MICHAEL HERSCH : SONATAS NO. 1 & 2 FOR UNACCOMPANIED CELLO

Daniel Gaisford Cello

Michael Hersch's Sonata No. 1 for unaccompanied cello is one of his earliest published works, written when he was 23, in 1994. The riveting piece, given a gripping performance by Daniel Gaisford, is included on the first of three discs featuring Mr. Hersch’s solo and chamber music for string instruments, being released by Vanguard Classics. The

Michael Hersch's Sonata No. 1 for unaccompanied cello is one of his earliest published works, written when he was 23, in 1994. The riveting piece, given a gripping performance by Daniel Gaisford, is included on the first of three discs featuring Mr. Hersch’s solo and chamber music for string instruments, being released by Vanguard Classics. The intensity and communicative power of this sonata, at times an anguished lament, is typical of much of Mr. Hersch’s work, which also includes symphonies, a piano concerto and “The Vanishing Pavilions,” a 2006 work for solo piano lasting more than two hours. The sonata’s profoundly solitary, rhapsodic first movement veers between yearning lyricism and agitated outbursts. The reflective second movement, a showcase for Mr. Gaisford’s rich, penetrating tone and searing musicality, ebbs and flows into the harmonically rich final movement, with its virtuoso challenges and almost brutal intensity. Mr. Gaisford, who, to judge from this recording, deserves greater recognition, also offers a mesmerizing performance of Mr. Hersch’s seven-movement Sonata No. 2, composed in 2000. A similarly dark mood pervades the first movement, which sounds as if several cellos were playing a mournful chorale. Arpeggiated 16th notes in the second movement create multilayered waves of sound, in contrast to the spare, brief third movement, with its urgent six-note motif. The bitter chorale of the opening resurfaces in the terse fourth movement. Mr. Gaisford plays with probing commitment in the passionate fifth movement, a whirlwind of octave leaps and rapidly ascending figurations. The stark staccato motif of the third movement is reprised in the sixth. A poignant chorale pierces the arching finale, which fades to a whisper on a low G. — The New York Times

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Capriccio

Daniel Gaisford

New release of the Capriccio for cello and piano by Lukas Foss. Performed in New York City. Sean Botkin, piano

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THE UNACCOMPANIED CELLO : Solo Works for Cello Volume I

Daniel Gaisford

Unaccompanied Cello Works Bach Suite No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007 - (Bach's Prelude in G): David Popper: Etude No. 28: Alfredo Piatti: Caprice No. 8: Michael Hersch: Sonata No.1 for Unaccompanied cello: John Crouch: Her light, Extinguished: Lonnie Hevia: Nefarious

Unaccompanied Cello Works Bach Suite No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007 - (Bach's Prelude in G): David Popper: Etude No. 28: Alfredo Piatti: Caprice No. 8: Michael Hersch: Sonata No.1 for Unaccompanied cello: John Crouch: Her light, Extinguished: Lonnie Hevia: Nefarious

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Passacaglia

Daniel Gaisford / Kurt Nikkanen

The release of the much anticipated recording of the Passacaglia for violin and cello by Handel-Halvorsen. Kurt Nikkanen and Daniel Gaisford bring this highly acclaimed performance to digital platforms for all to enjoy!

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