These soulful Spanish and Argentinean songs arranged by violist
Kim Kashkashian and pianist
Robert Levin are well suited to their expressive and expansive playing. Most of the songs, ranging from works by
Granados, de Falla, and
Montsalvatge to early
Ginastera, are written in a late romantic to early modern idiom, and many incorporate a strong folk element. The selections include rowdy, rhythmically charged dance-like songs, tender lullabies, and many flavors of love songs, from the exultant to the despairing. In addition to the better-known composers, Argentineans Carlos Guastavino and Carlos López-Buchardo make extraordinarily fine contributions. The choices of repertoire are excellent; each one of these songs is a jewel, and the ordering of the selections artful, including the surprisingly effective repetition of two songs at different points in the program. The transcriptions are inventive and imaginative, with the vocal lines idiomatically adapted for the viola's expressive capabilities.
Kashkashian is a remarkable violist who brings vibrancy to everything she plays, and these relatively straightforward songs are no exception. Her warm, throaty tone and the nuanced, colorful inflections of her playing accentuate the vocal origins of the pieces. With his springy and languid rhythmic energy,
Robert Levin is an equal partner in making the performances sparkle with passion. ECM's well-balanced sound has a little ambient noise, which is unusual for the label's scrupulous engineers, but it's not enough to be bothersome.