Date: 29/07/2010
Alina Ibragimova
The violinist on her new live disc of Beethoven sonatas
How did you come to record Beethoven’s violin sonatas?
In Ocroher 2009 Cédric Tiberghien and I decided to do a residency at Aldeburgh. Although we had already played several Beethoven sonatas together, this was a chance to tackle the entire cycle, rehearsing intensively for a whole week and then playing them over the course of a weekend. So when we came to perform the cycle at Wigmore Hall we knew them very well. The four sonatas on this disc represent the journey from a young Beethoven to a more mature composer. In many ways the music speaks for itself - as long as you convey each sonata's musical language directly and find the right balance between violin and piano the music works on its own terms. We have now recorded all of the sonatas and will release two more discs after this one.
This is an album for Wigmore Hall Live. Do you prefer recording live to being in a studio?
The two are completely different. Of course live recording has a very special energy to it but in a studio you tend to experiment more, so they are very separate but valid processes. Wigmore Hall is one of my favourite places
to give concerts because the atmosphere is always great, the acoustics are incredible and the piano is excellent. It is just the perfect performance space for me.
You have collaborated with Cédric Tiberghien for a number of years. How has your partnership developed with time?
We met on the BBC New Generation Artists scheme and performed for the first time together in Ravel’s Piano Trio at the City of London Festival. The more we work together, the more we feel we can completely trust each other. It's very special to be able trust someone so much that you can do whatever you like in the music and you know that they will do whatever they like and that it will all come together.
Gramophone – August 2010
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