Impatient bluster foils a once-forgotten phrase

BRONISLOW HUBERMAN

Brahms: Sonata for violin and piano in G major, Op. 78

J.S. Bach: Partita for solo violin in d minor, BWV 1004

Schubert: Fantasy in C major for piano and violin, D. 934

Sarasate: Romanza Andaluza, Op. 22, no.1 (Arbiter)

Bronislaw Huberman (1882-1947) is one of the many forgotten heroes of the music world. While his name is virtually unknown in this country, the orchestra he founded 50 years ago warrants universal praise. What is currently known as the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra is a product of this man's arduous mission to find a musical home for Jewish musicians who lost their positions as a result of
Nazi policies.

In addition to being a social and political activist, the Polish-born violinist was one of the most respected musicians of his generation. As one of the last adherents of a nineteenth-century style of violin playing, Huberman used wide vibratos, extensive sliding between notes, and exaggerated agogic accents. The printed page was never sacrosanct to Huberman, and his interpretations were recognized for their beauty of tone and individuality. These recently-released live recordings, made between 1936 to 1942, attest to those qualities.

Huberman had a special affinity for the music of Brahms; as a child, he performed for the composer and received a rare compliment from the master. Indeed, there are some wonderful moments in Huberman's slightly idiosyncratic reading of the G major violin sonata. One of these occurs in
the second movement, when the Adagio theme is
reintroduced in thirds and sixths. Huberman sensuously slides from chord to chord and
extracts a ravishing and
seductive tone from his
instrument.

Huberman spares no bluster in Bach's famous d-minor partita. However, his peculiar phrasing in the Allemande and jarring accents in the Corrente disrupt the flow of the work. In the famous Chac-onne, he draws a distinct growling sound from the violin, his hyper-romantic solo reminding one of an electric guitar. Although this energy is initially exhilarating, the frenetic romanticism seems forced and soon grows tiresome. Huberman's most balanced playing occurs in the Schubert C major Fantasy. He maintains control throughout the piece while judiciously adding individual touches only when necessary.

The work, however, has an equally important piano part, and Huberman's collaborator, Boris Rubakine, merely provides bland accompaniment. The pianist's shallow sound, limited color, and pedantic treatment of scales fail to match Huberman's superb playing. Ironically, Mr. Rubakine's shortcomings are most evident in the sections where there are no notes written. Schubert seems to indicate the need for his performers to "breathe" between certain sections. Yet the pianist destroys the beautiful moments of silence, the musical seams that hold the work together, by his impatience to begin the following sections.
The listener is awkwardly thrust into the next section of the piece, without having enough time to absorb the meaning of the preceding part.

Unfortunately, this disc does not present the finest recorded output of one of this century's most important musicians. Yet it should pique the interest of the listener interested in
historical performance and the body of work of a true crusader. These live recordings share many special
moments, ones which violinists today would never
dare present.

--Justin Urcis

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