Violin concerto

"The Greek violinist Leonidas Kavakos ... conducts as well as plays Beethoven's Violin Concerto ... no easy task for a work on this scale but the results are flexible and beautifully integrated. With his sweet, powerful tone and technical precision, Kavakos treats the performance as conversation rather than combat, decorating and accompanying as much as leading the musical argument ... Kavakos's own transcription of a piano cadenza left by Beethoven is full of hair-raising technical wizardry and requires a bizarre, unearthly exchange with the timpani. He makes the slow movement one long, tender song, the rondo finale lithe and witty".

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" Veronika Eberle gives a good performance of the Beethoven Violin Concerto but it is fatally undermined by completely unsuitable cadenzas. As a filler, we hear the surviving fragment of the first movement of a violin concerto that Beethoven worked on between 1790 and 1792 ... To be honest, the musical material is nowhere near as interesting as anything we hear in Beethoven's first two numbered piano concertos, let alone in the Violin Concerto, but it's an interesting little addendum to the disc".

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"This is a truly eloquent performance in extremely good sound for its age. There is an excellent balance between the violinist and players, and you get the feeling that the soloist, conductor and orchestra are at one, in genuine sympathy with each other ... This is a wonderful addition to the Busch discography".

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"Recording of the month: Ehnes is probably my favourite violinist working today, a poet of the instrument ... The Beethoven concerto is the star here, and Ehnes and Manze have given us an interpretation for the ages, one that stands proudly alongside the competition, and, in many cases, faces it down".

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"CD der Woche: Über 300 Mal hat Frank Peter Zimmermann das Violinkonzert von Beethoven schon gespielt. Routine? Keine Spur. Die Interpretation hat nichts von ihrer Frische verloren. Die Berliner Philharmoniker und Dirigent Daniel Harding sind intensive Dialogpartner Zimmermanns, die musikalische Energie wogt so zwischen Sologeige und Orchester hin und her, dass es ein Vergnügen ist ... Was für die Beethoven-Interpretation gilt, gilt ebenso für die Aufnahmen von Berg und Bartók. Berg aber erfordert mehr als Solo und differenzierte Begleitung ... In jeder Sekunde geht es um alles. Der Anspruch der Beteiligten ist immens".

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"This is surely one of the most satisfying Beethoven recordings to hit the shelves in some time and is one to own regardless of the duplication it may cause in your library. These are truly masterful performances; performances that for once reveal something new and interesting about well-known works".

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"But despite the musicality of the solo playing, and the attention to detail in Nézet-Séguin's accompaniments, there remains the feeling that all aspects of the work haven't been covered. With the addition of an extra portion of nutrient-free sweetener, the same approach works effectively for Korngold's concerto, too. Capuçon's perfect intonation and exquisite phrasing are exactly what this candyfloss work requires, even if it may not deserve it".

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"Recommended: In short, this recording joins an already distinguished discography, and will be snapped up by Frang's fans ... You might think that the contrast between Beethoven and Stravinsky might be a bit too acute right next to each other, but the spiky energy and joie de vivre in this performance of that final Allegro seeds the up-front character of Stravinsky's opening bars perfectly ... Vilde Frang's playing on the 'Rode' Guarneri del Gesù from 1734 is superb in this recording, and everyone involved can have pride in a magnificent achievement".

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"Editor's choices - September 2019: The hell-for-leather finale of the Sibelius makes for an exhilarating white-knuckle ride, but buy this for the beautifully-paced, luminous Beethoven - I mean no disrespect to Christian Tetzlaff when I say that I was absolutely captivated even before he arrives on the scene, thanks to Ticciati's knack for balancing light and shade in the long introduction. This is the violinist's third recording of the work, and it shows in an interpretation that has all the irreverent good humour of a witty sparring-match with an old friend".

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"Hun spiller Beethovens koncert med Paavo Järvi og Die Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen og i tilgift Benjamin Brittens violinkoncert varmt og ideelt spillet med Järvi og London Symphony Orchestra ... Samarbejdet fungerer godt med gensidig tilnærmelse".

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"Man kommer højere op i luftlagene og dybere ind i musikken med den unge Patricia Kopatchinskaja ... Det er Beethoven spillet med friskhed og naturlighed til en slank orkesterklang".

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"Denne 36-årige kunstner har en varm, formfuldendt tone og spiller med en dejlig ren intonation og masser af fantasi ... Violinkoncerten er forførisk lækker, spillet med masser af sødme og elegant ynde af Wienerfilharmonikerne under ledelse af Riccardo Muti ... Det kan man diskutere, om det er, når det gælder det andet værk, den såkaldte 'Kreutzer'-sonate ... Til at akkompagnere Repin er valgt verdens vel nok mest legendariske pianist, den sky argentiner Martha Argerich. Hun er en hårdtslående dame, meget lidenskabelig, men Repin forsvinder næsten i hendes voldsomme kraft. Det er derfor så afgjort violinkoncerten, der giver udgivelsen værdi".

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"Den russiske mester Vadim Repin? Hans tone er forunderlig, tolkningen indadvendt og inderlig. Nogle vil måske efterlyse mere temperament. Sammen med Martha Argerich går han stærkere til den i Beethovens Kreutzer-sonate".

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"Kender De nogen, der ikke kender Beethovens violinkoncert, vil den nye indspilning med den eminente og stilrene virtuos Vadim Repin akkompagneret af en mildere Riccardo Muti end man er vant til, være enestående som åbenbaring ... Violinkoncerten op. 61 i D-Dur skaber strålende apollinsk glæde".

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"Kavakos's playing is articulate, deeply expressive and tonally ravishing, even in the most exposed, high-lying passages. The BRSO are with him every step of the way, and that's particularly impressive given that the violinist takes an unusually supple approach to tempo ... [The Septet receives] a glorious account full of incident and humour, and played with burnished tone and rhythmic élan".

"The soloist here is Veronika Eberle ... Her sound is pure gossamer, with lightning trills that tend to slowly accelerate, and a dynamic radius that takes us from a barely audible pianissimo to assertive attack. She's a resourceful player whose approach to the piece seems to fit the interpretative principles that Rattle himself favours, careering birdlike through the ether, purity and flexibility both much in evidence ... This ... is the only avaiable version of Op 61 where the principal reason for listening or purchasing lies not with the performance (which viewed overall is excellent) but with the cadenzas. They amount to a transformative experience and for that reason alone need to be heard".

"Jansen herself is an extremely charismatic performer, delivering Kreisler's cadenza with superb control and poise; yeat the doesn't always engage me to the same degree as Batiashvili ... I was completey won over, though, by Jansen's Britten".

"Absorbing and satisfying performances of two sharply contrasting concertos".

"An interesting programme for the odd visit, and very bold, I'll certainly give Kennedy that. But it's too wilful to warrant anything like a general recommendation, except to Kennedys fans and the curious".

"Editor's choice: Nemanja Radulović takes complete control of every aspect of Beethoven's Violin Concerto ... Of course, conducting from the fiddle is a centuries-old tradition, but what Radulović accomplishes in this performance is remarkable as every element of the score is presented with near total interpretative unanimity ... I fervently hope Radulović records the Kreutzer Sonata in its original form, even if he'll need an extraordinary pianist to match what Double Sens give us here in terms of precision and musicality. For me, though, it's the VIolin Concerto that's the prize on this disc. It's a dazzling, profoundly personal interpretation, and I'm already completely obsessed with it".

"In normal circumstances, I would nominate this CD in the "Outstanding" category; I hesitate to do so as the recorded sound stems from actates and matrices between 64 and 70 years old ... it will be a disadvantage to some ears".

"Editor's choice: The rich, warm sound of the RLPO strings here may come as a surprise, though it's a perfect complement to the soloist's sweet-toned, Apollonian approach ... Technically, Ehnes's playing is a marvel ... But, really, it's his - and Manze's - thoughtfulness and patience that make this recording so satisfying ... Ehnes and Manze have given us a Beethoven Concerto to stand among the very best".

"Editor's choice: Zimmermann, Petrenko and the BPO are painstakingly attentive in the way they release the full tonal range of Berg's varegated canvas ... Rarely have I heard a performance that combines musical refinement with a sense of tragedy in the way that this does ... This surely has to be the version of the Berg you go to first, with the Beethoven warranting a recommendation that's virtually as strong ... So a firm thumbs up from me, and I expect one in return if you decide to invest. You won't regret it".

"Höchstes instrumentales und künstlerisches Niveau, Verlässlichkeit und Zeitlosigkeit - es gibt Begrifflichkeiten, die man für den Geiger Frank Peter Zimmermann wie für die Berliner Philharmoniker gleichermassen bemühen könnte ... Akkuratesse und künstlerische Seriosität findet man in den Aufnahmen mit Zimmermann immer, hier [in Beethoven] läuft er emotional zu Höchstform auf. Wunderbar getragen von der Tonschönheit seiner Stradivari ... gibt er sich dem Solopart völlig hin, souverän, abgeklärt, niemals routiniert ... Auch das Violinkonzert von Berg lotet Zimmermann tief und musikalisch plausibel aus ... Seine Interpretaion des zweiten Bartók-Konzertes erreicht Referenzniveau ... Alles in allem: Künstlerisch wertvoll!".

"So, a fine performance if not absolutely the best, but I would suspect that the main draw on this CD will be the six orchestrated Miniatures by fellow Georgian Sulkhan Tsintsadze, whose tunefully exotic dance movements have an instant appeal and draw the very best from Batiashvili and the Georgian Chamber Orchestra ... the sum effect is a very satisfying CD".

"Vadim Repin har lavet en pragtindspilning af violinkoncerten i rolige tempi, hvad der giver værket et endnu mere ophøjet, olympisk præg. Hans tone er uforligneligt smuk, fraseringen perfekt, skønheden i højsædet ... Kreutzersonaten med Martha Argerich ved flyglet ... her er der mere liv, mere glød, og alt er så tilfredsstillende, at man vanskeligt kan ønske sig andet og mere".

"Der er noget altmodisch ved Repins fortolkninger, som læner sig kraftigt op ad gamle konventioner, men gør det smukkere end noget, jeg kan komme i tanke om. Beethoven er Gud, og Vadim Repin er hans profet. Det er en ceremoniel fortolkning af Violinkoncerten, gennemført med ekstrem forfinelse af alle involverede".

"So a mixed affair, then, but worth a listen of Korngold is your main priority".

"Once into the fray, Frang is her own master, a confident, highly imaginative player, flexible in the extreme ... Her handling of the Larghetto [in Beethoven] is a model of composure, her tone again extremely pure and untrammelled by externally applied emotion, ... while Pekka Kuusisto and the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen are attentive to every small detail in the accompaniment. The finale truly dances ... What we have here is one of the freshest and most engaging accounts of the Beethoven around, a 'must-hear' ... The performance of Stravinsky's Concerto has plenty of thrust ... but lacks the dancing agility of Beethoven ... Still, I mustn't overstate my reservations. Vilde Frang is a fascinating and original player whose fund of interpretative ideas is always a pleasure to encounter, and this coupling is no exception".

"Man kan aldrig gå helt galt i byen, når man lytter til Vilde Frang. Den norske violinists indspilninger er friske, meget velovervejede, teknisk veludførte og yderst kommunikative. Denne gang præsenterer hun Beethovens violinkoncert ... samt Stravinskijs pikante koncert, hvor han hylder 1700-tallets forbilleder. Frang spiller som kammermusiker, som om hun integreres med de orkestre, der står bag hende ... Violinkollegaen, finnen Pekka Kuusisto, der dirigerer, kan uden problemer sætte sig ind i orkester-solist-dynamikken, da han kender begge koncerter fra begge sider".

"Recording of the month - Editor's choice: Tetzlaff may at times excitedly rush his fences, but in collaboration with Robin Ticciati and his alert Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, he transforms aspects of what so many have treated as a sort of Holy Grail into a beer tankard ... If Beethoven's Concerto emerges as uncompromisingly provocative, Tetzlaff's Sibelius also errs on the side of danger ... In many respects, a real knock-out".