Mendelssohn: Complete Works for Cello and Piano Gary Hoffman & David Selig

• Felix Mendelssohn (1809 - 1847): Sonata for Cello & Piano No. 2 in D Major, Op. 58:
• 1Mendelssohn: Sonata for Cello & Piano No. 2 in D Major, Op. 58: I. Allegro assai vivace07:37
• 2Mendelssohn: Sonata for Cello & Piano No. 2 in D Major, Op. 58: II. Allegretto scherzando05:08
• 3Mendelssohn: Sonata for Cello & Piano No. 2 in D Major, Op. 58: III. Adagio04:39
• 4Mendelssohn: Sonata for Cello & Piano No. 2 in D Major, Op. 58: IV. Molto allegro e vivace06:35
• Variations Concertantes for Cello and Piano, Op. 17:
• 5Mendelssohn: Variations Concertantes for Cello and Piano, Op. 1708:16
• Albumblatt - Assai tranquillo:
• 6Mendelssohn: Albumblatt - Assai tranquillo: Albumblatt for Solo Piano, Op. 11701:55
• Song without words in D Major, Op. 109:
• 7Mendelssohn: Song without words in D Major, Op. 10904:05
• Sonata for Cello & Piano in B Flat Major, Op. 45, I. Allegro vivace:
• 8Mendelssohn: Sonata for Cello & Piano in B Flat Major, Op. 45, I. Allegro vivace: I. Allegro vivace11:59
• 9Mendelssohn: Sonata for Cello & Piano in B Flat Major, Op. 45, I. Allegro vivace: II. Andante05:56
• 10Mendelssohn: Sonata for Cello & Piano in B Flat Major, Op. 45, I. Allegro vivace: III. Allegro assai05:57
• Total Runtime01:02:07

Info for Mendelssohn: Complete Works for Cello and Piano

To repair the injustice of Mendelssohn’s current reputation with musicians as a 'minor' composer, Gary Hoffman and David Selig have recorded his complete works for cello and piano or the French label Dolce Volta. In order to do justice to Mendelssohn, the perfectly constructed balance of the pieces and the interplay between the two instruments, it was necessary to unite two close friends, working together in perfect harmony.

Furthermore, Gary Hoffman plays a 1662 Nicola Amati cello, formerly in the possession of Count Mathieu Wielhorski, a friend of Mendelssohn’s to whom the composer dedicated his Sonata op.58. Music, rather than simply being a question of technique and practice, is a labour of love, born out of pleasure and created with pleasure… A pleasure that Gary Hoffman and David Selig share: "Our rehearsals are not moments where we have decided in advance to work on this or that. We start with the music and our choices are made naturally, instinctively… I don't ask myself questions, I just play", says Gary Hoffman.

Having entered the Rostropovitch Competition, and needing a pianist to accompany him, Gary Hoffman met David Selig and they have since become close friends as well as collaborators. They share a passion for the underestimated genius of the German 19th Century composer Felix Mendelssohn. For Gary Hoffman, Mendelssohn is as great as Schumann, Bach, Beethoven and Mozart: his works are exquisitely written and physically demanding; his vision poetic, ample and modern.

"The first movement of the Sonata in D is launched with irresistible forward momentum. The level of musical insight is high throughout this impressive recital." (BBC Music Magazine)

Gary Hoffman, cello
David Selig, piano

Gary Hoffman
He made his debut at the Wigmore Hall in London at the age of fifteen, quickly followed by New York. At the age of twenty-two he became the youngest faculty appointee in the history of the Indiana University School of Music. After winning the Premier Grand Prix of the Rostropovich International Competition in Paris in 1986, he embarked on an international career, appearing with the world’s most noted orchestras, in major recital and chamber music series and at prestigious festivals.

Although he has great affection for the classical cello repertoire, Gary Hoffman does not neglect contemporary music, of which he is a committed champion. Numerous composers, among them Graciane Finzi, Renaud Gagneux, Joel Hoffman, Laurent Petitgirard and Dominique Lemaître, to name only a few, have dedicated their concertos to him.

He is a regular guest with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center in New York, and is a remarkable and much sought-after chamber partner.

He has made recordings for BMG (RCA), Sony, EMI and Le Chant du Monde, and now records on the La Dolce Volta label.

Gary Hoffman has lived in Paris since 1990. He performs on a 1662 Nicolo Amati, the ‘ex- Leonard Rose’.

In 2011, Mr. Hoffman was appointed Maître en Résidence for cello at the prestigious Chapelle Musicale Reine Elisabeth in Brussels.

David Selig
who was born in Melbourne, Australia, began piano lessons at the age of six, later also learning cello and percussion. In 1976 he moved to Paris where he studied at the Conservatoire with Aldo Ciccolini. He pursued further studies with Guido Agosti and Geoffrey Parsons and subsequently won prizes at the Sydney Piano Competition and the inaugural accompaniment competition in The Hague. As a soloist Mr Selig has performed in many of the great concert halls, including the Salle Pleyel, the Amsterdam Concertgebouw and New York’s Carnegie Hall.

His love of chamber music has led him to collaborate with many renowned artists and singers such as Felicity Lott, Christianne Stotijn, Sandrine Piau, Jard van Nes, Véronique Gens, Ingrid Perruche, Nathalie Stutzmann, Elly Ameling, Teresa Berganza and François Le Roux, and his instrumental partners include Gary Hoffman, Philippe Graffin, Marc Coppey, Régis Pasquier, Jane Peters and Noël Lee. Following his debut CD of works by Villa-Lobos in 1989, further recordings have been released on EMI, Adda, REM (with François Le Roux), Forlane and Globe. A recording with Gary Hoffman of works by Mendelssohn was released in 2012 on the Dolce Volta label.

Mr Selig performs regularly in France, the Netherlands, Germany and Switzerland as well as in the USA and the Far East. He conducts masterclasses in chamber music and in song repertoire. In 2011 he was named professor at the Conservatoire National Supérieur in Lyon.

Booklet for Mendelssohn: Complete Works for Cello and Piano