Siegfried Palm, Violoncello (side A)

This album collects five pieces, written between 1914 and 1966, which all prominently feature the cello — Siegfried Palm performs the lead role on all five pieces.  Side A collects two longer pieces where the cello is accompanied by an orchestra.  György Ligeti's "Concerto for violoncello and Orchestra" feels typical of Ligeti's work — the cello weaves beautifully among fields of sound created by the orchestra.  Krzysztof' Penderecki's "Sonata for Violincello and Orchestra" evolves impressively from a relatively conventional feel with slow tonal evolution, into a chaotic and jarring field of percussive movement.  Side B contains three shorter and sparser pieces.  Anton Webern's "Three small pieces for Violoncello and Piano, Op. 11" quickly moves through three jarring pieces that emphasizes his rigorous technical approach.  Paul Hindemith's "Sonata for Violoncello, Op. 25, No. 3" is the least inventive piece on the album, with an emphasis on classic tonality and linearity — certain points do draw attention to the physicality of the cello.  Bernd Alois Zimmermann may be the least well-known composer here, but his "Sonata for Cello solo" impressively explores the sonorities of the cello within a lyrical piece — it reminds me of Varèse's "Density 21.5", which it impressively predates by six years.  The body of the cello resonates clearly on the solo pieces, and it sits perfectly in front of a more spacious orchestra sound on side A.  My reissue copy blends into a series design tastefully, but it seems odd to me that it emphasizes such a blurry, poor-quality photograph of Palm.