. Claude Debussy (1862-1918): Sonata for cello and piano L.144. Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750): Cello Suite No. 3 in C major BWV 1009, excerpt: sarabande. Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921): the Swan, extract from Carnival of the Animals. Aleksandr Khramouchin, cello; Eliane Reyes, piano. 1 CD Etcetera. Recorded in public between 2019 and 2023. Presentation notice in English and French. Duration: 82:00
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