ROSSINI Duetto. PATITUCCI The Root. Grateful. TELEMANN Sonata No. 2. BOTTESINI Gran Duetto No. 3. DALBY MacPherson’s Rant. GLIÈRE Cradle Song. ELGAR Duetto. FRANÇAIX Duo Baroque

This is a double-bass feast, featuring some unusual music in unusual instrumental combinations. Canadian-born Jeremy McCoy, a double bass-player in the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra since 1985, has chosen a widely varied program ranging from Telemann to contemporary young composers. While Bottesini and Rossini are familiar names in the bass literature, who ever knew that Elgar wrote a little duet for trombone and double bass? (It only came to light in 1970.) True, it’s merely 58 seconds long, but well crafted and charming, and a novel addition to the bass repertoire. Also a lovely find is Glière’s little Cradle Song for viola and bass. All in all, McCoy could not have found a more proficient group of instrumentalists (many of them colleagues from the Met orchestra) to play with; the performances are all excellent.

Of the older works, the Telemann duo for bass and bassoon gives equal treatment to both instruments as they share material in a contrapuntal style. Rossini’s Duetto is virtuosic for both instruments, but especially for the cello, whose part is composed like a florid opera aria. John Patitucci (b. 1959) has been active in the jazz world as composer, player, writer, arranger, and teacher. He writes in a delightfully cool jazz style; his duet, Grateful, for electric bass and double bass, affords McCoy an opportunity to play a very lyrical solo. MacPherson’s Rant, Scottish-born Martin Dalby’s beguiling piece for three instruments of the flute family (one at a time!) along with the bass, calls for imaginative and virtuosic sounds from both players.

The longest work on the program is the four-movement sonata in Baroque style composed in 1980 by Jean Françaix for harp and bass. The outer movements are completely Gallic—perky, sharp rhythms, and a kind of brittle, nonchalant, but elegant style. The slow movement is lyrical, with each instrument given a long solo section, in which McCoy demonstrates his sensitive musicianship and excellent technique. A light, dance-like scherzo precedes the spirited finale.

This disc is recommended for its unusual repertoire and the top-notch performances, excellently recorded, which give it life.

FANFARE: Susan Kagan