Cantabile: Anthems for Viola Jordan Bak & Richard Uttley

• Jonathan Harvey (1939 - 2012): Chant:
• 1 Harvey: Chant 03:33
• Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872 - 1958): Romance:
• 2 Williams: Romance 06:39
• Bright Sheng (b. 1955): The Stream Flows:
• 3 Sheng: The Stream Flows 05:16
• Arnold Bax (1883 - 1953): Sonata for Viola and Piano, GP. 251:
• 4 Bax: Sonata for Viola and Piano, GP. 251: I. Molto moderato 10:52
• 5 Bax: Sonata for Viola and Piano, GP. 251: II. Allegro energico ma non troppo presto 07:14
• 6 Bax: Sonata for Viola and Piano, GP. 251: III. Molto lento 08:55
• Augusta Read Thomas (b. 1964): Song Without Words:
• 7 Thomas: Song Without Words 09:20
• Benjamin Britten (1913 - 1976): Lachrymae: Reflections on a song of Dowland, Op. 48:
• 8 Britten: Lachrymae: Reflections on a song of Dowland, Op. 48: I. Lento 01:51
• 9 Britten: Lachrymae: Reflections on a song of Dowland, Op. 48: II. Allegretto, andante molto 01:01
• 10 Britten: Lachrymae: Reflections on a song of Dowland, Op. 48: III. Animato 01:34
• 11 Britten: Lachrymae: Reflections on a song of Dowland, Op. 48: IV. Tranquillo 01:39
• 12 Britten: Lachrymae: Reflections on a song of Dowland, Op. 48: V. Allegro con molto 00:51
• 13 Britten: Lachrymae: Reflections on a song of Dowland, Op. 48: VI. Largamente 00:34
• 14 Britten: Lachrymae: Reflections on a song of Dowland, Op. 48: VII. Appassionato 00:51
• 15 Britten: Lachrymae: Reflections on a song of Dowland, Op. 48: VIII. Alla valse moderato 01:16
• 16 Britten: Lachrymae: Reflections on a song of Dowland, Op. 48: IX. Allegro marcia 00:52
• 17 Britten: Lachrymae: Reflections on a song of Dowland, Op. 48: X. Lento 01:06
• 18 Britten: Lachrymae: Reflections on a song of Dowland, Op. 48: XI. L’istesso tempo 03:47
• Total Runtime 01:07:11

Info for Cantabile: Anthems for Viola

The Jamaican–American violist Jordan Bak has already achieved international acclaim for his radiant stage presence, dynamic interpretations and fearless power.

In his Delphian debut,joined by the outstanding pianist Richard Uttley, he offers powerful readings of two substantial twentieth-century works – Arnold Bax’s Sonata for Viola and Piano and Benjamin Britten's Lachrymae: Reflections on a song of John Dowland, written respectively for Lionel Tertis and William Primrose – and sets them alongside more recent music for solo viola by Jonathan Harvey and Bright Sheng.

The viola’s capacity for deeply felt, wordless song is further explored in Augusta Read Thomas’s Song without Words, receiving its premiere recording in a version specially composed for Bak and Uttley.

Jordan Bak, viola
Richard Uttley, piano

Jordan Bak
Award-winning Jamaican-American violist Jordan Bak has achieved international acclaim as a trailblazing artist, praised for his radiant stage presence, dynamic interpretations, and fearless power. Critics have described him as “an exciting new voice in Classical performance” (I Care If You Listen), “a powerhouse musician, with a strong voice and compelling sound” (The Whole Note) and lauded his “haunting lyrical grace” (Gramophone). The 2021 YCAT Robey Artist and a top laureate of the 2020 Sphinx Competition, Bak is also a Grand Prize winner and Audience Prize recipient of the 2019 Concert Artists Guild Victor Elmaleh Competition, the recipient of the 2019 Samuel Sanders Tel Aviv Museum Prize and the 2019 John White Special Prize from the Tertis International Viola Competition. Other recent accolades include being named one of ClassicFM's "30 Under 30" Rising Stars, Musical America’s New Artist of the Month and being a featured artist for WQXR’s inaugural Artist Propulsion Lab.

Bak’s enthusiastically-received debut album IMPULSE (Bright Shiny Things) was released in May 2022, garnering over one million streams on major digital media platforms and featuring new compositions by Tyson Gholston Davis, Toshio Hosokawa, Anne Leilehua Lanzilotti, Quinn Mason, Jeffrey Mumford, and Joan Tower. A proud new music advocate, Bak gave the world premieres of Kaija Saariaho’s Du gick, flög for viola and mezzo-soprano, Jessica Meyer’s Excessive Use of Force for solo viola and On fire…no, after you for viola, mezzo-soprano and piano, and Augusta Read Thomas’ Upon Wings of Words for string quartet and soprano. He has additionally championed works by H. Leslie Adams, Esteban Zapata Blanco, Carlos Carillo, Caroline Shaw, and Alvin Singleton.

Bak has appeared as soloist with such orchestras as Sarasota Orchestra, London Mozart Players, New York Classical Players, Juilliard Orchestra and Brandon Hill Chamber Orchestra among others, and has performed under such esteemed conductors as Howard Griffiths, Stephen Mulligan, Keith Lockhart, Gerard Schwarz, and Ewa Strusińska. As a recitalist and chamber musician, he has been heard at some of the world’s greatest performance venues including Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, the Concertgebouw, Wigmore Hall, Jordan Hall, Merkin Concert Hall, Princeton University Concerts, Perelman Theater at The Kimmel Center, Elgar Concert Hall, and Helsinki Musiikkitalo. Bak’s recent performances include recitals at Kravis Center, Wiltshire Music Centre, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Harriman-Jewell Series, Lichfield Festival, and Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival.

Booklet for Cantabile: Anthems for Viola