Richard Locker, Martha Locker - Jewish Cello Masterpieces Volume II flac album

...this is a genuinely lovely disc...lovingly played and well recorded...Richard Locker plays with a real feeling for the kind of inflection that this music requires, and his tightly focused (but never dry) sound keeps the music from getting maudlin. Critics like to speak about music or music-making that has genuine sentiment without becoming sentimental, and I think this disc walks that line perfectly...Well balanced sound, neither too close nor too distant, rounds out the production of a very pleasurable CD. Henry Fogel...the Locker's reading of the variations is an absolute delight. Tempos and rhythms are played with an elastic, dance-like spring, and Richard s full-throated cello tone projects Beethoven s melodic lines in perfect silhouette against the engaging keyboard part, so deftly choreographed by Martha. You may have heard many performances of this piece, but you will hear none better than this one by Richard and Martha Locker. Locker's solo cello transcriptions of the cantorial cantillations are exquisitely played and truly moving. Jerry DubinsLocker s eloquence, depth of feeling and richness of tone are matched in those pieces that call for accompanist by his niece Martha on piano, but never to more amazing effect as in Ravel s Two Hebrew Melodies and Zeitlin s Eli Zion. Locker also makes the Five Cantorial Solos of Solomon Rozumni deeply felt soliloquies...This is an excellent, well-played disc, recommended to fanciers of the cello as well as those who most appreciate this kind of music. Lynn René BayleyRichard and Martha Locker, who play cello and piano, have given us another delightful recording of Jewish music to enjoy on festive days. Their first Jewish Cello Masterpieces was on the Top Ten List at New York s Jewish Week when it came out in 2003, and I am sure that the second volume will be equally well received....Although we cannot be sure that the great cantor Solomon Rozumni composed all his solos, he most certainly sang them many times. Played on the cello, they add unusual musical colors to this fine recording. Pianist Martha Locker, who has merely accompanied the Achron, Ravel, and Zeitlin works, really comes into her own territory with the Beethoven Variations on a Theme from Handel s Judas Maccabeus. Here, her virtuosity is let loose in all its pianistic glory. Her fingers flow over the keys with myriad gradations of tone while the cello responds with equal virtuosity. These musicians seem to think as one and they play with a single mind...Both cellist and pianist are first-rate virtuosos and their performances on this disc are exquisite. The sound is pristine and the ambience gives the listener the feeling of being in an intimate concert hall with good acoustics. No one who is interested in Jewish music should miss out on this beautiful recording. Maria Nockin--Fanfare Magazine September/October 2014