Yo-Yo Ma 馬友友 / Boston Symphony Orchestra / Andris Nelsons - Shostakovich The Cello Concertos (CD)

This year, to mark the 50th anniversary of the composer’s death, Andris Nelsons and the BSO conclude their award-winning decade-long Shostakovich Project by presenting their acclaimed Shostakovich symphony cycle. This Grammy-winning exceptional anthology also contains brand-new recordings by pianist Yuja Wang, violinist Baiba Skride and cellist Yo-YoMa in the concertos, while the Lady Macbethcast is headed by Kristine Opolais, Brenden Gunnell, Peter Hoare and Günther Groissböck.

 

Benefiting from the superb audio quality achieved in the exceptional acoustic of Boston’s Symphony Hall, Yo-Yo Ma gives inspired performances of the two cello concertos. The inventive First was written for another friend, Mstislav Rostropovich, a famously demanding piece that was an early landmark in Ma’s own career. The far more introspective Second was the composer’s 60th-birthday present to himself. Introducing the latter work to the Symphony Hall audience, Ma said, “This piece is as relevant today as it was then. I think Shostakovich’s artistic truth was to represent the voice of the voiceless.”

 

Tracklist: 

Cello Concerto No. 1 in E-Flat Major, Op. 107:

I. Allegretto

II. Moderato

III. Cadenza

IV. Allegro con moto

 

Cello Concerto No. 2 in G Major, Op. 126:

I. Largo

II. Scherzo. Allegretto

III. Finale. Allegretto