Sol Gabetta: Cantabile and Shostakovich Double-Strike

Argentinian-born Franco-Russian Cellist Sol Gabetta has never been one for mediocrity. Defying all sales warnings in the Classical department, tt should only seem apt, then, that she will be launching two albums at the same time in September: While “Cantabile” comprises a collection of Opera-transcriptions from originals by Russian, French and Spanish composers, a second disc will feature Shostakovich’ Second cello concerto in a well-balanced combination with his cello sonata op. 40. After her much talked about performance at the German ECHO ceremony, where she snapped up the much coveted award for best instrumentalist of the year and further divided classical audiences about whether she was a “popular” or “serious” artist (not a discussion we’re particularly interested in on these pages), Sol Gabetta has since gone on to solidify her public image with a string of applauded live performances. “Shostakovich” is the first result of her tireless stage activity, as the CD was recorded live at at Munich Gasteig in January 2008.