Robert Murray - Violin Rarities: Telemann: 12 Fantasias for Violin without Bass (2012)

Reviews Audio Magazine, "These [four Rubinstein] Sonatas are really lovely. . . How do we neglect such good things?! . . . The earlier sonatas here are heavily Mendelssohnian but of a later, more lush expression as of the 1860s. The late Sonata [No. 3, Op. 98] is far closer to Brahms, a more weighty and passionate style. . . . [the] artists do an excellent and serious interpretative job. Robert Murray's violin . . . [is] highly musical, and Daniel Graham's piano full of energy, reflecting Rubinstein's own masterful pianism."

"The two [Saint-Saëns] sonatas, for equal violin and piano, are witness to the real value of the composer . . . heavyweight music, so fashionable in the concert hall, is much less effective in the confines of the living room, where this graciously Romantic music easily comes into its own. I enjoyed it. [Murray and Jane Abbott-Kirk are] a good team, working extremely well together. The recording, particularly good of the piano, brings the two instruments into exactly the right balance for the music, listenable without a bit of sonic strain. These were composed in [1885 and 1896]; old Saint-Saëns kept right at it unitl his last year, 1921."

Reviews Fanfare, "Camille Saint-Saëns was surely one of the most gifted melodists of all time. I doubt that he ever wrote an ugly or unmusical sound . . . Both [sonatas] are lovely, facile pieces of music that provide an ideal opportunity for one to refresh one's soul . . . Both works are the result of the composer's maturity, dating from his 50th and 61st years. . . . to my surprise, Heifetz plays the music [on his recording of Sonata No. 1] with a bit more reserve and at slower tempos . . . Murray's . . . greater vigor help to offset the occasional sweetness that is inherent in Saint-Saëns . . ."

Reviews Chattanooga Times, ". . . where have these divine [Telemann] pieces, written in multiple movements like sonatas but considerably more free in form, been hiding? . . . these works are a sheer delight. Written in 1735, the way these works . . . combine Baroque counterpoint and galant melody, Italian forms and French ornamentation is indeed fascinating, and highly pleasing to the ear. Violinist Murray, once a member of the Nashville String Quartet, has a fluent grasp of technique and a muscular stroke, as well as a firm, secure tone. His performances are exhilarating . . ."