Henri Vieuxtemps, the greatest violinist active in the mid-nineteenth century, composed two cello concertos, the fruits of his close ties with the celebrated Servais family. Adrien-François Servais and his youngest son Joseph were virtuosos admired the world over. Their interpretative art is found intact in these two concertos, in which Vieuxtemps, a composer trained in Vienna by the redoubtable Sechter, has put the best of himself. For this dazzling bouquet of instrumental bel canto, full of panache, grandeur and nostalgia, Marie Hallynck has gathered the tradition at its source, presenting the world premiere recording of the original version played by Servais. Her performance of these two bravura works blends passion and charm. The Orchestre National de Belgique, whose performances under André Cluytens no one has forgotten, play with felicitous vigour under the attentive baton of Theodor Guschlbauer.
