Claire Giardelli. Bach Cello Suites Ligia digital. CD Lidi 0105248-12. Digital download and streaming available.
Auditioned via Tidal streaming. HiRes Flac 24/96
Recording, April 2012 at eglise St-Didier D’Asfeld in the Ardenne region of France.
The artist plays cellos made by Pierre Jaquier. A Stradivarius copy for Suites 1-5 and a cello piccolo for Suite 6.
Introduction.
A viewer of this web site recommends this recording for which I am most grateful. I thought I might have captured most recordings of the complete Suites that have been made. Unfortunately, this one evaded my research! Indeed, it seems to be only available as CD in the French and Japanese markets. Otherwise it is available on most of the streaming services. The full version of the CD booklet can be found on Idagio streaming. The 29 pages include information about the artist, the recording venue, the cellos used and a brief history of 17th century music and dance! Full marks to the booklet compiler!
The Cellist.
Giardelli studied at the Conservatoire of Rouen, then at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris. She obtained First Prize for Cello in 1974 and another in 1975 for chamber music. She distinguishes herself for her mastery of Baroque cello. Giardelli was appointed Professor of Baroque Cello at the CNSM of Lyons in September 2001. Her recorded work does seem to be entirely of Baroque music, but she has played piano trios by Schubert and Beethoven using period instruments with her sisters.
The Recording.
To my ears, this is a top notch recording with the full sound of the Baroque cello displayed. There is no emphasis of the raspiness of gut strings or fingerboard tapping so often present in historically informed recordings. The acoustic is lively. By this, I mean the venue size is well captured without blurring and muddiness of the sound. Again, this can be a feature of Church based recordings. The lower register of the cello used for the first five Suites is lovely and sonorous. However, the cello piccolo in the sixth Suite lacks somewhat in comparison.
The Music.
This is an excellent recording with consistency of style and impeccable intonation. The phrasing focuses on short passages mainly, although there is good momentum and sense of travel. Great care is taken with the start and ending of phrases.
There is a romantic feel to the playing with lots of rubato and dynamics. Most importantly, the strongest impression I come away with is of a sense of tranquillity, peace and relaxation. Yes, the faster movements are played at good pace, and well-articulated, but the sound is never forced. Maybe the fourth Prelude is played with some emphasis on the first note of each bar but not enough to disturb the mood. The Gigues and Courantes move along deceptively briskly but the sense of skipping along never get dragged down by a need to impress or emphasise skill. I have a sense of a true interpreter of the music and not a performer keen to promote herself. I believe the secret lies in a very light right hand with the bow lifting out the sound as opposed to pressing it out. Consequently, the sound rises out of the cello effortlessly.
I suggest the Prelude to the fifth Suite is a good way to appraise the style of this recording. Often played with great bombast, here, Giardelli plays with subtlety and feeling and even fades away at the end!
My only criticism is that some of the cross-string passages such as in the third Prelude are not as crisp as I would like and as a result, some of the implied polyphony of Bach’s music is not so obvious to hear.
If you are looking for an exhilarating powerful and hugely dynamic performance look elsewhere, but in doing so you will miss something special!
Conclusion.
Yet again, we have a recording by a cellist who I would suggest is very under recognised in the wider music community. This may well be personal choice or a feature of the heavily competitive nature of the professional solo instrumentalist’s career. Either way streaming is a great way of accessing this very impressive version of the Suites. I recommend you do so without delay!
Charles.