Steven Isserlis is not only one of the finest, but one of the most adventurous cellists around; you can always trust him to have a surprise in store. On this disc, he pairs two famous sonatas with two of their composers' unfamiliar pieces: a slow, singing Prelude and an exotic Oriental Dance by Rachmaninov, and two songs with cello obbligato, one secular, one sacred, by Franck. The playing throughout is beyond praise. Isserlis' instrumental mastery is complete; technical problems do not exist. His tone is beautiful, dark, warm, focused, infinitely variable in color, nuance and intensity, flawlessly pure on all strings and in every register. His playing is striking for its unfailing nobility; free but controlled, it is inwardly expressive but never sentimental, ardently romantic and passionate but never excessive. The slow opening of the Rachmaninov is pure magic: unvibrated, it feels like a reluctant, gradual awakening. The movement is played for poetic, pensive lyri! cism, not bravura, but builds up to a passionate climax and ends in a blaze of glory. The Scherzo is ominous, the Trio is warmly serene, the slow movement sings luxuriously, and the Finale is brilliant, joyful, triumphant. Pianist Stephen Hough gives free rein to his virtuosity, but never overpowers the cello; his approach is more freely rhapsodic than that of Isserlis, but their interplay, ensemble, and balance are excellent. They play the Franck so convincingly that one almost forgets this is really a violin sonata. (In his always enlightening, entertaining program notes, Isserlis claims that both versions are equally authentic.) Though one misses the shimmering radiance of the violin's high register in the corner movements, their dreamy, sunlit serenity remains intact; the cello tone has a floating, disembodied transparency, but builds up tremendous power in the climaxes. The second movement is fast and tempestuous, while the third is very free and imaginative, almost op! eratic in its contrasts and mood changes. --Edith Eisler