GRAMOPHONE AWARDS NOMINATION REVIEW:
Fine performances of some of Rawsthorne's finest yet most neglected chamber music
Alan Rawsthorne's Theme and Variations for two violins not only ranks as one of his masterpieces, but can also be considered as amongst the finest string writing for violin duo this century. One of the major strengths of the work lies in the equality of writing and invention in the two solo parts and the way in which Rawsthorne treats the material as an homogenous whole rather than two separate contrapuntal strands. Quite why the work has been so neglected by virtuosi is something of a mystery, which makes this new and exceptionally fine account by Peter Sheppard Skærved and Christine Sohn all the more welcome. Another Rawsthorne work that deserves much wider recognition is the Violin Sonata of1958. Originally written for Joseph Szigeti (though regrettably never performed by him) the sonata is full of invention and memorable ideas whilst at the same time conveyed with the most economical of means. Skærved and pianist Tamam iHonma give us a particularly thoughtful, spirited reading of this important Rawsthorne work. The music of John McCabe (himself a long-time champion and biographer of Rawsthorne) makes an ideal coupling. Indeed, the Star Preludes for violin and piano of 1978 appears to draw a certain degree of inspiration from Rawsthorne's Violin Sonata, especially in its opening and closing pages. Maze Dances for solo violin dates from 1973 and is in effect a kind of modern day manifestation the Zigeuner-style - an intense, narrative fantasy, brilliantly performed here by Skærved, that grips the listener from first note to last. Good recording. A must for all admirers of Rawsthorne's music.
Michael Stewart

TEMPO :
Rawsthorne had given notice of impending radicalism in the Theme and Variations, recorded by the two violins of Peter Sheppard Skærved and Christine Sohn.The work is 'an astonishing display of compositional virtuosity', says McCabe, whose 'emotional scope [...] is enormous', and Sheppard Skærved and Sohn support his claim with playing of passionate intensity in the finest performance of the work that I've yet heard. Tamami Homna joins Sheppard Skærved in the Sonata for violin and piano of 1959, and extraordinary marriage of wit, elegance and power - and yet there's always that sense that Rawsthorne mustn't offend against propriety: you never really know what he is feeling. The disc contains two works by McCabe himself : the Maze Dances for solo violin (1973), which demand, says Sheppard Skærved in his notes, a '"Modern-zigeuner" technical aesthetic ' (and remind me directly of the Ysaÿe solo sonatas, op. 27),and the more explicitly modernist Star Preludes (1978) for violin and piano which seems at first not to know where is wants to go but soon picks up direction and purpose.
Unnamed reviewer

INTERNATIONAL RECORD REVIEW:
Though they are a generation apart, it makes sense to couple these works by Alan Rawsthorne (b. 1905) and John McCabe (b. 1939).Not only did McCabe know Rawsthorne, he has played (and continues to play) music of his senior's piano music. He is also the author of a pioneering book on the composer, a study enriched by insights derived from his own creative work - on which he acknowledges Rawsthorne as an influence.

McCabe's Maze Dances for solo violin launch this disc in a blaze of virtuosity. We are in medias res, or (given the title) struggling to escape a labyrinth, right from the opening gesture. The passionate energy and relentless drive are heightened by much multiple-stopping that that continues in the chordal slower section. Rawsthorne's Theme and Variations for two (absolutely equal) solo violins was one of the works that established his name... The title might suggest a certain dryness, but the opposite is in fact the case. The work is an exhilarating sequence of ten character-sketches, from the skittish to the grandly dramatic. Violists and cellists wanting a break should recommend it vigorously to their quartet colleagues. The version by Nicholas Ward and Pauline Lowbury of the Redcliffe Ensemble, equally characterful and well recorded, comes buried in a collection of oboe quartets by Routh and Lutyens as well as Rawsthorne himself.

Commissioned by Szigeti and premiered by Parikian, Rawsthorne's Violin Sonata of 20 years later is (in a very different way) another real find. Perfectly proportioned, rooted entirely in a clash of D major/minor against E flat, it rises above the level of character-study (waltz, toccata) to exemplify McCabe's comment tha teconomy of means (of which Rawsthorne was the past master) is not the enemy of emotional depth, but on the contrary a liberation. If this seems paradoxical, then McCabe's own Star Preludes, which conclude this stimulating release, prove the point. The space-scapes he draws from violin and piano (in just 12 minutes)at once proclaim a debt to, and freedom from, Rawsthorne’s beneficent shadow.

In sum, with fine performances and a good recording, this release deserves to be heard by more than just devotees of the violin. It shows the toughness and sheer musicality of two fine British composers writing at full stretch.
Piers Burton-Page