Eugene Ysaye - Neiges d'Antan (2016)

Over time, the memory of Eugène Ysaÿe (Liège, 1858 - Brussels, 1931) the brilliant virtuoso gradually supplanted that of Ysaÿe the composer in the public consciousness. It should be reminded that Eugène Ysaÿe created in his poems for string instruments a totally new and original genre, distinguishing himself by a competence in writing and a harmonic richness that were far removed from the purely virtuosic merits of his early compositions. These poems are therefore thoroughly deserving of rediscovery. In a way, these form a sort of link between the Germanic and French aesthetic traditions, a reconciliation between German romanticism and French impressionism. For the 2nd time (after MEW1472), the French conductor Jean-Jacques Kantorow, Ysaÿe's great specialist, leads the Liège Royal Philharmonic and soloists Svetlin Roussev and Amaury Coeytaux through poems for violin and orchestra.