Hungarian composer Miklós Rózsa is rightfully remembered for his many film scores -- among his best known are Quo Vadis, Ben Hur, and El Cid -- but, as this disc coupling his Cello Concerto and Sinfonia Concertante shows, he was also active as a composer for the concert hall. The Sinfonia Concertante for violin and cello was written in 1955 for Jascha Heifetz and Gregor Piatigorsky and the Cello Concerto was written in 1967 for János Starker -- and while both are obviously serious works, both are also obviously by the same composer who wrote the film scores, that is to say, Rózsa's melodies are clearly Hungarian, his harmonies are clearly late-Romantic, his rhythms are clearly muscular, his colors are clearly Technicolor, and his technique is clearly first-rate. Whether or not Rózsa's hybrid approach succeeds depends on two things: the conviction of the performers and the taste of the listeners. Certainly, cellist Raphael Wallfisch and violinist Philippe Graffin are deeply dedicated to the music and their performances are strong, soulful, and full of sincerity. Accompanied by the obliging Barry Wordsworth and the professional BBC Concert Orchestra, Wallfisch and Graffin make the best possible case for these works. The rest is up to the listener. One thing is for sure: any listener who enjoys the concert music of Erich Wolfgang Korngold or Bernard Herrmann will surely enjoy the concert music of Rózsa. ASV's sound is unfortunately neither as clear nor as colorful as the music deserves. ~ James Leonard, All Music Guide
