Solo violinists of Orchestre National de France and Orchestre de Chambre de Paris, Sarah and Deborah Nemtanu join forces for the first time on record.

“We each had to follow our own individual path before this, to feel that it was the right moment to tackle this project. We succeeded in finding the right balance between our own personal journeys and simple good timing. Playing together has always been part of our daily lives, but it was essential to wait for the right moment. In other words, that both of us had already launched our careers and had made our own contacts and artistic decisions. At 33 and 31 years of age, and after over ten years of musical adventures, we can safely say we were ready!” Bach and Schnittke: Linking these two composers is not very common. What inspired you? DEBORAH. The desire to make new and unexpected connections that sound great. Schnittke was a great composer, and Bach will continue to inspire composers and performers forever. For me, the beginning of the Concerto Grosso is extraordinary. You think for a moment you are listening to one of Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos as it has the same elements: harpsichord, strings, and dance. Then the symbolic bell rings and Schnittke opens his own door. It is another world, and a marvelous discovery.

SARAH. Schnittke’s Concerto Grosso no.3 is in the form of a chamber music piece in five movements from the Baroque era. The hommage to, or moreover the ghost-like presence of Bach in the work, makes us link the two composers. Schnittke composed this magnificent work, full of depth, dimension and distortion, in 1985 – the very same year that he had his first stroke. He was a very religious composer, who always made the link between music and spirituality . . . Now doesn’t that remind us of someone?”

Reviews

Gramophone Magazine June 2015

“The Nemtanu sisters…come together here in what would surely be the first choice for any violin siblings, Bach’s Double Concerto. Their performance is attractive and neatly turned, especially in a tenderly flowing slow movement, though some listeners may wish for more drive in the finale

MusicWeb International February 2015

“There is no shortage of recordings of these concertos by Bach, and it takes something special to mount a realistic challenge. With their crisp harpsichord continuo and unpretentious approach these are all excellent performances.

Irish Times 3rd April 2015

“characterful soloists who play Bach’s three violin concertos with what sounds like intuitive freedom – just sample the flicked-in embellishments.