Press
The One-armed of the World War
"A concert in the International Theater in Frankfurt offered the opportunity to become acquainted with Schulhoff's very ambitious and demanding Piano Suite for the left hand. We owe this to pianist Vladimir Stoupel, who played the five movements with subtle stylistic differentiation: from the beginning with the impressionistic timbres up to the percussive, toccata-like, and dissonant movements in bright expressionistic colors. In Sonata No. 2 in A Minor from Eugène Ysaÿe's op. 27, violinist Judith Ingolfsson precisely worked out the very different characteristics. And with Shostakovich's Sonata for violin and piano, op. 134, Stoupel and Ingolfsson showed themselves to be an excellently attuned duo. They sharpened the contrasts of this late work, whose radical nature and modernity were shown to best advantage."
~ Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
"Violinist Judith Ingolfsson and pianist Vladimir Stoupel brought power and purpose to a varied duo program at the National Gallery on Sunday. When they played together, the sum of these two fine artists produced moments of great imagination."
~ The Washington Post
“At the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival the duo displayed wonderful unity and played fabulously.”
~ Hamburger Abendblatt (Germany)
"The violinist Judith Ingolfsson performed in Frankfurt/Main at the highest level with her duo partner, pianist Vladimir Stoupel. As a duo, they showed themselves to be most advantageously attuned to each other. Their sensitive communication made an impeccably refined impression."
~ Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (Germany)
CD REVIEWS:
GRAMOPHONE
“Though the booklet-note writer declares that between Stravinsky and Shostakovich there is a “disparity in the conception of musical art which could not be greater”, they actually share qualities that make this a fascinating record. One is the love of dance rhythms. It is obvious in the use of some of Tchaikovsky's songs and piano pieces for Stravinsky's Divertimento based on his ballet The Fairy's Kiss, and it is again strongly present in the klezmerlike Allegretto of Shostakovich's powerful Sonata; all seized upon with great brio here, as they need to be. There is also the invocation of earlier composers, with Stravinsky's exuberant Tchaikovsky transformations and with Shostakovich's profound homages to Bach. Ingolfsson and Stoupel draw the Bach inspiration out in the deceptively straightforward opening Andante and in the long Largo finale to Shostakovich's Sonata, a marvelous, haunting piece of extended musical thought which is handled with superb control. There is also a less readily identifiable but very Russian sense of energy in the more vigorous dance music, which can seem to be on the verge of breaking out of control, especially in the Shostakovich's central movement. Both composers also respond to the inspiration of bell sounds, something again very Russian and vividly invoked here. These are both strong, perceptive performances, recorded closely and lucidly, in which the complicated ambiguities in the music of both composers take hold powerfully below the sometimes jaunty surface.”
KLASSIK.COM
Sovereign and self-confident
“That’s what winners look like. The poses assumed by Judith Ingolfsson and Vladimir Stoupel in the cover photo of their first duo CD declare the musicians’ self-confidence – and after one has heard the recording, one can say: justifiably so. With Igor Stravinsky’s Divertimento and Dmitri Shostakovich’s Violin Sonata op. 143, the duo does not tackle pieces in which the technical-virtuoso mastery of the instrument is foremost. But all the more they demand skill in dealing with the literature of the twentieth century, which again proves to be enormously different in the two Russian composers. The duo’s playing comes from within; it comes across as natural and, consequently, convincing. The fact that this attitude can be recognized in all facets of the works contributes to the impact of the disc, which was released by Audite in collaboration with Deutschlandradio Kultur. Beyond the brilliant performance, the listening pleasure is intensified by the crystal clear quality of the recording. After a fairytale-like introduction, the lively rhythm bubbles up in the first movement of Stravinsky’s Divertimento, the “Sinfonia” – a first dramatic effect that the duo reveals in sparkling, always ballast-free interplay. The consistent lightness of the timbre, particularly that of the violin, which is also maintained in the lyrical-contemplative passages, has the effect of a magic potion in all the pieces: never intrusive, always flowing, and yet not pale. Also realized in this manner is the refined stylistic mixture of the second movement, the “Danse suisse” (Swiss Dance), which requires alternation between folkloristic and cantabile gestures. A homophonic movement, which has the apparent effect of blending the solo voices into a single chordal instrument, muscles its way in between. In the last movement, too, a “Pas de deux” with variations on an Adagio theme, the composer’s subtle humor is rendered in a very natural manner, for example, when gentle staccato notes in the accompaniment join a chanson-like melody with which Ingolfsson can finally display the brilliance of her sound in the high range, or, as in the last variation, when the music is reminiscent of the fundament of a pantomime act at the circus. On the other hand, the associations evoked by Shostakovich’s Violin Sonata, op. 134, are anything but cheerful. Even if not actually gloomy, the work at least has a consuming tension. The first movement of the unconventional sequence is an Andante: a tapping pulse that traverses the movement throughout the slow tempo, reduced dynamics, and incursions of noise music. In another mood, one could speak of a grandiose scene that Ingolfsson and Stouple offer here. The following Allegretto has a lighter feeling; paradoxically, as it is actually a turbulent movement: Scratching tones are sustained against supple scales with a continuous up and down within the tonal space. In the third movement, Largo, the work comes full circle: after the climax of short solo passages in the piano and violin, they shape a shimmering fade out with reference to the sound of the first movement. The tension, however, is sustained beyond the end of the piece. It will be of great interest to see whether Judith Ingolfsson and Vladimir Stoupel decide to make further recordings. With the works by Stravinsky and Shostakovich, the duo has proven that it feels comfortable particularly in the area of the classic modern style. And especially here, courage and self-assurance are necessary. The musicians obviously have both.”
HESSISCHER RUNDFUNK 2 - KULTUR
"The two musicians present expressive, almost tender Stravinsky, far removed from the neoclassical motoric style that this composer so readily cultivated during the 1920s. It is an imaginary dialogue between Stravinsky and his great model Tchaikovsky. The duo presents the Divertimento dreamy and playful, with delicacy and suppleness."
RBB KULTURRADIO ★★★★★
Virtuoso and resolute
"Violinist Judith Ingolfsson and pianist Vladimir Stoupel have made a new recording of two major chamber music works of Russian modernism: the Divertimento by Igor Stravinsky and the Violin Sonata by Dmitri Shostakovich. Judith Ingolfsson and Vladimir Stoupel present the two works scrupulously and yet with great lightness. Their Stravinsky is convincing above all as a result of the virtuoso rendition of the lyrical melodies. They play the Shostakovich Sonata a bit slower than usual, which is however quite beneficial for the piece. Judith Ingolfsson really puts her all into the sustained tones, producing in a warm, resolute, and sometimes also aggressive sound. At the same time, she can scale back wonderfully to a gentle, sensitive pianissimo in the soft passages. Vladimir Stoupel also proves himself to be an expert in the music of his two compatriots, solidly providing a foundation for the violin's excursions: crystal-clear ensemble playing with a sure feel for the subtle complexities and large contrasts."
PIZZICATO LUXEMBURG ★★★★★
Bursting with Excitement
"With his Divertimento, Igor Stravinsky took up the classical tradition of Haydn and Mozart. He did this with his own characteristic, strongly rhythmized musical language, which is the first thing that strikes us about this recording. The duo Ingolfsson-Stoupel plays very communicatively, taking the listeners along on an exciting musical journey. Judith Ingolfsson elicits a nearly infinite palette of timbres from her violin – here and there filigree and gentle, then powerful, bursting with energy. At the same time, the duo never neglects the enigmatic, humorous character of the genre. Dmitri Shostakovich composed the Violin Sonata op. 134 during the final years of his life, years that were marked by the composer’s physical decline. Even though one should guard against interpreting the work from a biographical point of view, there is no mistaking the farewell to life. With impressive rhetorical skill, Judith Ingolfsson and Vladimir Stoupel emphasize the work’s rather morbid mood. They fashion the Sonata keenly and pointedly in the Allegretto, and with fateful vehemence and a real storm of emotions in the concluding Largo."
RESMUSICA (CD of the Month)
A Lesson on Russian Music with Judith Ingolfsson and Vladimir Stoupel
"Judith Ingolfsson offers us an admirable and powerful version of the famous Divertimento for violin and piano by Igor Stravinsky. One can virtually hear the Franco-Belgian violin school in her bowing. Apart from her truly breathtaking virtuosity, Ingolfsson explores Stravinsky's world of expression wi impressive intelligence, making the transition from sardonic-humorous to profoundly emphatic, lyrical playing in the blink of an eye. An extraordinary performance, not least due to the perfect accord and balance with the playing of pianist Vladimir Stoupel, who contributed his part to this absolutely successful recording. Following Stravinsky's Divertimento, the duo carries us off to a completely different world with the Sonata op. 134 by Shostakovich. The present interpretation of the Sonata, which was first performed by David Oistrach and the composer himself, is likewise in a league of its own. With extremely intensive drama (that takes us to icy heights), the duo succeeds with its proven virtuosity (the central Allegretto) in conveying the dramatic and tragic character of the piece in an ideal manner. To be sure, this recital sends the listener away musically "overwhelmed." But it is for a good cause!"
DAS ORCHESTER
"Two major Russian composers of the “classical modern” are united here on a CD with two contrasting chamber music works: the fleet-footed Divertimento by Igor Stravinsky and the brittle sounding Violin Sonata by Dmitri Shostakovich from the last phase of his life. As if the work was written especially for them, the renowned artists Judith Ingolfsson and Vladimir Stoupel offer a supple and effortless performance of the Stravinsky. They pay great attention to the lyrical and melodic passages, illuminate the specific Stravinskyian coloring, and bring out his subtle rhythms, which they, on the one hand, render optimally with precise attacks, and clean and warm bow strokes, and, on the other, congenially fathom this music and perform it with excellent ensemble playing: Stravinsky in magicaldreamlike garb. These are attributes that also clearly come to light in the second piece. The three-movement work by Shostakovich is anything but dreamy, but typical for the resigned and haggard composer. The unbridled anger, which cuts to the quick, is immediately perceptible. This was to be heard already in the 1969 interpretation by Oistrach and Richter that was long considered the epitome. But this interpretation, too, gets under your skin, inasmuch as Ingolfsson and Stoupel play the movements equally as intensive and fraught with tension, yet somewhat slower, very sensitively savoring the seemingly impotent emotions, almost to the breaking point. Thus, in spite of the roiling anger, many things appear more conciliatory and fragile in retrospect: meanwhile with a subtle idea of forgiveness."
FANFARE
“Violinist Judith Ingolffson finds great warmth in the lower registers of her 1750 Lorenzo Guadagnini violin for the Sinfonia of Igor Stravinsky’s Divertimento, but she also delivers its jagged rhythmic passages with cocky incisiveness—a brashness that strops a comparably sharp edge on her reading of the second movement (“Danses suisses”). The third provides her, as well as her sympathetic collaborator, pianist Vladimir Stoupel, with an opportunity to blend lyricism with slashing figuration, a challenge they meet with a combination of wit and verve. The last movement displays the unalloyed silver of her instrument’s upper registers—as well of course, as the purity of her tone production—in its cantabile sections. The contrast of an almost metallic brightness with shadows, and shadowy dimness streaked only occasionally by light, that the two works offer, of course, allows Ingolfsson to draw upon the correspondingly contrasting sides of her musical personality, her tone production, and the capabilities of her instrument; all three respond to the challenges of Dmitri Shostakovich’s late work. It seems to be a tough sell; even dedicatee David Oistrakh, who recorded the sonata with Sviatoslav Richter, and who set a very high standard, hardly popularized the piece. Ingolffson and Stoupel play with reserved puckishness in the first movement, and they hack and slash their way aggressively through the second movement’s thickets of irony. Ingolffson sounds particularly commanding as she dispatches the movement’s difficulties, and the engineers have captured the dynamic range of the instruments in the most tumultuous sections. By contrast, they set the pizzicato statement of the final movement’s passacaglia theme and the first variations in a very subdued light, which remains through the movement. Ingolfsson stands in relation to Oistrakh, she demonstrates probing insight into the sonata—as she does into Stravinsky’s pastiche, and her pairing of them deserves a strong recommendation.”
NEUE ZÜRCHER ZEITUNG
“Chamber music for violin and piano occupies a different status in the respective oeuvres of Igor Stravinsky and Dmitri Shostakovich. While Stravinsky’s duos are predominantly arrangements of orchestral works, Shostakovich’s Sonata op. 134 is his only work for this formation and represents a weighty composition from the composer’s late phase. Violinist Judith Ingolfsson and pianist Vladimir Stoupel’s idea of coupling Stravinsky’s Divertimento of 1932 and Shostakovich’s Sonata from 1968 on one recording offers the opportunity to explore the differences between the two works. The Divertimento, which is based on the ballet The Fairy’s Kiss, makes use of a number of Tchaikovsky’s salon songs and piano pieces. It is lovely how Ingolfsson and Stoupel bring out Stravinsky’s approaches and alienations. In the introductory Sinfonia, both romantic melodiousness and mechanistic motion can be heard. Throughout all four movements, the performers allow the dance-like character of this ballet arrangement to shine out. Shostakovich’s three-movement Sonata proves to be much less accessible. The duo in no way spares the listener, leading him through the unwieldy rhythmic and melodic structure and emphasizing the Sonata’s non-sensual character at every opportunity. Splendidly presented is the final movement, a fifteen-minutelong Largo in the form of a passacaglia that contains the whole Shostakovich in a nutshell.”
AUDIOPHILE AUDITION ★★★★★
Two wildly divergent faces of Russian composition
"...Stravinsky's fairytale ballet Le Baiser de la Fee is certainly one of the most tuneful scores Stravinsky ever penned, and even today maintains a wide popularity.... This ballet received no less than four reworking's, entirely within the work ethic of the composer, who would make as many versions as needed to supply the needs of any ensemble or performers who wished to have performing scores for their own purposes. On this recording we have the first such arrangement, suggested to the composer by violinist Samuel Dushkin. It works well, and remains a popular adaptation. Stoupel and Ingolfsson play it with a lot of rhythmic flexibility and enjoyment. The Shostakovich is an entirely different emotional experience, one of the most harrowing sonatas in the literature, and light years divorced from the insouciance of the Stravinsky.... Stoupel and Ingolfsson again take no precautions with this work, understanding it primarily as a nihilistic meditation on ultimate death, but playing it with a prophylactic reasoning that still maintains focus on the piece as pure music devoid of too many extra-musical associations. It works—they are able to refocus our attention on the notes themselves and present an accessible and cogent argument. The recording is first-rate with the surround sound floating the two artists nicely all around. Short timing, but excellent concept and performances."
THE STRAD
Powerful recordings of two highly different Russian violin works
"Stravinsky's Divertimento is an arrangement of the music from his ballet The Fairy's Kiss, a homage to Tchaikovsky. Judith Ingolfsson and Vladimir Stoupel work hard to bring out the subtleties in the music, ensuring that this never feels like an accompaniment to a spectacle that's eluding us. Icelandic violinist Ingolfsson, a professor at the Stuttgart Hochschule, has a gorgeously rich and incisive tone, and her colourful shadings of Stravinsky's elegant and magical themes have a feather-light touch. She is given impeccable support by Stoupel, who achieves a delicious transparency of texture. Recorded sound is bright and clean, with a nice bloom on the violin. Darker thoughts shadow Shostakovich's Sonata, yet here the players dare to rein in the expressive intensity, allowing it to creep in gently – the effect is as if one can hear Shostakovich refracted through the delicacy of the Stravinsky. It serves to increase the sense of bleakness and melancholy, from the slow build of the opening Andante through to the driving, dancing second-movement Allegretto. The passacaglia variations of the final, circling Largo, where the undertone of Bach's fugues seems ever present, are a well of tragic intensity – a gripping ending to a powerful and haunting reading."
PLATTE 11
"The Divertimento by Igor Stravinsky and the Violin Sonata by Dmitri Shostakovich – a more contradistinctive program for violin and piano can hardly be put together, even though both composers were naturally of Russian birth, and inasmuch as there is common ground in terms of content. In 1932 Stravinsky, a citizen of the world residing in Paris, arranged an orchestral suite based on the ballet Le baiser de la fée that arguably contains more Tchaikovsky than Stravinsky. It would be possible to imagine a shrewd interpretation in which, conversely, more Stravinsky than Tchaikovsky is to be heard – played cleverly and sharp-edged. However, Judith Ingolfsson and Vladimir Stoupel dispense with such “alienation effects.” They unabashedly make the most of romantic cantilenas and inspire with perfectly attuned duo artistry. It is clearly obvious that the two have performed together often and already for a long time. Then a stark transition to the Sonata for Violin and Piano in G Major, op. 134. It was a present from Dmitri Shostakovich to David Oistrach for his sixtieth birthday. Judith Ingolfsson and Vladimir Stoupel display enormous versatility in mastering this transition. Whereas the Divertimento sounded surprisingly urbane and close to drawing-room music, they play the Shostakovich Sonata rather “more extreme” than David Oistrach and Sviatoslav Richter, the performers of the premiere, who were possibly more restrained not only for musical reasons, but also due to political considerations. Incidentally, with this benchmark in the background, one can only marvel at the technical and musical competence of Judith Ingolfsson and Vladimir Stoupel."