Yo-Yo Ma is on cello and Emanuel Ax is on piano for this great classical recording. Brahms did two sonatas for cello & piano, E minor & F major. As a bonus, they’ve transcribed Brahms’ Sonata for Violin & Piano in D minor to allow it to be performed by cello, which is interesting to hear. This is a really flawlessly recorded album; the production values are really high. The piano and cello both have a really warm sound and they’re well balanced with each other. I’d say every movement on this CD is pretty great. I’m a fan of the minor keys when it comes to classical music of certain types, but the major sonata is also really good. The E minor sonata is probably the best, but there are discoveries on every track on this seventy-five minute CD. Emotional performances, great production; this is a wonderful album, really transcendent at times. 4 stars.
tl;dr – classical superstars Yo-Yo Ma & Emanuel Ax give emotionally resonant, wonderfully produced performances of lovely Brahms pieces. 4 stars.