Charming and elegant French music by a virtually forgotten composer, Paul Bazelaire (1886-1958), is recorded here by the eminent cellist Morten Zeuthen with pianist Daniel Blumenthal.

Paul Bazelaire toured internationally as cello soloist and held the position of professor at the Paris conservatory for 40 years. In his liner note for the album, Morten Zeuthen writes about how Bazelaire in his own time was known as an arranger of other composers. Around 1900 baroque music was “adapted to the audience’s taste”, and Bazelaire was a master at this craft. As the development moved towards an interest in original works, the name of Bazelaire became forgotten with his arrangements. Only a couple of his pieces have stayed in the repertoire, the most popular being Suite Française sur des airs populaires where he adapted five popular folksongs.

Morten Zeuthen and Daniel Blumenthal spent a lot of time among the manuscripts in Sedan, France, the birthplace of Bazelaire, making it possible to present many works that have not been recorded before. Professor Zeuthen of the Royal Danish Conservatory has given concerts in such venues as Carnegie Hall and Wigmore Hall, and made a long line of critically acclaimed recordings. Professor Blumenthal of The Royal Flemish Conservatoire has given recitals at Tanglewood, at the Concertgebouw and performed as soloist with orchestras including the English Chamber Orchestra and Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.