# Violin Music & Musicians



## Ingélou (Feb 10, 2013)

A thread for observations and recommendations concerning the Queen of Instruments and her music. Your favourite violinist - your favourite composer of violin music - quibbles and questions: what you will.









I was reading the obituary of Igor Oistrakh this morning and how he once at London's Albert Hall played Vivaldi's Triple Concerto with his father David & with Yehudi Menuhin.

So now I am listening to this divine music on YouTube:





*'Celebrating the 60th birthday of Isaac Stern, he is joined in this gala event by violinists Itzhak Perlman and Pinchas Zukerman, with the New York Philharmonic, directed by Zubin Mehta.'*
(Quoted from beneath the YouTube video.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I enjoyed listening and it was a beautiful performance - but as I'm most used to HIP performances I have to say that the Stern-Perlman-Zukerman video was a little too smooth and silky for my taste.


----------



## Taggart (Feb 14, 2013)

David Oistrakh & Igor Oistrakh - Bach Concerto for Two Violins in D minor






This is from 1974 - Moscow Chamber Orchestra recorded in Moscow. Notice the way the the father stands rock solid while the son gently sways.


----------



## Taggart (Feb 14, 2013)

And the next generation of Oistrakhs:

J.S. Bach - Triple Concerto / Sir Yehudi Menuhin, Igor and Valery Oistrakh






No date is given for this one. Fascinating to see all three players swaying gently.


----------



## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

SIBELIUS VIOLIN CONCERTO (complete) IDA HAENDEL
This is heaven for me :angel:


----------



## wkasimer (Jun 5, 2017)

Igor Oistrakh's Tchaikovsky concerto, with his father conducting, was one of the first records that I owned and subsequently wore out:









Has this ever been reissued on CD?


----------



## Ingélou (Feb 10, 2013)

For me, a British woman in my third age, if you say 'famous violinist' I will think of Yehudi Menuhin.

I am just reading this very interesting article on what happened after his 'child prodigy' years. 
https://www.commentary.org/articles/terry-teachout/the-riddle-of-yehudi-menuhin/

This paragraph I find particularly striking:

*The problem was not that Menuhin lacked a virtuoso technique-by this time, he had already made his New York recital debut, to rave reviews-but rather that the technique was the product of imitation rather than comprehension. In his own words, he played "more or less as a bird sings, instinctively, uncalculating, unthinkingly."*

The article then talks about how, later in life, his tone altered for the worse, as a direct result of having picked up a poor technique in his child prodigy years. I was very interested in what it has to say about learning and being 'stuck' in the techniques practised wrongly as a child.


----------



## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

It's Mullova for me. HIP or modern - she does it all.


----------



## Livly_Station (Jan 8, 2014)

Look...

The best composer for the violin is...

*~~Camille Saint-Saëns~~*

He's a master of the violin aesthetic, as he knows how to take a beautiful, rich, lavish and sensual sound out of the instrument! The melody takes center stage at some of Saint-Saëns best compositions, but still retain a cerebral sense of purpose and balance with the whole. It's music to delight the listener -- pure ear-candy!

My favorite examples are...
_Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso_, for Violin and Orchestra/Piano
_Havanaise_, for Violin and Orchestra
_Caprice andalou_, for Violin and Orchestra
_La Muse et le Poète_, for Violin, Cello and Orchestra
_Fantaisie_, for Violin and Harp
Violin Concertos
Violin Sonatas


----------



## Simon Moon (Oct 10, 2013)

Hard to say what my favorites are, but this would be up there.

Berg - Violin Concerto


----------



## Simon Moon (Oct 10, 2013)

Another favorite, same violinist.

Penderecki - Metamorphosen - Violin Concerto Nº2

This is the premiere, and the piece was written for Mutter.


----------



## 59540 (May 16, 2021)

Without question, this:





But speaking of Oistrakh, he and Milstein are probably my two favorite violinists. I don't think anyone ever played the Sibelius concerto better.


----------



## Ingélou (Feb 10, 2013)

dissident said:


> Without question, this:


Bach - Complete Sonatas & Partitas, Chaconne / NEW MASTERING (Century's recording: Nathan Milstein)?
Yes - I tend to agree!


----------



## Taggart (Feb 14, 2013)

The Milstein Bach is superb. Like David Oistrakh he was taught by Pyotr Stolyarsky. We came across it in the DG Gramophone Baroque Box


----------



## Pat Fairlea (Dec 9, 2015)

David Oistrakh. Fluid virtuosity, warm tone, and a great sense for the 'shape' of a piece. 

And from the younger generation honourable mention for Nicky Benedetti on more or less the same three criteria.


----------



## Judith (Nov 11, 2015)

Don't get me started lol.
Favourite violinist Joshua Bell

His performances are sublime and wonderful live also. 

Have many favourite violin works but will go for
Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto!


----------



## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

Szymanowski: Complete Music for Violin and Piano on Brilliant Classics
Bacewicz: Violin Concertos Nos.7,3 & 1 on Chandos Joanna Kurkowicz
Ligeti / Norgard violin concertos on Chandos Christina Astrand


----------



## Olias (Nov 18, 2010)

Although I like many violinists, I'm a big Hilary Hahn fan for several reasons. One, she commissions and champions new works along with the standard repertoire. Two, she has the most beautiful tone quality and never has that "scraping the strings" sound. Three, her research into the music she is performing/recording is extremely thorough. Four, she is easily accessible to her fan base through online interaction. Five, she's just a nice person (I got to chat with her once after a recital).

Some of my favorite HH recordings:

Beethoven VC/Bernstein Serenade
Mendelssohn VC/Shostakovich VC1
Tchaikovsky VC/Higdon VC
Bach VC1/VC2/Double VC

She's been performing the Dvorak VC a lot lately so I hope she'll record it in the near future.

Other recordings I enjoy by other artists:

Brahms VC/Beethoven VC - Gil Shaham
Dvorak VC/Sarasate Carmen Fantasy - Akiko Suwanai
Vivaldi Four Seasons - Janine Jansen
Mozart VCs - both Julia Fischer and Rachel Barton Pine


----------

