Brilliant
Fauré: Chamber Music (Box Set)
About This Album
Whether early or late, Gabriel Fauré's chamber works are fairly consistent in technique, expression, and originality, and their high quality places them among the finest sonatas, quartets, and quintets of late Romanticism. Yet one should not expect consistency in this five-disc compilation from Brilliant Classics, for the renditions and recordings vary considerably in interpretation and reproduction, and the set's unevenness weighs against its advantages of convenience and price. There are great differences between the saccharine, effusive performances of the Quintetto Fauré di Roma and the restrained, subtle readings of the Ames Piano Quartet, who adequately convey Fauré's sweetness and passion without the former ensemble's excessive vibrato or gushing crescendi. Soprano Sarah Walker and the Nash Ensemble are quite enjoyable in La Bonne Chanson, though they seem diminished somewhat in the ADD mix and lack presence. There are some high points in the Amati Quartet's rich performance of the String Quartet in E minor, but the thin-toned, analog recordings of the Cello Sonatas are disappointing. The Violin Sonatas are DDD, but unfortunately they are overly resonant and out of balance, and the piano overwhelms the violin in almost every fortissimo passage. So consider this set a mixed bag and seek out other recordings instead. ~ Blair Sanderson, All Music Guide
Track List

Disc 1

Piano Quintet No. 1 In D Minor, Op. 89
1.
2.
3.
Piano Quintet No. 2 In C Minor, Op. 115
4.
5.
6.
7.

Disc 2

Piano Quartet No. 1 In C Minor, Op. 15
1.
2.
3.
4.
Piano Quartet No. 2 In G Minor, Op. 45
5.
6.
7.
8.

Disc 3

La Bonne Chanson, Song Cycle (9) For Voice & Piano (or String Quintet & Piano), Op. 61
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Piano Trio In D Minor, Op. 120
10.
11.
12.

Disc 4

Sonata For Cello & Piano No. 1 In D Minor, Op. 109
1.
2.
3.
Sonata For Cello & Piano No. 2 In G Minor, Op. 117
4.
5.
6.
String Quartet In E Minor, Op. 121
7.
8.
9.
Élégie For Cello & Piano Or Orchestra In C Minor, Op. 24
10.

Disc 5

Sonata for Solo String & piano No. 1 in A major, Op. 13
1.
2.
3.
4.
Sonata For Violin & Piano No. 2 In E Minor, Op. 108
5.
6.
7.

 
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