I don’t think many would argue that Bach’s 6 Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin are the ultimate challenge for any violinist, both musically and technically. Even though every violin student tends to study some of the individual movements at a relatively early stage in their training, performing the whole set of these masterpieces requires from the violinist some of the highest technical precision and most sophisticated musical understanding.
Bach’ solo works have always been a part of my musical life; I remember that my very first experience of his work was the ‘Preludio’ from the E Major Partita. I was about 6 or 7 years old and my teacher gave it to me mostly as a exercise to practice my left hand dexterity, and coordination between left and right hand. Later, I started playing the ‘Adagio’ from the G Minor Sonata, then, after I began studying at the Sichuan Conservatory of Music in my hometown, I started learning the ‘Fuga’ from the Solo Sonatas. It fascinated me greatly how on a violin, mostly considered to be a single-melody instrument, one could also play multiple melodies and the accompaniment at the same time.
Of course, one of the highlights of my Bach-related memories was playing the great ‘Ciaccona’ in a masterclass at the Royal Academy of Music for Lord Yehudi Menuhin in 1999 shortly before he passed away. After I finished my performance, the late master said nothing but simply got up from his chair, walked up to me, and gave me a hug. Bach finished this ‘Bible’ of works for the violin in year 1720 when he was 35, and I started recording these masterworks at the same age, to pay my tribute to the greatest musician of all time. – Ning Feng
Tracklist
Please note that the below previews are loaded as 44.1 kHz / 16 bit.Total time: 01:13:21
Additional information
| Label | |
|---|---|
| SKU | 39018A |
| Qualities | DSD 256 fs, DSD 128 fs, DSD 64 fs, DXD 24 Bit, FLAC 192 kHz, FLAC 96 kHz |
| Channels | |
| Artists | |
| Composers | |
| Genres | |
| Cables | van den Hul |
| Digital Converters | Horus |
| Editing Software | Pyramix |
| Mastering Engineer | Jared Sacks |
| Mastering Room | Grimm LS1 |
| Microphones | Bruel & Kyaer, Schoeps |
| Mixing Board | Rens Hejnis custom built |
| Instruments | |
| Original Recording Format | |
| Producer | Jared Sacks, Ning Feng |
| Recording Engineer | Jared Sacks |
| Recording location | Doopgezinde Church, Deventer Holland |
| Recording Software | Merging |
| Recording Type & Bit Rate | DSD256 |
| Release Date | January 18, 2018 |
Press reviews
Diapason
(…) Sa compréhension chorégraphique des partitas et sa flexibilité rythmique dans les sonates sont des atouts de taille (…) Feng maîtrise parfaitement une sonorité jamais acide, parfois opulente, bien captée par l’équipe de Channel Classics.
Noordhollands Dagblad
(…) Met een prachtige toon benadert hij bijna als een zanger op zijn Stradivarius deze ‘Bijbel van de vioolkunst’ (…) De virtuositeit klinkt als vanzelfsprekend onderdeel van zijn spel. Zo hoort het.
Audiophile Italy
(…) his rubato is wonderfully old-world (he really does take from one note and give to another) and completely eschews conventional virtuoso display, all of which enables him to create a highly appealing – and unusual – sense of quiet introspection, where he seems to be talking to himself; indeed these performances are virtually unique in this respect.
Gramophone
“Feng is one of the few violinists who have for me demonstrated the theory’s rightness simply by the way he plays. Also the way he inserts tiny pauses between phrases, like minute intakes of breath, suggests parallels with the singing voice. (…) if you want to take Bach’s solo violin music to your heart, intimately and as food for musical thought, then Feng’s recordings strike me as well-nigh ideal.”
Luister (9)
(…) glasheldere dictie en geweldig stijlgevoel (…)
Opus Klassiek
(…) De Chinese violist levert het klinkende bewijs dat een kritische houding ten opzichte van deze uiterst complexe partituren de zin voor avontuur niet in de weg hoeft te staan. Hij loodst ons door deze muziek alsof hij voortdurend belangrijke ontdekkingen heeft gedaan die hij coûte que coûte met ons wil delen. Het betoog wordt laag voor laag opgebouwd zonder enige concessie aan de innerlijke energie die van deze muziek afstraalt. Het is zijn en daarmee ook onze confrontatie met Bachs ongenaakbare grootheid en de muzikale schoonheid die daarvan onverbrekelijk deel uitmaakt. (…) De Doopsgezinde kerk in Deventer is voor een recital als dit werkelijk een schitterende locatie: de muziek krijgt de akoestische ruimte die zij voor zich opeist, daarbij uiteraard een technisch ‘handje’ geholpen. Kort en goed: Jared Sacks heeft hiermee (weer!) een topprestatie neergezet.
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