I was hoping – that maybe – there would be new singles from Hilary Hahn and/or Camille Thomas today, being Friday, as they both have recently released singles. This morning’s releases did not disappoint!
Clearly Hilary Hahn has a new Eugène Ysaÿe album coming out soon. This is the second Eugène Ysaÿe single she has released. I am beyond excited. “Obsession” has long been one of my favorite Ysaÿe pieces and here Hilary performs it as though she is back in her stride, peaking her evergreen peak after the less than stellar most recent album, Eclipse. Both her recent singles are well worth buying ahead of the album.
Ysaÿe: 6 Sonatas for Violin Solo, Op. 27 / Sonata No. 2 in A Minor: I. Obsession. Prèlude (Single) [released May 26th] – can be found in HiRes FLAC here.
Camille Thomas (pronounced Camie Thoma) continues her Chopin releases. That now makes two Chopin records and two recent Chopin singles. I’m in love with her cello style and may or may not have acquired unreleased live recordings of her performances not on her albums. I may be her biggest fan in the U.S., though that is questionable as I am sure she has many obsessed fans. I do know she is just adored in France and other parts of Europe. Though she is most likely just competing with herself, or rather, living expressed emotions through the cello, she may not realize she is also competing to be the finest cellist in the recording world right now. In fact, I seriously doubt she realizes this.
Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 1 in E Minor, Op. 11: II. Larghetto (Arr. for Cello and Piano by J. Brocal and C. Thomas / Single) [released May 26th] – can be found in HiRes FLAC here.
Update: [6:58 am] Yes, I have been listening to Hilary Hahn play “Obsession” over and over again. And it is not just her playing. The quality of the recording is outstanding. Deutsche Grammophon only really gets that right about half the time.
Update 2: [10:16 pm] Hilary Hahn’s new album will be released on July 14th. More information here.
I saw a few places that the next album in Camille Thomas’s Chopin Project will be released on June 6th, and it is the third and final installment. However, I could not find clarification on that. Very frustrating. One would think that would be easy to find. So don’t hold me to that information. June 6th makes no sense as it is not a Friday, so who really knows what is going on. I imagine if the third album is the final installment there will be a follow up collection of all three albums, probably on SACD. As always I don’t recommend spending the money on SACDs. Not unless you really have the home audio set up that can make the best of CDs in general. And not too many people can afford that kind of set up (you know who you are. I see you. Blind rich folks). Instead, get the HiRes 24 bit digital albums. SACDs are not 24 bit. The HiRes digital album will sound better than the SACD every time. But, then again, I really can’t tell you what they will sound like if you do not have a HiRes music player. They can be expensive, but if you are out there listening to music for half the day every day, I think they are a worthwhile investment.