Christian Poltéra - Press

BBT Project: Three CDs on BIS: the cello works Othmar Schoeck, Frank Martin and Arthur Honegger.

I was quite bowled over in discovering the Cello Concerto [Frank Martin], so eloquently and sensitively played here. It is no exaggeration to say that this rapt performance presents this noble concerto with an inspirational intensity to compare with the celebrated Du Pré/Barbirolli recording of the Elgar Concerto.

Ivan March, Gramophone, April 2008

Poltéra delivers an utterly compelling and committed performance…a wonderful disc [Christian Poltéra Plays Frank Martin]

Erik Levi, BBC Music Magazine, April 2008 (BBC Music Choice)

If you want a superb collection of Honegger’s music for cello, both chamber and orchestral, then this CD is just the ticket. I am completely mystified at the fact that the Cello Concerto isn’t better known. It has wonderful, jazzy tunes (it sounds a lot like Gershwin in places), plenty of fireworks for the soloist, and it packs a huge amount of contrast into its quarter-hour of playing time. By any standard this is a sensational performance.

David Hurwitz, Classics Today, November 2007

Poltéra is a wonderfully expressive soloist with a big tone, a powerful technique, and a persuasive way with a phrase. His musical companions are able to hold their own with strong but sensitive and supportive performances. Recorded in three different locations at three different times but in uniformly cool, clear digital sound, this disc is both attractive and fascinating.

James Leonard, AllMusic Review, November 2007