Anmeldelser

Den danske cellist Henrik Dam Thomsen demonstrerer en komplet sammensmeltning af sig selv, sit instrument og Bachs noder på nyt soloalbum.

Den 50-årige cellist Henrik Dam Thomsen har brugt fyrre år på at udforske Bachs cellosuiter, og i 2024 var tiden moden til at indspille et album. Det er blevet et mesterstykke i lydkvalitet og musikalsk forståelse.

Dam Thomsen så at sige tager rejsenfor lytteren fra det komplicerede til det, der kommer til at fremstå som gennemsigtigt, lysende og næsten guddommeligt logisk. Nå ja, og så er hans frasering og udtryk besjælet med stor skønhed.” “Jeg lytte til Dam Thomsens udgave igen og igen.

Han blotlægger nervebaner i Bachs musik og egne nervebaner i bestræbelserne derpå. Og jeg, som lytter, bliver både blødgjort og højstemt, berørt og henført – som aldrig før i suiternes nyere indspilningshistorie.

Thomsen's accounts combine seemingly effortless virtuosity with fine musicianship — he overcomes with accuracy and evident ease the added difficulties of playing no. 6 on a four-stringed instrument — and they are characterised by a free, relaxed rhetorical approach.

There is a sense of rightness to everything Thomsen does, and crucially, unlike so many other artists who have recently essayed these masterworks, he has command and charisma. As such, I would place these accounts with Casals, Fournier, Starker (EMI and Mercury), Tortelier (1983) et al, in the pantheon of excellence.

His interpretation is characterized by fluid tempos and a genuine sense of dance. When you find yourself tapping along to a gavotte or bourrée, you know that this cellist is not just performing character pieces but is well-informed about Baroque dances. Bravo!

Thomsen achieves a lively and narrative-rich result with this approach, which is never brittle or even unattractive. Rather, he creates a stirring flow, as one might imagine an ocean current in the narrow Øresund on his doorstep.

These ingredients made for a less impassioned but not necessarily less moving account of the piece, one that was absorbing in its purity and concentration. The lightness of his playing refreshed the concerto's Allegro molto and Allegro ma non troppo sections.

Dam Thomsen's approach was sensitive, heartfelt, and pensive rather than glitteringly charged, and it sounded exceedingly beautiful and impressive.

Despite its name the double concerto is mostly a cello concerto, as Henrik Dam Thomsen emphasized from the outset with grand, powerful cello tone and expressive calibre that carried across the orchestra, taking in the lyrical shades and the dramatic moments alike.

This is a magnificent performance, committed from first to last — a more convincing and optimistic account of the quartet than you will hear on record from many more famous soloists.

Og cellisten Henrik Dam Thomsen stryger sin bue med en indædt drømmeglød, der bliver til frosne toner, når udryddelsen indtræffer. Det er uendeligt vanvittigt smukt.

En kammermusikalsk juvel. En af de mest markante cd-udgivelser i lang tid. Seks stjerner.

Så fik vi da vist nok en af de største og helt enestående koncertoplevelser denne sæson i Giant Steps, da Anders Koppel og Henrik Dam Thomsen torsdag aften serverede deres musikalske univers. Et eventyr fyldt med magiske og frydefulde øjeblikke. Underfundig og forførende var det, når de to ypperlige musikere i en tæt pakket koncertsal spillede Koppels kompositioner – men også et nummer af Bob Dylan og af den store franske komponist Olivier Messiaen. Og så blev Giant Steps hyldet med en musikalsk lykønskning i anledning af jubilæet, da duoen gav deres egen flotte version af Come Sunday af Duke Ellington. Hammondorgel og cello er en helt unik konstellation – et klangbillede så smukt.

This young Danish cellist is clearly someone to watch. His debut recording begins in outstanding fashion. I was bowled over by the epic, declamatory style of the opening of the Kodály Sonata and by the beautifully clear sound of the recording.

Henrik Dam Thomsen is a splendid player, technically assured, showing strong rapport with both the main works.

But despite the formidable competition [in the Kodály] Thomsen's is a fine state-of-the-rendition.

Thomsen is highly talented and we shall undoubtedly be hearing more of him.

Thomsen is a Rolls Royce among players.

This is a young man with a good attitude, accurate fingers, and a bow arm with control. I will follow his career with interest.

Forventningerne var skyhøje. De blev overgået. Næppe nogen havde drømt om en debutkoncert på et så højt solistisk, virtuost og kunstnerisk niveau som det, Henrik Dam Thomsen præsterede. Nærværende anmelder kan i hvert fald ikke huske noget mere overbevisende fra de sidste 35 år.