In his lifetime Witold Lutoslawski received significant attention from major labels. He recorded his own music for Philips and also appeared on Sony, DG, EMI, and Decca. So many of those releases have been deleted–and even with the increasing availability of downloads and “on-demand” productions, let’s face it, Lutoslawski’s not going to be a bigger priority than the popular classics (and artists). So it’s very important that he enjoys the support of fine Polish labels, artists, and orchestras who, even if they aren’t well-known or quite as polished as some of their colleagues, turn in performances as passionate and idiomatic as these. Blaszczyk’s pacing of all three pieces is ideal, and the Silesian Philharmonic, which has a particularly fine string section (most Polish orchestras do), sounds solid and comfortable in all departments, even in the most virtuosic passages. In the Partita, violinist Roman Lasocki plays with a warm tone and confident technique, but an excess of vibrato prevents him from coloring the music quite as much as he could. Still, I can’t imagine anyone coming away dissatisfied by this very well-engineered release. Strongly recommended! [2/25/2008]
