An homage to the venerable Russian cellist, conductor, and humanitarian
Mstislav Rostropovich could easily occupy several dozen CDs, countless DVDs, or a small library of books. His career was one of the most distinguished in the history of classical music, having premiered more than 150 new works for the cello -- more than any other cellist in the instrument's history. This album showcases six such works written for solo cello. They are performed by cellist
Steven Honigberg, a student of
Leonard Rose and a member of the
National Symphony Orchestra under
Rostropovich's baton for more tan 450 concerts.
Honigberg does extreme honor to his longtime mentor with these performances. Like
Rostropovich,
Honigberg's playing is exuberantly passionate, completely unabashed, and demonstrative of masterful technique not heard frequently since Slava. The album also includes the premiere recording of two etudes written by
Rostropovich himself, which show the high level of both technique and musicianship he must have demanded from his students. The CD concludes, appropriately, with Robert Starer's Song of Solitude, which was written for
Honigberg in 1995. After the passing of an individual like
Rostropovich, the solemnity and introspection of this work make a fitting conclusion to this homage.