labels, in 1968. Suk has been recording in the interim, choice. Not surprisingly, the close relationship and not only in his homeland. In 1971, EMI issueda among the soloists produces a degree of teamwork recording of the Beethoven violin concerto withan unmatched on any other recording. The seemingly unexpected but highly congenial collaborator, Sir spontaneous shaping of the violin part carries over Adrian Boult, conducting the New Philharmonia. into those frequent passages that pair the violin and Then came an EMI set of the Bach unaccompanied cello-Suk and Chuchro phrase with breathtaking sonatas and partitas (issued in England as SLS 818). unanimity. In 1972, Suk played and conducted the Mozartcon- I wish that Chuchro were more assertive in his certos with the Prague Chamber Orchestra, a Su- first -movement solos, but in the later movements he praphon/Eurodisc coproduction that has turnedup takes his rightful place. Panenka keeps a tight reinon via Eurodisc and British RCA. He later recorded the the range of his tonal and dynamic resources; he Beethoven triple concerto with Chuchro, Panenka, plainly doesn't want to imbalance the proceedings and the Czech Philharmonic under Kurt Masur. with the power and tonal juice of which the modern Supraphon now promises the Brahms concerto with piano is capable. Within those limits, his playing is the Czech Philharmonic under Vaclay Neumann. spectacularly sensitive: pearly runs, an effortless le- The Supraphon recordings have official, if sadly gato that doesn't depend on pedal, and soft playing limited, domestic distribution through U.S. Qualiton of melting warmth. He is not afraid to assume full Records, though collectors have no reliable way of partnership with his colleagues, but he resolutely re- knowing what's available. The EMI recordings, how- fuses to swamp them. If the soloists incline to inti- ever, having been passed up by Angel, have reached mate projection, power is supplied by conductor Ma- us only on a sporadic import basis-at least until sur's orchestral backdrop, which is large -scaled and Vanguard licensed the Beethoven concerto with rock -solid. The impression of breadth is clearly a Boult for release on the budget -priced Everyman matter of rhythmic projection rather than tempo, for label. the movement timings are not slow. It's a beautiful performance. Though the New Phil- The description of Panenka's contribution to the harmonia sounds somewhat thick -toned in loud tut- triple concerto applies too to his collaboration with tis, Sir Adrian's realization of the orchestral part is Suk alone in the violin sonatas. It is a true collabora- lovingly shaped and well-nigh ideally balanced and tion, with both instruments given fair measure in the recorded. close, rather dry recording-an analytical ambience The tempo of the first movement is very close to that would crucify many instrumentalists butsuc- the exceptionally broad pace Colin Davis attempted ceeds well with these gifted colorists. with Arthur Grumiaux (Philips 6500 775, June 1975), All ten sonata performances are fully competitive but Boult brings it off. Where Davis' gait tends to with any on record, and perhaps more important all break down into bars, set off by plodding downbeats, ten obviously grow out of years of joint scrutiny. Boult's flows easily. The slow movement is dazzling: There is not a single ill-considered movement, and The singing quality of Suk's musical personalityex- scarcely a phrase without some treasurable insight. pands to the fullest in such music (as did Kreisler's), If Suk's genius for simplicity suits the smaller -scaled and Boult balances his players-including the early works ideally, he and Panenka also project bet- soloist-masterfully. The reading as a whole again ter than I have ever heard the distinctly eerie, off -kil- recalls Kreisler; specifically, the earlier (1926) of his ter fantasy flavor of the first movement of Op. 96. The two recordings, with Leo Blech, one of the supreme variation movements are simply transcendent; listen accounts on disc, recently accorded an astonishingly to what Suk does with the simple repeated -note des- good LP transfer by EMI in England (HLM 7062). cant of the Kreutzer's first variation. If you want to As an added point of interest, Suk has turned up a hear unanimity of phrasing, listen to Panenka's trills pair of cadenzas by one Vega Pfihoda, and they are, in the second theme of Op. 30, No. l's first movement, in their nonexhibitionistic way, sensational: pat- followed by Suk's in the violin statement. terned after the structure of the respective move- Turning from these fully conceived, movingly exe- ments, with much fascinatingly intricate, impec- cuted renditions to Angel's set of the Beethoven cello cably tasteful figuration. sonatas by Jacqueline du Pre and Daniel Barenboim All in all, the Suk/Boult Beethoven concerto seems is a depressing experience. In view of the tragic cur- to me the equal of any in the current domestic cata- tailment of Du Pre's career, I can understand the im- logue, and it is a more personal performance thanmy pulse to release these performances ("by arrange- other favorites, the Heifetz/Munch (RCA LSC 1992 et ment with BBC Records"), recorded live at the 1970 al.) and Szeryng/Haitink (Philips 6500 531, February Edinburgh Festival, and as a matter of principle I am 1975). There ought to be a Grumiaux version in that all in favor of issuing memorable live performances. group, but the Grumiaux/Davis-with that But these aren't memorable performances; they earthbound, timpani -mad first movement-doesn't sound more like the product of a student recital. quite belong in such company; try instead to find the Barenboim's pianism is thoroughly professional: deleted Grumiaux/Galliera (Philips 802 719, August solid in rhythm, positive in touch (the sound, by the 1969). The English issue of the Suk/Boult included way, is splendid for the source), coherent in struc- Coriolan as a filler-a fine performance, but hardly ture. It is also pretty uninteresting, and his inability relevant to the concerto and, especially at the Every- to execute rapid passagework cleanly, let alone pur- man price, a minimal loss. posefully, would be obtrusive if the performances The new Supraphon recording of the triplecon- could be taken seriously. certo is also impressive, though perhaps not a first But what are they doing on records? Du Pre's tone

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