Anne Gastinel, Claire Désert: Chopin

December 7, 2021, 9:00 am

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The latest album from frequent collaborators cellist Anne Gastinel and pianist Claire Désert offers a program of music by Frédéric Chopin. “When one thinks of Chopin,” says Désert, “one immediately thinks of his piano works, of the vocality and lyricism that permeate his style. And if there is one instrument that lends itself to that, it’s the cello.” Chopin’s Cello Sonata forms the cornerstone of the program. Also featured are two Nocturnes arranged by David Popper and Gregor Piatigorsky; the Grand Duo concertant, a work jointly composed by Chopin and his cellist friend Auguste Franchomme on themes from Meyerbeer’s opera Robert le diable; and an edition of Chopin’s Introduction and Polonaise brillante by Maurice Gendron which, says Gastinel, “invites the two instruments to share the same degree of virtuosity.”