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Artist:
Andre Rieu
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Sony has brought together Shostakovitch's greatest concertos in first recordings made soon after their American premieres by the artists most closely identified with them. Neither performance has been bettered, though some, such as Vengerov's Teldec Violin Concerto, come close. The Violin Concerto is in solid, detailed mono; the Cello Concerto in fine stereo. Oistrakh goes to the heart of the violin work, playing with extraordinary tonal magnificence and emotional power. He's matched by Mitropoulos, whose identification with the score is apparent. Rostropovitch is as good in the Cello Concerto, getting excellent support from Ormandy's Philadelphians. Both performances share the white heat of fresh discovery and have stood the test of time to become classic recordings. --Dan Davis
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Though at first glance these two concertos seem an odd coupling, Hilary Hahn offers convincing reasons for pairing them in her scholarly but rather chatty program notes. For the listener, the most important one is her avowed love and affinity for the music, which speak through every note of her performance. At 22, Hahn has developed from an arresting teenage prodigy into a formidable violinist. Her technique is equal to all challenges and so effortless that one forgets about it. Her tone has the directness and intensity of a laser beam and the unblemished purity of fine-spun crystal. This carries over into her style: clear and straightforward, without fuss, external effects, or exaggeration--there is hardly a slide on the whole record. If her playing is rather cool, it's also noble and emotionally so genuine that she can make a popular warhorse like the Mendelssohn sound fresh and new. She takes few rhythmic liberties, but freely changes tempo for mood and expression: the second theme of the first movement is much slower than the rest. The Shostakovich, too, sounds new and different. A repertory staple of all great Russian violinists, it is usually played with a lush tone and unbri...
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Artist:
Melnikov
In 1950, Shostakovich went to Leipzig to attend the Bicentennial Bach competition. His admiration for Tatiana Nikolaeva s performance of the Well-Tempered Clavier served as an impetus to write his own set of Twenty-Four Preludes and Fugues, loosely modeled on Bach s. Over the years, Nikolaeva, who performed the composition frequently throughout her career, became practically synonymous with the work. Alexander Melnikov started from scratch and came up with his own, unique and eminently musical interpretation. The third disc in the set is a DualDisc with a DVD side featuring a short film by Christian Leblé about the Preludes & Fugues that includes interviews with Alexander Melnikov and Andreas Staier.
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No Description Available. Genre: Classical Music Media Format: Compact Disk Rating: Release Date: 18-JUL-2000
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Here are three dozen pieces of music, all played by Yo-Yo Ma, culled from his extensive discography. Aside from the technical mastery and beautiful tone that are absolutes in all of his playing, one is dazzled by his curiosity and ability to adapt to so many forms and types of music. His Bach and Vivaldi are pellucid and played with non-sentimental crispness, his tango music gritty and rhythmically pungent, his jazz seemingly spontaneous, the "Meditation" from Thais simply ravishing, "Anything Goes" a romp, and the Appalachian music performed with both respect and a great twang, while the traditional Chinese music is fascinating. It's really a matter of how much Ma loves whatever he plays here, how entirely he becomes involved in it, and what a fine partner he invariably is to other musicians. This collection is a doozy--it is truly "essential." --Robert Levine
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