# Best interpretation of Brahms violin concerto



## Classical Music Listener

I have enjoyed Jascha Heiftiz/Fritz Reiner/Chicago Symphony interpretation for two years but I hear from a friend that Itzahk Perlman/Giulini/Chicago Symphony is even better. 

Do members have a favorite of these two? Or, even better, is there another "best?"

I am buying another cd or two of this concerto (one of my favorites) and want to make an informed decision. I appreciate and welcome all suggestions!


----------



## Brahmsian Colors

The most enjoyable Brahms Violin Concerto I've heard to date is with Szeryng and Monteux/London Symphony. But it doesn't seem to have been made easily available on cd, and prices are quite high for the scarce copies. If you are a vinyl collector, it is significantly easier to acquire re-issues in that format, and the prices are decent. Other interpretations on cd that I would strongly recommend are those by Grumiaux/Van Beinum/Concertgebouw and Oistrakh/Klemperer/French National Radio Orchestra. Both are very fine.


----------



## Classical Music Listener

Haydn67 said:


> The most enjoyable Brahms Violin Concerto I've heard to date is with Szeryng and Monteux/London Symphony. But it doesn't seem to have been made easily available on cd, and prices are quite high for the scarce copies. If you are a vinyl collector, it is significantly easier to acquire re-issues in that format, and the prices are decent. Other interpretations on cd that I would strongly recommend are those by Grumiaux/Van Beinum/Concertgebouw and Oistrakh/Klemperer/French National Radio Orchestra. Both are very fine.


Thank you very much, Haydn67, for this informed post!

Indeed I am a vinyl collector, so the Szeryng/Monteux/London in that format would be a great addition to my library.


----------



## Heliogabo

Don´t miss Viktoria Mulova recording (BPO/Abbado), It's a great recording, my favorite. (And I've heard many, since this is my favorite concerto ever).
Szeryng / Haitink (Philips too) deserves to be mentioned for sure.


----------



## wkasimer

Haydn67 said:


> The most enjoyable Brahms Violin Concerto I've heard to date is with Szeryng and Monteux/London Symphony. But it doesn't seem to have been made easily available on cd, and prices are quite high for the scarce copies. If you are a vinyl collector, it is significantly easier to acquire re-issues in that format, and the prices are decent. Other interpretations on cd that I would strongly recommend are those by Grumiaux/Van Beinum/Concertgebouw and Oistrakh/Klemperer/French National Radio Orchestra. Both are very fine.


All three are on my shortlist (and I'd say that the next version should certainly be one of Oistrakh's). A few others that are worth mentioning in that company are Milstein/Steinberg, Mullova/Abbado, Repin/Chailly, and any of Leonid Kogan's. Off the beaten track I've also been enjoying David Nadien's on a Cembal d'amour. The sound is merely adequate and the orchestra not first-rate, but Nadien's playing is fantastic:


----------



## Pugg

From all the mentioned above I do agree, however if I have to choose only one, it would be : Boris Belkin with Iván Fischer. ( correction on conducter)
The way he let's the violin do the "singing" is breathtaking.


----------



## Brahmsian Colors

wkasimer said:


> All three are on my shortlist (and I'd say that the next version should certainly be one of Oistrakh's). A few others that are worth mentioning in that company are Milstein/Steinberg, Mullova/Abbado, Repin/Chailly, and any of Leonid Kogan's. Off the beaten track I've also been enjoying David Nadien's on a Cembal d'amour. The sound is merely adequate and the orchestra not first-rate, but Nadien's playing is fantastic:
> View attachment 95112


Just another suggestion: If you haven't already done so, you might want to compare the Milstein/Steinberg with the Milstein/Fistoulari. I'd be curious to hear what you think.


----------



## Animal the Drummer

Haydn67 said:


> The most enjoyable Brahms Violin Concerto I've heard to date is with Szeryng and Monteux/London Symphony. But it doesn't seem to have been made easily available on cd, and prices are quite high for the scarce copies. If you are a vinyl collector, it is significantly easier to acquire re-issues in that format, and the prices are decent. Other interpretations on cd that I would strongly recommend are those by Grumiaux/Van Beinum/Concertgebouw and Oistrakh/Klemperer/French National Radio Orchestra. Both are very fine.


Exactly my nominations too. Unlike my fellow poster above I'd prioritise the Grumiaux recording, but both are excellent.


----------



## Brahmsian Colors

Animal the Drummer said:


> Exactly my nominations too. Unlike my fellow poster above I'd prioritise the Grumiaux recording, but both are excellent.


I agree completely.


----------



## Heck148

My favorite is Heifetz/Reiner....but I also like Szeryng/Monteux


----------



## wkasimer

Haydn67 said:


> Just another suggestion: If you haven't already done so, you might want to compare the Milstein/Steinberg with the Milstein/Fistoulari. I'd be curious to hear what you think.


As I recall, the two performances are fairly similar, but the Fistoulari is stereo. I find myself listening to and recommending the Steinberg because it's coupled with one of my favorite recordings of the Beethoven concerto. The Fistoulari is coupled with the Tchaikovsky, which I like less, but it's on an obscenely cheap Seraphim CD that seems to show up everywhere. The Fistoulari shows up in other Milstein compilations, too, more frequently than the Steinberg.


----------



## DaveM

An interesting, but unfortunately rare, cd version is Ruggerio Ricci, cond. Norman Del Mar on Riddulph. It includes cadenzas from Joachim, Singer, Heermann, Auerbach, Ysaye, Ondricek, Kneisel, Busoni, Marceau, Kreisler, Tovey, Kubelik, Busch, Heifetz, Milstein, Ricci. It defaults to the Busoni cadenza which is interesting in that there is some orchestral accompaniment.


----------



## JAS

DaveM said:


> An interesting, but unfortunately rare, cd version is Ruggerio Ricci, cond. Norman Del Mar on Riddulph. It includes cadenzas from Joachim, Singer, Heermann, Auerbach, Ysaye, Ondricek, Kneisel, Busoni, Marceau, Kreisler, Tovey, Kubelik, Busch, Heifetz, Milstein, Ricci. It defaults to the Busoni cadenza which is interesting in that there is some orchestral accompaniment.


The addition of so many cadenzas is certainly interesting. How is the overall performance?


----------



## DaveM

JAS said:


> The addition of so many cadenzas is certainly interesting. How is the overall performance?


I just listened to it for the first time in several years (I have so many versions of the Brahms). It's a good performance, but doesn't knock my socks off. Ricci was, unbelievably, 72-73 years old when it was recorded (he played until 80). It is technically flawless, but like so many performances by the master violinists who have played this concerto for decades, it lacks the fire and passion that younger violinists bring to it e.g. Hilary Hahn and the like. The orchestra is excellent.

That said, it is a must-have recording being the only performance having almost all the cadenzas written for the concerto. The liner notes gives interesting info on the composers of the cadenzas. Some of them were students of Joachim or students of students of Joachim (e.g., Heifetz).


----------



## Xaltotun

DaveM said:


> It is technically flawless, but like so many performances by the master violinists who have played this concerto for decades, it lacks the fire and passion that younger violinists bring to it e.g. Hilary Hahn and the like.


Yes!! I've always thought that many violinists make the concerto too beautiful, and I don't like that! It has to have an edge, fire and passion, even "ugly" moments! Mutter / Masur & NYPO satisfies me.


----------



## Tchaikov6

Hilary Hahn paired with Stravinsky Concerto is delightfully fresh and elegant, although classic Heifetz is quite hard to beat.


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

Of the two you mentioned, I definitely prefer Perlman/Giulini. He is more in touch with the emotions of the concerto. Heifetz/Reiner is cold and superficial (though his 1939 recording with Koussevitzky is poetic and brilliant). If you want a combination of emotion and fiery virtuosity, another good choice is Oistrakh/Szell.

I have 163 recordings of this piece on my iphone, from the 1927 Kreisler to last year's Jansen. It is my favorite work. 

If you care about modern sound, my top 10 choices would be:

1. Perlman/Giulini
2. Oistrakh/Szell
3. Martzy/Kletzki
4. Krebbers/Haitink
5. Milstein/Fistoulari
6. Ferras/Schuricht
7. Morini/Rodzinski
8. Mutter/Masur
9. Oistrakh/Konwitschny
10. Milstein/Steinberg

If you can handle outdated sound, these interpretations are even better:

1. Huberman/Rodzinski
2. Kreisler/Blech
3. Heifetz/Koussevitzky
4. Szigeti/Harty
5. Busch/Munch
6. Zimbalist/Koussevitzky
7. Neveu/Dobrowen
8. De Vito/Van Kempen
9. Menuhin/Furtwangler
10. Kogan/Eliasberg


Incidentally, I find both Grumiaux/Van Beinum and Szeryng/Monteux to be good recordings but a little on the bland side interpretively. I actually prefer last year's Jansen/Pappano to both of them.

Also, Oistrakh/Klemperer is very fine. I just find the two Oistrakh's I listed to have a bit more fire to them. He is even better, however, in his live performances - Kondrashin (1963 on BBC) or Nussio, among others. If that is not enough, some people consider his 1952 studio recording with Kondrashin to be his best, though I personally think he showed more brilliance in later performances. So far I have collected 13 Oistrakh recordings of this concerto, and there may still be more out there!


----------



## bharbeke

I liked Mutter/Karajan more than Mutter/Masur.

I feel like it's hard to recommend a version of such a famous piece when I have only heard a handful, but I can say that on its own, the Mutter/Karajan sparked a very positive reaction for me.


----------



## jdec

bharbeke said:


> I liked Mutter/Karajan more than Mutter/Masur.
> 
> I feel like it's hard to recommend a version of such a famous piece when I have only heard a handful, but I can say that on its own, the Mutter/Karajan sparked a very positive reaction for me.


Funny, I was going to say the same. I recommend Mutter/Karajan's rendition which I also like more than Mutter/Masur.


----------



## wkasimer

Brahmsianhorn said:


> If you care about modern sound, my top 10 choices would be:
> 
> 1. Perlman/Giulini
> 2. Oistrakh/Szell
> 3. Martzy/Kletzki
> 4. Krebbers/Haitink
> 5. Milstein/Fistoulari
> 6. Ferras/Schuricht
> 7. Morini/Rodzinski
> 8. Mutter/Masur
> 9. Oistrakh/Konwitschny
> 10. Milstein/Steinberg
> 
> If you can handle outdated sound, these interpretations are even better:
> 
> 1. Huberman/Rodzinski
> 2. Kreisler/Blech
> 3. Heifetz/Koussevitzky
> 4. Szigeti/Harty
> 5. Busch/Munch
> 6. Zimbalist/Koussevitzky
> 7. Neveu/Dobrowen
> 8. De Vito/Van Kempen
> 9. Menuhin/Furtwangler
> 10. Kogan/Eliasberg


A *great* list. I've yet to hear an Oistrakh recording of this concerto that wasn't top-notch. I finally heard the Konwitschny just a couple of days ago, and it is indeed terrific - I just wish that the orchestral contribution had a bit more presence, but that's how things were recorded in the early 50's.

Another sonically limited but great recording is Milstein with the NY Phil conducted by De Sabata. Unfortunately, it's live so the sound is VERY limited.


----------



## Haydn man

Mutter/Karajan for me too


----------



## DaveM

Brahmsianhorn said:


> Of the two you mentioned, I definitely prefer Perlman/Giulini. He is more in touch with the emotions of the concerto. Heifetz/Reiner is cold and superficial (though his 1939 recording with Koussevitzky is poetic and brilliant). If you want a combination of emotion and fiery virtuosity, another good choice is Oistrakh/Szell.
> 
> I have 163 recordings of this piece on my iphone, from the 1927 Kreisler to last year's Jansen. It is my favorite work.
> 
> If you care about modern sound, my top 10 choices would be:
> 
> 1. Perlman/Giulini
> 2. Oistrakh/Szell
> 3. Martzy/Kletzki
> 4. Krebbers/Haitink
> 5. Milstein/Fistoulari
> 6. Ferras/Schuricht
> 7. Morini/Rodzinski
> 8. Mutter/Masur
> 9. Oistrakh/Konwitschny
> 10. Milstein/Steinberg
> 
> If you can handle outdated sound, these interpretations are even better:
> 
> 1. Huberman/Rodzinski
> 2. Kreisler/Blech
> 3. Heifetz/Koussevitzky
> 4. Szigeti/Harty
> 5. Busch/Munch
> 6. Zimbalist/Koussevitzky
> 7. Neveu/Dobrowen
> 8. De Vito/Van Kempen
> 9. Menuhin/Furtwangler
> 10. Kogan/Eliasberg
> 
> Incidentally, I find both Grumiaux/Van Beinum and Szeryng/Monteux to be good recordings but a little on the bland side interpretively. I actually prefer last year's Jansen/Pappano to both of them.
> 
> Also, Oistrakh/Klemperer is very fine. I just find the two Oistrakh's I listed to have a bit more fire to them. He is even better, however, in his live performances - Kondrashin (1963 on BBC) or Nussio, among others. If that is not enough, some people consider his 1952 studio recording with Kondrashin to be his best, though I personally think he showed more brilliance in later performances. So far I have collected 13 Oistrakh recordings of this concerto, and there may still be more out there!


Wow. I was proud of my Brahms Violin Concerto collection, but it pales in comparison to yours. By a rough estimate, you could play nothing but different versions of the concerto nonstop over 7 days.


----------



## Classical Music Listener

Brahmsianhorn said:


> If you care about modern sound, my top 10 choices would be:
> 
> 1. Perlman/Giulini
> 2. Oistrakh/Szell
> 3. Martzy/Kletzki
> 4. Krebbers/Haitink
> 5. Milstein/Fistoulari
> 6. Ferras/Schuricht
> 7. Morini/Rodzinski
> 8. Mutter/Masur
> 9. Oistrakh/Konwitschny
> 10. Milstein/Steinberg
> 
> If you can handle outdated sound, these interpretations are even better:
> 
> 1. Huberman/Rodzinski
> 2. Kreisler/Blech
> 3. Heifetz/Koussevitzky
> 4. Szigeti/Harty
> 5. Busch/Munch
> 6. Zimbalist/Koussevitzky
> 7. Neveu/Dobrowen
> 8. De Vito/Van Kempen
> 9. Menuhin/Furtwangler
> 10. Kogan/Eliasberg


I am delighted to see this excellent post, Brahmsianhorn! Seeing you are an expert, I will be buying more than two recordings today! :tiphat:


----------



## Brahmsian Colors

wkasimer said:


> As I recall, the two performances are fairly similar, but the Fistoulari is stereo. I find myself listening to and recommending the Steinberg because it's coupled with one of my favorite recordings of the Beethoven concerto. The Fistoulari is coupled with the Tchaikovsky, which I like less, but it's on an obscenely cheap Seraphim CD that seems to show up everywhere. The Fistoulari shows up in other Milstein compilations, too, more frequently than the Steinberg.


I just want to drop a short personal note on the Milstein/Fistoulari from 1961. I still consider it one of my favorite interpretations, but because I've always considered its recorded sound to be somewhat too bright (notably from the U.S. blue label Angel lp), I've long omitted it from my list of top recommendations. It's possible the problem might stem from its having been recorded with too close a perspective on both the soloist and orchestra. Some have made reference to what they consider to be the relatively poor quality vinyl used on the Angel pressings.


----------



## Star

Heifetz / Reiner


----------



## Orfeo

Without using the word best, I do nevertheless find myself enjoying these two:


----------



## satoru

Orfeo said:


> Without using the word best, I do nevertheless find myself enjoying these two:


In the second album, Gidon Kremer uses Max Reger's Prelude in D minor, Op. 117, No. 6 as cadenza. You enjoy two pieces in one!


----------



## Olias

I won't make claims about the "best" but Hahn/Marriner is my personal favorite.


----------



## Brahmsian Colors

Brahmsianhorn said:


> Of the two you mentioned, I definitely prefer Perlman/Giulini. He is more in touch with the emotions of the concerto. Heifetz/Reiner is cold and superficial (though his 1939 recording with Koussevitzky is poetic and brilliant). If you want a combination of emotion and fiery virtuosity, another good choice is Oistrakh/Szell.
> 
> I have 163 recordings of this piece on my iphone, from the 1927 Kreisler to last year's Jansen. It is my favorite work.
> 
> If you care about modern sound, my top 10 choices would be:
> 
> 1. Perlman/Giulini
> 2. Oistrakh/Szell
> 3. Martzy/Kletzki
> 4. Krebbers/Haitink
> 5. Milstein/Fistoulari
> 6. Ferras/Schuricht
> 7. Morini/Rodzinski
> 8. Mutter/Masur
> 9. Oistrakh/Konwitschny
> 10. Milstein/Steinberg
> 
> If you can handle outdated sound, these interpretations are even better:
> 
> 1. Huberman/Rodzinski
> 2. Kreisler/Blech
> 3. Heifetz/Koussevitzky
> 4. Szigeti/Harty
> 5. Busch/Munch
> 6. Zimbalist/Koussevitzky
> 7. Neveu/Dobrowen
> 8. De Vito/Van Kempen
> 9. Menuhin/Furtwangler
> 10. Kogan/Eliasberg
> 
> Incidentally, I find both Grumiaux/Van Beinum and Szeryng/Monteux to be good recordings but a little on the bland side interpretively. I actually prefer last year's Jansen/Pappano to both of them.
> 
> Also, Oistrakh/Klemperer is very fine. I just find the two Oistrakh's I listed to have a bit more fire to them. He is even better, however, in his live performances - Kondrashin (1963 on BBC) or Nussio, among others. If that is not enough, some people consider his 1952 studio recording with Kondrashin to be his best, though I personally think he showed more brilliance in later performances. So far I have collected 13 Oistrakh recordings of this concerto, and there may still be more out there!


Listeners should be informed that in your first list, Martzy, Ferras, Morini, Oistrakh/Konwitschny and Milstein/Steinberg are all mono recordings. I think the Oistrakh/Konwitschny especially sounds very good in that format. I also regard it to be a wonderful interpretation in terms of the violinist's sensitivity, warmth and presence. Further, I rate his performance with Konwitschny superior to the one he recorded in stereo with Klemperer. The other mono performance I favor is the sweet and flowing Martzy/Kletzki. Otherwise, the stereo versions of both Krebbers/Haitink and Milstein/Fistoulari are interpretively excellent. As for the Oistrakh/Szell, the violinist's presentation is exemplary. No surprise there; however, I'm not terribly fond of Szell's accompaniment, which I find neither especially supple nor charming.

In the second list, Szigeti's performance comes through with an attractive singing character as well as good dynamics especially considering it was first released in 1928 on Columbia 78s. Neveu/Dobrowen (also in mono sound) is very well played, but for my tastes sounds too pretty in certain sections.

Of course, I don't particularly agree with your assessmnents of the Grumiaux and Szeryng readings. For me, the former provides elegance and superb execution, the latter musicality and ardor.


----------



## Heck148

I don't find Heifetz the least bit cold or superficial...there is always,a white-hot intensity to Heifetz' playing...an intense focus, a sustained line and centered tone that is unmatched. I love Oistrakh's playing as well... a very different style and approach, but very effective...the big rich tone....


----------



## wkasimer

Pugg said:


> From all the mentioned above I do agree, however if I have to choose only one, it would be : Boris Belkin with Iván Fischer. ( correction on conducter)
> The way he let's the violin do the "singing" is breathtaking.


I'm listening to the first movement of this now - and finding it too slow for my taste.


----------



## Judith

Know I'm biased but do love

Joshua Bell
Cleveland Orchestra 
Conducted by Christoph Von Dohnanyi


----------



## premont

Brahmsianhorn said:


> .
> 
> Also, Oistrakh/Klemperer is very fine. I just find the two Oistrakh's I listed to have a bit more fire to them. *He is even better, however, in his live performances *- Kondrashin (1963 on BBC) or Nussio, among others. If that is not enough, some people consider his 1952 studio recording with Kondrashin to be his best, though I personally think he showed more brilliance in later performances. So far I have collected 13 Oistrakh recordings of this concerto, and there may still be more out there!


So true. Having heard him play it live, I can affirm your claim.


----------



## Tallisman

Mutter with Karajan is solid


----------



## Bruckner Anton

Presently, my favorite version is Grumiaux and Beinum with RCO on Philips in 1958.


----------



## Pugg

wkasimer said:


> I'm listening to the first movement of this now - and finding it too slow for my taste.


I gave it another spin, still love it, like I said, the way he let the violin almost sing......


----------



## Animal the Drummer

I'm surprised you aren't pushing Herman Krebbers' (very fine) recording.


----------



## wkasimer

Animal the Drummer said:


> I'm surprised you aren't pushing Herman Krebbers' (very fine) recording.


The one with Mengelberg, or the one with Haitink?


----------



## Ralphus

Strangely, I struggled for a long time to find a recording of the Brahms Violin Concerto that really struck me right. It was Milstein/Fistoulari--obscenely cheap on Seraphim. I adore it. More recently I've come to like Skride and Batiashvili:


----------



## Animal the Drummer

wkasimer said:


> The one with Mengelberg, or the one with Haitink?


The Haitink one. I haven't heard the one with Mengelberg, though I'd like to some day.


----------



## wkasimer

Animal the Drummer said:


> The Haitink one. I haven't heard the one with Mengelberg, though I'd like to some day.


Krebbers/Haitink was mentioned earlier, quite favorably.


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

- I am a huge fan of the Krebbers/Haitink. Heartfelt, beautiful, unforced, and in warm, full, sumptuous sound. Honestly if I could only live with two versions for the rest of my life it would probably be that one and the Huberman. So why did I rank it behind Perlman, Oistrakh, and Martzy on my list? I guess in "objective" terms I felt those three are more impressive. But truth be told I have a softer spot for the Krebbers, so I highly recommend it to anyone interested. Incidentally, there is a Krebbers from 10 years earlier only available on vinyl, with Hein Jordans conducting. I downloaded it onto my YouTube channel last year if anyone wants to hear it. Not nearly as well recorded but has a little more gusto to it. The 1943 Krebbers/Mengelberg is interesting, but IMO Krebbers' artistry was not yet as well developed as in the later two.

- Sorry, I still cannot get behind Heifetz/Reiner. I remember the day I ran to the CD store to buy it 20 years ago. I couldn't wait to hear arguably the most acclaimed performance of my favorite piece. Unfortunately the performance left me cold and still does to this day. It is not simply because it is fast. Huberman and Busch were also fast but knew how to provide nuance and flexibility. There just has always been something mechanical in Heifetz/Reiner that fails to move me. Heifetz/Koussevitzky is a completely different matter. Here Heifetz is a magician of nuance in addition to virtuosity. The cadenza is maybe the most beautiful on record.

- There is also a live Heifetz/Szell from 3 years before the Reiner. It is still a little too much "fast for the sake of fast" for my taste but has a little more fire and spontaneity from being a live recording. (Incidentally there is a live Morini/Szell from around the same year which is even more fiery and impassioned than the Heifetz)

- Mutter/Karajan is an excellent central recommendation. The reason I prefer her later live recording with Masur is that it is so deeply personal and at times breathtaking. She takes more risks here, and this may be precisely what turns some off to this recording as compared to the earlier studio one.

- I may have to hear Rachel Barton Pine again - as many swear by it - but I was very disappointed the couple of times I listened to it. Painfully slow and dull was my verdict.

- Have I mentioned how much I love the Krebbers?


----------



## wkasimer

I don't have 163 versions, but I realized over the past few days that I have a pretty hideous number of recordings.

I've had Krebbers/Haitink for many years (I think that it was my first recording of the work, on LP) and still enjoy it. But as intensely musical as Krebbers is, his tone is a little thin for my taste (I've been listening to Oistrakh too much, I guess), and Haitink could be more assertive.

I'm with you on Heifetz - I played the two commercial recordings back to back this morning (which didn't take very long!). The earlier one with Koussevitsky is fast (and I like the first movement to move along at a decent clip) but expressive. The second, stereo version sounds as though Heifetz and Reiner couldn't wait to get away from one another - it's not just brisk -
it's cold as ice.

I'm playing Oistrakh with Klemperer now. This is probably my favorite of DO's versions, because the sound is good (if one likes the recording to sound like it's from the back of the hall, not from the conductor's podium, and Klemperer is properly alert and assertive. That said, Oistrakh fans would probably prefer the one with Konwitschny.

I haven't heard Mutter/Karajan in a long time, but I did listen to Ferras/Karajan yesterday. Beautifully played, but a few too many edges are smoothed off. Ferras doesn't play quite as elegantly or smoothly for Schuricht, but he really digs into the part, particularly the first movement cadenza.

I tried Perlman/Giulini again, and once again, I find it much too slow. The timing isn't ridiculous - but there are too many moments where the music threatens to grind to a halt. I liked the modern version I auditioned - Repin/Chailly, Shaham/Abbado, Mullova/Abbado, and Jansen/Pappano much better. And I love the broadcast performance of Julia Fischer with the Boston SO and Dutoit from a couple of years ago - has anyone heard her commercial recording?

And no one should miss the opportunity to hear Kreisler.


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

wkasimer said:


> I don't have 163 versions, but I realized over the past few days that I have a pretty hideous number of recordings.
> 
> I've had Krebbers/Haitink for many years (I think that it was my first recording of the work, on LP) and still enjoy it. But as intensely musical as Krebbers is, his tone is a little thin for my taste (I've been listening to Oistrakh too much, I guess), and Haitink could be more assertive.
> 
> I'm with you on Heifetz - I played the two commercial recordings back to back this morning (which didn't take very long!). The earlier one with Koussevitsky is fast (and I like the first movement to move along at a decent clip) but expressive. The second, stereo version sounds as though Heifetz and Reiner couldn't wait to get away from one another - it's not just brisk -
> it's cold as ice.
> 
> I'm playing Oistrakh with Klemperer now. This is probably my favorite of DO's versions, because the sound is good (if one likes the recording to sound like it's from the back of the hall, not from the conductor's podium, and Klemperer is properly alert and assertive. That said, Oistrakh fans would probably prefer the one with Konwitschny.
> 
> I haven't heard Mutter/Karajan in a long time, but I did listen to Ferras/Karajan yesterday. Beautifully played, but a few too many edges are smoothed off. Ferras doesn't play quite as elegantly or smoothly for Schuricht, but he really digs into the part, particularly the first movement cadenza.
> 
> I tried Perlman/Giulini again, and once again, I find it much too slow. The timing isn't ridiculous - but there are too many moments where the music threatens to grind to a halt. I liked the modern version I auditioned - Repin/Chailly, Shaham/Abbado, Mullova/Abbado, and Jansen/Pappano much better. And I love the broadcast performance of Julia Fischer with the Boston SO and Dutoit from a couple of years ago - has anyone heard her commercial recording?
> 
> And no one should miss the opportunity to hear Kreisler.


Try Huberman/Rodzinski, available on YouTube, my favorite of all my 163 versions. He plays with an authority you would expect considering the composer himself gave the interpretation his stamp of approval a half century earlier (when Huberman was a boy of 14!). This recording is now available from Pristine Classical in addition to Music & Arts.

My favorite Ferras is with Rudolf Kempe dating from 1953, a live recording IIRC. It is a great recording.

Also great is Zimbalist/Koussevitzky, another example of authoritative playing you don't hear nowadays. (also on YouTube)

I understand the criticism of Perlman/Giulini. It is a slow first movement, around 24 minutes. Ironically I remember comparing it to the Heifetz/Reiner back in 1994, much like the OP is doing now. My conclusion was that Perlman/Giulini had a dark depth befitting the movement whereas Heifetz/Reiner made it into an exercise of technical perfection. I still enjoy the Perlman/Giulini to this day for that reason. And the finale is fittingly joyful and virtuosic.

I forgot to mention the Bell/Dohnanyi, a beautiful recording with hushed intensity. It is also meaningful for me because Bell introduced me to the piece at a concert in 1991. I will never forget his intense gyrations. Obviously the impact was great as I fell in love with the piece. I will say, however, that in direct comparison with others Bell's recording is a bit _too_ gentle and hushed.

Of course no recording has the final word, and there is more than one way to skin a cat. 163 recordings may be a bit over the top, though.


----------



## DaveM

Please assume IMO for all of the following:

We are lucky to have an example of an almost technically and interpretively perfect violin performance of the Brahms Violin Concerto on YouTube: Hilary Hahn. The orchestral performance (Paavo Jarvi conducts the Frankfurt Radio Symphony) is just average with the exception of the winds (particularly the oboe(s)) which are excellent.

I played the violin for a time at a young age. Though I was a pitifully inept violinist, it still made me especially appreciative and aware of what constitutes an excellent violin performance. Hilary Hahn's technique and bowing control is about as good as it gets. The performance is both muscular and tender and melodic when necessary. Some violinists hold their violins at a more perpendicular angle so that it is difficult to see the relationship of the bow to the strings. However Hahn holds it such that you can see everything.

Notice how confidently she attacks the bow on the strings in the first movement. Sometimes, even with the most accomplished violinists, there is the occasional quiver of the bow on the strings during an attack, especially with an up bow or there can be a momentary coarse sound, however subtle. Not with Hahn...at all. The other thing that is particularly impressive is the full tone and accuracy of the highest notes on the E-string (the string closest to the audience). Sometimes, even with top violinists, these notes are somewhat thin and sometimes even a little unpleasant.

Speaking of tone, the sumptuously beautiful tone of her violin is remarkable. No matter how good a violinist is, he/she cannot fully overcome the limitations of a poor, average and even sometimes, an above average, violin (as opposed to the Stradivarius and Guarnerius quality level violins). It turns out that her violin is one of the famous Vuillaume copies (that of 1864) of Paganini's Il Cannone Guarnerius violin (originally made by Guiseppe Guarneri). A Vuillaume's copy given to Paganini was so accurate that it took awhile for Paganini himself to be able to distinguish it from his Connone violin.


----------



## wkasimer

DaveM said:


> We are lucky to have an example of an almost technically and interpretively perfect violin performance of the Brahms Violin Concerto on YouTube: Hilary Hahn. The orchestral performance (Paavo Jarvi conducts the Frankfurt Radio Symphony) is just average with the exception of the winds (particularly the oboe(s)) which are excellent.


Thanks for the reminder - I actually have an audio recording of this (it was broadcast). I completely agree, except that I have a somewhat higher opinion of the orchestral contribution; as is typical of Jarvi, he's more assertive than most when playing with a soloist.

BTW - how does this compare to her studio recording (with Marriner, if I recall correctly)?


----------



## DaveM

wkasimer said:


> Thanks for the reminder - I actually have an audio recording of this (it was broadcast). I completely agree, except that I have a somewhat higher opinion of the orchestral contribution; as is typical of Jarvi, he's more assertive than most when playing with a soloist.
> 
> BTW - how does this compare to her studio recording (with Marriner, if I recall correctly)?


Unfortunately, I haven't heard it, but it's been mentioned at least twice as a favorite in this thread. I'd like to hear their opinions on why.


----------



## Animal the Drummer

wkasimer said:


> Krebbers/Haitink was mentioned earlier, quite favorably.


Yes indeed. My post was aimed primarily at the fact that our fellow poster Pugg is himself Dutch.


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

I directly compared Oistrakh/Szell and Oistrakh/Klemperer last night, and my verdict is still the same. In fact the two recordings are not that close. Oistrakh/Szell is on fire from first bar to last. It may be the most recommendable recording of the concerto in existence taking into consideration both performance and sound, outshining even Perlman/Giulini. Oistrakh/Klemperer is just not as inspired, and I think the conductor is to blame. In comparison it sounds lethargic from the opening tutti. Oistrakh does his best, but he too does not sound as inspired as in the later recording (or compared to his live recordings with Kondrashin, Nussio, Bruck, Sargent, Abendroth, Pedrotti).

On a 5-star scale, this how I rate the 13 Oistrakh Brahms concerto recordings I have heard:

1. Kondrashin, 1963 (BBC) *****
2. Nussio, 1961 (Ermitage, Aura) *****
3. Szell, 1969 (EMI) *****
4. Bruck, 1969 (INA) ****1/2
5. Sargent, 1961 (BBC) ****1/2
6. Kondrashin, 1952 (Melodiya, Urania, Oemga) ****1/2
7. Abendroth, 1952 (Tahra, Scribendum) ****
8. Konwitschny, 1954 (DG, Profil, Ds Classics ) ****
9. Pedrotti, 1961 (Supraphon, Multisonic) ****
10. Rieger, 1955 (Archipel) ****
11. Rozhdestvensky, 1966 (EMG) ****
12. Klemperer, 1960 (EMI) ***1/2
13. Rowicki, 1969 (CD Accord) ***1/2


----------



## wkasimer

This is another excellent recording:









In addition to a fine performance of the Brahms, the generous coupling is Joachim's Concerto #2.


----------



## hpowders

wkasimer said:


> This is another excellent recording:
> 
> View attachment 95279
> 
> 
> In addition to a fine performance of the Brahms, the generous coupling is Joachim's Concerto #2.


Correct pairing. Wrong violinist. The finest in both concertos is the breathtakingly beautiful and passionate playing of Rachel Barton Pine.


----------



## hpowders

satoru said:


> In the second album, Gidon Kremer uses Max Reger's Prelude in D minor, Op. 117, No. 6 as cadenza. You enjoy two pieces in one!


Yes! The Joachim/Brahms/Pine album is a winner. Nobody plays the Brahms concerto more beautifully and with just the right amounts of passion and poetry as Ms. Barton Pine does. A glorious performance!


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

One more version I should have mentioned, especially if you like Perlman and Bell, is George Kulenkampff from 1937. It is decent sound for the period, especially in the Dutton transfer. One of the most sweetly played versions you will ever here, the opposite style of Oistrakh.

So here is my working list ranking the greatest Brahms Violin Concerto recordings irrespective of sound quality:

1.	Bronislaw Huberman/Artur Rodzinski (Music & Arts, Pristine) *****
2.	Fritz Kreisler/John Barbirolli (Naxos, Biddulph, Opus Kura, Classica d’Oro, Strings) *****
3.	Fritz Kreisler/Leo Blech (Naxos, Music & Arts, Biddulph, Pearl) *****
4.	Jascha Heifetz/Serge Koussevitzky (RCA, Naxos, IDIS) *****
5.	Joseph Szigeti/Sir Hamilton Harty (EMI, Naxos) *****
6.	Adolf Busch/Hans Münch (Guild, Music & Arts, Arbiter) *****
7.	Efrem Zimbalist/Serge Koussevitzky (Doremi, Pristine) *****
8.	Ginette Neveu/Robert Desormière (Tahra) *****
9.	Ginette Neveu/Issay Dobrowen (Dutton, EMI) *****
10.	Christian Ferras/Rudolf Kempe (Archipel) *****
11.	Erica Morini/George Szell (Music & Arts) *****
12.	Erica Morini/Bruno Walter (Tahra, Archipel, Nuova Era) *****
13.	Georg Kulenkampff/Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt (Dutton, Pearl) *****
14.	Adolf Busch/William Steinberg (Music & Arts) *****
15.	David Oistrakh/Kirill Kondrashin (1963 rec.) (BBC) *****
16.	David Oistrakh/Otmar Nussio (Aura) *****
17.	Itzhak Perlman/Carlo Maria Giulini (EMI) *****
18.	David Oistrakh/George Szell (EMI) *****
19.	Johanna Martzy/Paul Kletzki (Testament) *****
20.	Herman Krebbers/Bernard Haitink (Philips) ****1/2
21.	Jascha Heifetz /George Szell (Prelude) ****1/2
22.	Gioconda de Vito/Paul van Kempen (Naxos, Arkadia) ****1/2
23.	Yehudi Menuhin/Wilhelm Furtwängler (Tahra, Naxos, EMI) ****1/2
24.	Nathan Milstein/Paul Kletzki (Claves) ****1/2
25.	David Oistrakh/Charles Bruck (INA) ****1/2
26.	David Oistrakh/Sir Malcolm Sargent (BBC) ****1/2
27.	Leonid Kogan/Kirill Kondrashin (1967 rec.) (Melodiya LP) ****1/2
28.	Leonid Kogan/Karl Eliasberg (Monopole, Arlecchino, Music Online) ****1/2
29.	Ginette Neveu/Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt (Tahra, Scribendum, Acanta) ****1/2
30.	Ginette Neveu/Antal Doráti (Music & Arts) ****1/2
31.	Nathan Milstein/Anatole Fistoulari (Praga, EMI) ****1/2
32.	Christian Ferras/Carl Schuricht (Testament) ****1/2
33.	Erica Morini/Artur Rodzinski (DG, Westminster, Millennium) ****1/2
34.	David Oistrakh/Kirill Kondrashin (1952 rec.) (Melodiya, Omega, Urania, Moscow Studio) ****1/2
35.	Jascha Heifetz /Arturo Toscanini (Doremi, IDIS) ****
36.	Anne-Sophie Mutter/Kurt Masur (DG) ****
37.	David Oistrakh/Hermann Abendroth (Tahra, Scribendum) ****
38.	David Oistrakh/Franz Konwitschny (DG, Profil, Ds Classics) ****
39.	Nathan Milstein/Pierre Monteux (Tahra, Arioso, Music & Arts, Audiophile) ****
40.	David Oistrakh/Antonio Pedrotti (Supraphon, Multisonic) ****
41.	David Oistrakh/Fritz Rieger (Archipel) ****
42.	Nathan Milstein/William Steinberg (EMI) ****
43.	Nathan Milstein/Victor de Sabata (Tahra, Archipel, Nuova Era, Arkadia) ****
44.	Herman Krebbers/Hein Jordans (Philips, Fontana LP) ****
45.	David Oistrakh/Gennadi Rozhdestvensky (1966 rec.) (EMG, Leningrad Masters, Icone) ****
46.	Gioconda de Vito/Wilhelm Furtwängler (Tahra, Idis, Urania, Music & Arts) ****
47.	Leonid Kogan/Kirill Kondrashin (1959 rec.) (EMI, Guild) ****
48.	Leonid Kogan/Pierre Monteux (Doremi, Melodiya) ****
49.	Yehudi Menuhin/Sir Adrian Boult (BBC) ****
50.	Leonid Kogan/Charles Bruck (Testament) ****
51.	Janine Jansen/Antonio Pappano (Decca) ****
52.	Henryk Szeryng/Pierre Monteux (RCA, JVC) ****
53.	Gioconda de Vito/Eugen Jochum (Tahra) ****
54.	Gioconda de Vito/Rudolf Schwarz (Archipel, Amare) ****
55.	Xue-Wei/Ivor Bolton (ASV) ****
56.	Ida Haendel/Sergiu Celibidache (Testament) ****
57.	Isaac Stern/Sir Thomas Beecham (Sony) ****
58.	Yehudi Menuhin/Rudolf Kempe (EMI) ****
59.	Arthur Grumiaux/Eduard van Beinum (Philips, Regis) ****
60.	David Oistrakh/Otto Klemperer (EMI) ***1/2
61.	Joseph Szigeti/Dmitri Mitropoulos (Music & Arts, Legend, Enterprise) ***1/2
62.	Jascha Heifetz /Fritz Reiner (RCA) ***1/2
63.	Nathan Milstein/Herbert von Karajan (Tahra) ***1/2
64.	David Oistrakh/Witold Rowicki (CD Accord) ***1/2
65.	Gioconda de Vito/Ferenc Fricsay (Audite) ***1/2
66.	Yehudi Menuhin/George Schneevoigt (Doremi) ***1/2
67.	Michael Rabin/Rafael Kubelik (Doremi) ***1/2
68.	Michael Rabin/Zoltan Rozsnyai (Testament) ***1/2
69.	Zino Francescatti/Eugene Ormandy (Biddulph, Naxos) ***1/2
70.	Joseph Szigeti/Eugene Ormandy (Sony) ***1/2
71.	Vadim Repin/Riccardo Chailly (DG) ***1/2
72.	Joshua Bell/Christoph von Dohnányi (Decca) ***1/2
73.	Henryk Szeryng/Antal Doráti (Mercury) ***1/2
74.	Henryk Szeryng/Rafael Kubelik (Orfeo) ***1/2
75.	Christian Ferras/Herbert von Karajan (DG) ***1/2
76.	Leonid Kogan/Vasil Stefanov (BNR) ***1/2
77.	Pinchas Zukerman/Daniel Barenboim (DG) ***1/2
78.	Albert Spalding/Wilhelm Loibner (Indie, Pearl) ***1/2
79.	Christian Ferras/Charles Bruck (Ina) ***1/2
80.	Wolfgang Schneiderhan/Karl Böhm (Urania, Opus Kura) ***1/2
81.	David Garrett/Zubin Mehta (Decca) ***1/2
82.	Anne-Sophie Mutter/Herbert von Karajan (DG) ***1/2
83.	Arthur Grumiaux/Ernest Ansermet (Andromeda) ***1/2
84.	Nathan Milstein/István Kertész (Music & Arts) ***1/2
85.	Ossy Renardy/Charles Munch (Dutton, Pristine, Dante, Biddulph) ***1/2
86.	Hideko Udagawa/Sir Charles Mackerras (Chandos, Nimbus) ***1/2
87.	Viktoria Mullova/Claudio Abbado (Philips) ***1/2
88.	Herman Krebbers/Willem Mengelberg (Music & Arts) ***1/2
89.	Julia Fischer/Yakov Kreizberg (Pentatone) ***1/2
90.	Tasmin Little/Vernon Handley (EMI) ***1/2
91.	Boris Belkin/Iván Fischer (Decca) ***1/2
92.	Shlomo Mintz/Claudio Abbado (DG) ***1/2
93.	Ulf Hoelscher/Klaus Tennstedt (EMI) ***1/2
94.	Wolfgang Schneiderhan/Paul van Kempen (DG) ***
95.	Gidon Kremer/Leonard Bernstein (DG) ***
96.	Isaac Stern/Eugene Ormandy (Sony) *** 
97.	Berl Senofsky/Sir John Barbirolli (West Hill Radio Archives) ***
98.	Hilary Hahn/Sir Neville Marriner (Sony) ***
99.	Gil Shaham/Claudio Abbado (DG) ***
100.	Hans Klepper/Alfred Scholz (Quintessence) ***
101.	Zino Francescatti/Dmitri Mitropoulos (Orfeo, Intaglio, Andromeda) ***
102.	Ricardo Odnoposoff/Carl Bamberger (Doremi) ***
103.	Elmer Oliveira/Gerard Schwarz (Artek) ***
104.	Arthur Grumiaux/Sir Colin Davis (Philips) ***
105.	Mincho Minchev/Vasil Stefanov (Vivace, Balkanton BCA) ***
106.	Thomas Zehetmair (Avie) ***
107.	Ilya Kaler/Pietari Inkinen (Naxos) ***
108.	Johanna Martzy/Günter Wand (Hänssler) ***
109.	Henryk Szeryng/Carl Schuricht (Ina) ***
110.	Gidon Kremer/Herbert von Karajan (EMI) ***
111.	Berl Senofsky/Rudolf Moralt (Forgotten Records, Historic Records) ***
112.	Nathan Milstein/Eugen Jochum (DG, Belart) ***
113.	Zino Francescatti/Leonard Bernstein (Sony) ***
114.	Henryk Szeryng/Erich Leinsdorf (Praga) ***
115.	Philippe Hirschhorn/Jiri Starek (Doremi) ***
116.	Uto Ughi/Wolfgang Sawallisch (RCA) ***
117.	Zino Francescatti/Erich Leinsdorf (Music & Arts) ***
118.	Takako Nishizaki/Stephen Gunzenhauser (Naxos) ***
119.	Leonid Kogan/Pavel Kogan (Yedang) ***
120.	Maxim Vengerov/Daniel Barenboim (Teldec) ***
121.	Zino Francescatti/Ernest Bour (Hänssler) ***
122.	Henryk Szeryng/Bernard Haitink (Philips) ***
123.	Siegfried Borries/Max Fiedler (Music & Arts) ***
124.	Endre Wolf/Anthony Collins (World Record Club) ***
125.	Leonidas Kavakos/Riccardo Chailly (Decca) **1/2
126.	Julian Rachlin/Mariss Jansons (Warner) **1/2
127.	Sarah Chang/Kurt Masur (EMI) **1/2
128.	Lisa Batiashvili/Christian Thieleman (DG) **1/2
129.	Antje Weithaas (CAvi-Music) **1/2
130.	David Nadien/Vilem Sokol (Cambal d’amour) **1/2
131.	Thomas Zehetmair/Christoph von Dohnányi (Teldec) **1/2
132.	Aaron Rosand (Vox) **1/2
133.	Pinchas Zukerman/Zubin Mehta (RCA) **1/2
134.	Eduard Grach/Kirill Kondrashin (Russian Compact Disc) **1/2
135.	Susanne Lautenbacher/Robert Wagner (Vox, Family Library of Great Music) **1/2
136.	Viktor Tretyakov/Yuri Temirkanov (Brilliant Classics) **1/2
137.	Viktor Tretyakov/Vladimir Fedoseyev (Revelation, Olympia) **1/2
138.	Alexei Bruni/Ilmar Lapinsch (EMG) **1/2
139.	Joseph Swensen (Linn) **1/2
140.	Vladimir Spikakov/Yuri Temirkanov (RCA) **1/2
141.	Renaud Capuçon/Daniel Harding (Erato) **1/2
142.	Kyung Wha Chung/Simon Rattle (EMI) **1/2
143.	Itzhak Perlman/Daniel Barenboim (EMI) **1/2
144.	Raphaël Oleg/Libor Pešek (Denon) **1/2
145.	Jacques Thibaud/Jean Fournet (Philips) **1/2
146.	Rachel Barton Pine/Carlos Kalmar (Cedille) **1/2
147.	Frank Peter Zimmermann/Wolfgang Sawallisch (EMI) **1/2
148.	Frank Peter Zimmermann/Alan Gilbert (New York Philharmonic) **1/2
149.	Bohuslav Matoušek/Vladimir Válek (Stradivari) **1/2
150.	Dmitry Sitkovetsky/Sir Neville Marriner (Hänssler) **1/2
151.	Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg/Edo de Waart (EMI) **1/2
152.	Borika van den Booren/Eduardo Marturet (Brilliant) **1/2
153.	Nikolaj Znaider/Valery Gergiev (RCA) **1/2
154.	Benjamin Schmid/Cristian Mandeal (Oehms) **
155.	Andrés Cárdenes/Ian Hobson (Artek) **
156.	Takayoshi Wanami/Adrian Leaper (IMP) **
157.	Ivan Czerkov/Helmut Bucher (Denon) **
158.	Christian Tetzlaff/Thomas Dausgaard (Virgin) **
159.	Katrin Scholz/Michael Sanderling (Berlin Classics) **
160.	Isabelle Faust/Daniel Harding (Harmonia Mundi) **
161.	Evgueni Bushkov/Alexander Rahbari (Discover) **
162.	Nigel Kennedy/Klaus Tennstedt (EMI) **


----------



## silentio

I have 4 absolute favorites:

1) Bronislaw Huberman
2) Joseph Szigeti 
3) Ginette Neveu
4) Christian Ferras


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

silentio said:


> I have 4 absolute favorites:
> 
> 1) Bronislaw Huberman
> 2) Joseph Szigeti
> 3) Ginette Neveu
> 4) Christian Ferras


Good choices!


----------



## hpowders

For a fine older performance: Isaac Stern with Eugene Ormandy.

For an incomparable modern performance, Rachel Barton Pine is just right for me.


----------



## Pugg

Brahmsianhorn said:


> One more version I should have mentioned, especially if you like Perlman and Bell, is George Kulenkampff from 1937. It is decent sound for the period, especially in the Dutton transfer. One of the most sweetly played versions you will ever here, the opposite style of Oistrakh.
> 
> So here is my working list ranking the greatest Brahms Violin Concerto recordings irrespective of sound quality:
> 
> 1.	Bronislaw Huberman/Artur Rodzinski (Music & Arts, Pristine) *****
> 2.	Fritz Kreisler/John Barbirolli (Naxos, Biddulph, Opus Kura, Classica d'Oro, Strings) *****
> 3.	Fritz Kreisler/Leo Blech (Naxos, Music & Arts, Biddulph, Pearl) *****
> 4.	Jascha Heifetz/Serge Koussevitzky (RCA, Naxos, IDIS) *****
> 5.	Joseph Szigeti/Sir Hamilton Harty (EMI, Naxos) *****
> 6.	Adolf Busch/Hans Münch (Guild, Music & Arts, Arbiter) *****
> 7.	Efrem Zimbalist/Serge Koussevitzky (Doremi, Pristine) *****
> 8.	Ginette Neveu/Robert Desormière (Tahra) *****
> 9.	Ginette Neveu/Issay Dobrowen (Dutton, EMI) *****
> 10.	Christian Ferras/Rudolf Kempe (Archipel) *****
> 11.	Erica Morini/George Szell (Music & Arts) *****
> 12.	Erica Morini/Bruno Walter (Tahra, Archipel, Nuova Era) *****
> 13.	Georg Kulenkampff/Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt (Dutton, Pearl) *****
> 14.	Adolf Busch/William Steinberg (Music & Arts) *****
> 15.	David Oistrakh/Kirill Kondrashin (1963 rec.) (BBC) *****
> 16.	David Oistrakh/Otmar Nussio (Aura) *****
> 17.	Itzhak Perlman/Carlo Maria Giulini (EMI) *****
> 18.	David Oistrakh/George Szell (EMI) *****
> 19.	Johanna Martzy/Paul Kletzki (Testament) *****
> 20.	Herman Krebbers/Bernard Haitink (Philips) ****1/2
> 21.	Jascha Heifetz /George Szell (Prelude) ****1/2
> 22.	Gioconda de Vito/Paul van Kempen (Naxos, Arkadia) ****1/2
> 23.	Yehudi Menuhin/Wilhelm Furtwängler (Tahra, Naxos, EMI) ****1/2
> 24.	Nathan Milstein/Paul Kletzki (Claves) ****1/2
> 25.	David Oistrakh/Charles Bruck (INA) ****1/2
> 26.	David Oistrakh/Sir Malcolm Sargent (BBC) ****1/2
> 27.	Leonid Kogan/Kirill Kondrashin (1967 rec.) (Melodiya LP) ****1/2
> 28.	Leonid Kogan/Karl Eliasberg (Monopole, Arlecchino, Music Online) ****1/2
> 29.	Ginette Neveu/Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt (Tahra, Scribendum, Acanta) ****1/2
> 30.	Ginette Neveu/Antal Doráti (Music & Arts) ****1/2
> 31.	Nathan Milstein/Anatole Fistoulari (Praga, EMI) ****1/2
> 32.	Christian Ferras/Carl Schuricht (Testament) ****1/2
> 33.	Erica Morini/Artur Rodzinski (DG, Westminster, Millennium) ****1/2
> 34.	David Oistrakh/Kirill Kondrashin (1952 rec.) (Melodiya, Omega, Urania, Moscow Studio) ****1/2
> 35.	Jascha Heifetz /Arturo Toscanini (Doremi, IDIS) ****
> 36.	Anne-Sophie Mutter/Kurt Masur (DG) ****
> 37.	David Oistrakh/Hermann Abendroth (Tahra, Scribendum) ****
> 38.	David Oistrakh/Franz Konwitschny (DG, Profil, Ds Classics) ****
> 39.	Nathan Milstein/Pierre Monteux (Tahra, Arioso, Music & Arts, Audiophile) ****
> 40.	David Oistrakh/Antonio Pedrotti (Supraphon, Multisonic) ****
> 41.	David Oistrakh/Fritz Rieger (Archipel) ****
> 42.	Nathan Milstein/William Steinberg (EMI) ****
> 43.	Nathan Milstein/Victor de Sabata (Tahra, Archipel, Nuova Era, Arkadia) ****
> 44.	Herman Krebbers/Hein Jordans (Philips, Fontana LP) ****
> 45.	David Oistrakh/Gennadi Rozhdestvensky (1966 rec.) (EMG, Leningrad Masters, Icone) ****
> 46.	Gioconda de Vito/Wilhelm Furtwängler (Tahra, Idis, Urania, Music & Arts) ****
> 47.	Leonid Kogan/Kirill Kondrashin (1959 rec.) (EMI, Guild) ****
> 48.	Leonid Kogan/Pierre Monteux (Doremi, Melodiya) ****
> 49.	Yehudi Menuhin/Sir Adrian Boult (BBC) ****
> 50.	Leonid Kogan/Charles Bruck (Testament) ****
> 51.	Janine Jansen/Antonio Pappano (Decca) ****
> 52.	Henryk Szeryng/Pierre Monteux (RCA, JVC) ****
> 53.	Gioconda de Vito/Eugen Jochum (Tahra) ****
> 54.	Gioconda de Vito/Rudolf Schwarz (Archipel, Amare) ****
> 55.	Xue-Wei/Ivor Bolton (ASV) ****
> 56.	Ida Haendel/Sergiu Celibidache (Testament) ****
> 57.	Isaac Stern/Sir Thomas Beecham (Sony) ****
> 58.	Yehudi Menuhin/Rudolf Kempe (EMI) ****
> 59.	Arthur Grumiaux/Eduard van Beinum (Philips, Regis) ****
> 60.	David Oistrakh/Otto Klemperer (EMI) ***1/2
> 61.	Joseph Szigeti/Dmitri Mitropoulos (Music & Arts, Legend, Enterprise) ***1/2
> 62.	Jascha Heifetz /Fritz Reiner (RCA) ***1/2
> 63.	Nathan Milstein/Herbert von Karajan (Tahra) ***1/2
> 64.	David Oistrakh/Witold Rowicki (CD Accord) ***1/2
> 65.	Gioconda de Vito/Ferenc Fricsay (Audite) ***1/2
> 66.	Yehudi Menuhin/George Schneevoigt (Doremi) ***1/2
> 67.	Michael Rabin/Rafael Kubelik (Doremi) ***1/2
> 68.	Michael Rabin/Zoltan Rozsnyai (Testament) ***1/2
> 69.	Zino Francescatti/Eugene Ormandy (Biddulph, Naxos) ***1/2
> 70.	Joseph Szigeti/Eugene Ormandy (Sony) ***1/2
> 71.	Vadim Repin/Riccardo Chailly (DG) ***1/2
> 72.	Joshua Bell/Christoph von Dohnányi (Decca) ***1/2
> 73.	Henryk Szeryng/Antal Doráti (Mercury) ***1/2
> 74.	Henryk Szeryng/Rafael Kubelik (Orfeo) ***1/2
> 75.	Christian Ferras/Herbert von Karajan (DG) ***1/2
> 76.	Leonid Kogan/Vasil Stefanov (BNR) ***1/2
> 77.	Pinchas Zukerman/Daniel Barenboim (DG) ***1/2
> 78.	Albert Spalding/Wilhelm Loibner (Indie, Pearl) ***1/2
> 79.	Christian Ferras/Charles Bruck (Ina) ***1/2
> 80.	Wolfgang Schneiderhan/Karl Böhm (Urania, Opus Kura) ***1/2
> 81.	David Garrett/Zubin Mehta (Decca) ***1/2
> 82.	Anne-Sophie Mutter/Herbert von Karajan (DG) ***1/2
> 83.	Arthur Grumiaux/Ernest Ansermet (Andromeda) ***1/2
> 84.	Nathan Milstein/István Kertész (Music & Arts) ***1/2
> 85.	Ossy Renardy/Charles Munch (Dutton, Pristine, Dante, Biddulph) ***1/2
> 86.	Hideko Udagawa/Sir Charles Mackerras (Chandos, Nimbus) ***1/2
> 87.	Viktoria Mullova/Claudio Abbado (Philips) ***1/2
> 88.	Herman Krebbers/Willem Mengelberg (Music & Arts) ***1/2
> 89.	Julia Fischer/Yakov Kreizberg (Pentatone) ***1/2
> 90.	Tasmin Little/Vernon Handley (EMI) ***1/2
> 91.	Boris Belkin/Iván Fischer (Decca) ***1/2
> 92.	Shlomo Mintz/Claudio Abbado (DG) ***1/2
> 93.	Ulf Hoelscher/Klaus Tennstedt (EMI) ***1/2
> 94.	Wolfgang Schneiderhan/Paul van Kempen (DG) ***
> 95.	Gidon Kremer/Leonard Bernstein (DG) ***
> 96.	Isaac Stern/Eugene Ormandy (Sony) ***
> 97.	Berl Senofsky/Sir John Barbirolli (West Hill Radio Archives) ***
> 98.	Hilary Hahn/Sir Neville Marriner (Sony) ***
> 99.	Gil Shaham/Claudio Abbado (DG) ***
> 100.	Hans Klepper/Alfred Scholz (Quintessence) ***
> 101.	Zino Francescatti/Dmitri Mitropoulos (Orfeo, Intaglio, Andromeda) ***
> 102.	Ricardo Odnoposoff/Carl Bamberger (Doremi) ***
> 103.	Elmer Oliveira/Gerard Schwarz (Artek) ***
> 104.	Arthur Grumiaux/Sir Colin Davis (Philips) ***
> 105.	Mincho Minchev/Vasil Stefanov (Vivace, Balkanton BCA) ***
> 106.	Thomas Zehetmair (Avie) ***
> 107.	Ilya Kaler/Pietari Inkinen (Naxos) ***
> 108.	Johanna Martzy/Günter Wand (Hänssler) ***
> 109.	Henryk Szeryng/Carl Schuricht (Ina) ***
> 110.	Gidon Kremer/Herbert von Karajan (EMI) ***
> 111.	Berl Senofsky/Rudolf Moralt (Forgotten Records, Historic Records) ***
> 112.	Nathan Milstein/Eugen Jochum (DG, Belart) ***
> 113.	Zino Francescatti/Leonard Bernstein (Sony) ***
> 114.	Henryk Szeryng/Erich Leinsdorf (Praga) ***
> 115.	Philippe Hirschhorn/Jiri Starek (Doremi) ***
> 116.	Uto Ughi/Wolfgang Sawallisch (RCA) ***
> 117.	Zino Francescatti/Erich Leinsdorf (Music & Arts) ***
> 118.	Takako Nishizaki/Stephen Gunzenhauser (Naxos) ***
> 119.	Leonid Kogan/Pavel Kogan (Yedang) ***
> 120.	Maxim Vengerov/Daniel Barenboim (Teldec) ***
> 121.	Zino Francescatti/Ernest Bour (Hänssler) ***
> 122.	Henryk Szeryng/Bernard Haitink (Philips) ***
> 123.	Siegfried Borries/Max Fiedler (Music & Arts) ***
> 124.	Endre Wolf/Anthony Collins (World Record Club) ***
> 125.	Leonidas Kavakos/Riccardo Chailly (Decca) **1/2
> 126.	Julian Rachlin/Mariss Jansons (Warner) **1/2
> 127.	Sarah Chang/Kurt Masur (EMI) **1/2
> 128.	Lisa Batiashvili/Christian Thieleman (DG) **1/2
> 129.	Antje Weithaas (CAvi-Music) **1/2
> 130.	David Nadien/Vilem Sokol (Cambal d'amour) **1/2
> 131.	Thomas Zehetmair/Christoph von Dohnányi (Teldec) **1/2
> 132.	Aaron Rosand (Vox) **1/2
> 133.	Pinchas Zukerman/Zubin Mehta (RCA) **1/2
> 134.	Eduard Grach/Kirill Kondrashin (Russian Compact Disc) **1/2
> 135.	Susanne Lautenbacher/Robert Wagner (Vox, Family Library of Great Music) **1/2
> 136.	Viktor Tretyakov/Yuri Temirkanov (Brilliant Classics) **1/2
> 137.	Viktor Tretyakov/Vladimir Fedoseyev (Revelation, Olympia) **1/2
> 138.	Alexei Bruni/Ilmar Lapinsch (EMG) **1/2
> 139.	Joseph Swensen (Linn) **1/2
> 140.	Vladimir Spikakov/Yuri Temirkanov (RCA) **1/2
> 141.	Renaud Capuçon/Daniel Harding (Erato) **1/2
> 142.	Kyung Wha Chung/Simon Rattle (EMI) **1/2
> 143.	Itzhak Perlman/Daniel Barenboim (EMI) **1/2
> 144.	Raphaël Oleg/Libor Pešek (Denon) **1/2
> 145.	Jacques Thibaud/Jean Fournet (Philips) **1/2
> 146.	Rachel Barton Pine/Carlos Kalmar (Cedille) **1/2
> 147.	Frank Peter Zimmermann/Wolfgang Sawallisch (EMI) **1/2
> 148.	Frank Peter Zimmermann/Alan Gilbert (New York Philharmonic) **1/2
> 149.	Bohuslav Matoušek/Vladimir Válek (Stradivari) **1/2
> 150.	Dmitry Sitkovetsky/Sir Neville Marriner (Hänssler) **1/2
> 151.	Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg/Edo de Waart (EMI) **1/2
> 152.	Borika van den Booren/Eduardo Marturet (Brilliant) **1/2
> 153.	Nikolaj Znaider/Valery Gergiev (RCA) **1/2
> 154.	Benjamin Schmid/Cristian Mandeal (Oehms) **
> 155.	Andrés Cárdenes/Ian Hobson (Artek) **
> 156.	Takayoshi Wanami/Adrian Leaper (IMP) **
> 157.	Ivan Czerkov/Helmut Bucher (Denon) **
> 158.	Christian Tetzlaff/Thomas Dausgaard (Virgin) **
> 159.	Katrin Scholz/Michael Sanderling (Berlin Classics) **
> 160.	Isabelle Faust/Daniel Harding (Harmonia Mundi) **
> 161.	Evgueni Bushkov/Alexander Rahbari (Discover) **
> 162.	Nigel Kennedy/Klaus Tennstedt (EMI) **


WOW that's a impressive list, would you recognize them blind folded when played?


----------



## hpowders

Classical Music Listener said:


> I have enjoyed Jascha Heiftiz/Fritz Reiner/Chicago Symphony interpretation for two years but I hear from a friend that Itzahk Perlman/Giulini/Chicago Symphony is even better.
> 
> Do members have a favorite of these two? Or, even better, is there another "best?"
> 
> I am buying another cd or two of this concerto (one of my favorites) and want to make an informed decision. I appreciate and welcome all suggestions!


I find the Heifetz to be a bit too fast. However if you like it, seek out the recording Heifetz made with Arturo Toscanini, live from Carnegie Hall. It is "slightly" more relaxed and a better Brahmsian than Toscanini would be hard to find.


----------



## wkasimer

hpowders said:


> I find the Heifetz to be a bit too fast. However if you like it, seek out the recording Heifetz made with Arturo Toscanini, live from Carnegie Hall. It is "slightly" more relaxed and a better Brahmsian than Toscanini would be hard to find.


How does the recording with Toscanini compare to the one with Koussevitzky (which Brahmsianhorn rated higher than the other Heifetz recordings)?

BTW, thanks to Brahmsianhorn for mentioning the recording with Oistrakh and Nussio - really excellent, and dirt-cheap on Amazon marketplace.


----------



## hpowders

wkasimer said:


> How does the recording with Toscanini compare to the one with Koussevitzky (which you rate higher than the other Heifetz recordings)?
> 
> BTW, thanks for mentioning the recording with Oistrakh and Nussio - really excellent, and dirt-cheap on Amazon marketplace.


You know, I've never heard the Koussevitsky.

Anyhow, I prefer a more measured, mainstream performance of the Brahms Violin Concerto.

I grew up idolizing Heifetz, but in my 20's-30's, I realized that he simply plays too fast for me.


----------



## wkasimer

hpowders said:


> You know, I've never heard the Koussevitsky.
> 
> Anyhow, I prefer a more measured, mainstream performance of the Brahms Violin Concerto.
> 
> I grew up idolizing Heifetz, but in my 20's-30's, I realized that he simply plays too fast for me.


Thanks - I got confused about who posted what . The listing was actually Brahmsianhorn's.

The Heifetz/Koussevitzky is about three minutes slower than the one with Reiner. Still on the brisk side, but more akin to Milstein's in terms of tempo. I like the concerto to move along, particularly the first movement, so for me the Heifetz/Koussevitzky is "just right".


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

hpowders said:


> You know, I've never heard the Koussevitsky.
> 
> Anyhow, I prefer a more measured, mainstream performance of the Brahms Violin Concerto.
> 
> I grew up idolizing Heifetz, but in my 20's-30's, I realized that he simply plays too fast for me.


I think the Heifetz/Koussevitzky is one of the greatest recordings ever of the work. Listen especially to the breathtaking first movement cadenza. As opposed to his later recordings with Szell and Reiner, Heifetz doesn't sound like he is playing fast just to show off his virtuosity. There is real poetry with Koussevitzky. I am not quite as enthralled with the 1935 Toscanini performance. Of course for me Toscanini is usually too driven.


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

So here is my ranked list including only stereo/studio recordings. I also included live recordings like Mutter/Masur where the sound is just as good as studio.

Among mono recordings, I would say the ones with the best sound are Oistrakh/Konwitchny and Milstein/Steinberg. They would both be in the Top 10 on this list if they were included, though I think Oistrakh/Szell and Milstein/Fistoulari are both better performances. The earliest stereo recordings are Heifetz/Reiner and Morini/Rodzinski.

Basically, I would say there are 8 must-have Brahms VC recordings:

4 historic - Huberman/Rodzinski, Kreisler/Barbirolli or Blech, Heifetz/Koussevitzky, Szigeti/Harty
4 modern - Perlman/Giulini, Oistrakh/Szell, Krebbers/Haitink, Milstein/Fistoulari

I may be biased because it is my favorite work, but can anyone think of another that has so many good choices for recordings? There are literally dozens of great recordings of this work.

(Again, my apologies to fans of Rachel Barton Pine. There obviously must be something I am not hearing.)

*Brahms Violin Concerto recordings in stereo/studio sound, ranked*

1.	Itzhak Perlman/Carlo Maria Giulini (EMI) *****
2.	David Oistrakh/George Szell (EMI) *****
3.	Herman Krebbers/Bernard Haitink (Philips) ****1/2
4.	Nathan Milstein/Anatole Fistoulari (Praga, EMI) ****1/2
5.	Erica Morini/Artur Rodzinski (DG, Westminster, Millennium) ****1/2
6.	Anne-Sophie Mutter/Kurt Masur (DG) ****
7.	Leonid Kogan/Kirill Kondrashin (EMI, Guild) ****
8.	Janine Jansen/Antonio Pappano (Decca) ****
9.	Henryk Szeryng/Pierre Monteux (RCA, JVC) ****
10.	Xue-Wei/Ivor Bolton (ASV) ****
11.	Yehudi Menuhin/Rudolf Kempe (EMI) ****
12.	Arthur Grumiaux/Eduard van Beinum (Philips, Regis) ****
13.	David Oistrakh/Otto Klemperer (EMI) ***1/2
14.	Jascha Heifetz /Fritz Reiner (RCA) ***1/2
15.	Vadim Repin/Riccardo Chailly (DG) ***1/2
16.	Joshua Bell/Christoph von Dohnányi (Decca) ***1/2
17.	Henryk Szeryng/Antal Doráti (Mercury) ***1/2
18.	Christian Ferras/Herbert von Karajan (DG) ***1/2
19.	Pinchas Zukerman/Daniel Barenboim (DG) ***1/2
20.	David Garrett/Zubin Mehta (Decca) ***1/2
21.	Anne-Sophie Mutter/Herbert von Karajan (DG) ***1/2
22.	Hideko Udagawa/Sir Charles Mackerras (Chandos, Nimbus) ***1/2
23.	Viktoria Mullova/Claudio Abbado (Philips) ***1/2
24.	Julia Fischer/Yakov Kreizberg (Pentatone) ***1/2
25.	Tasmin Little/Vernon Handley (EMI) ***1/2
26.	Boris Belkin/Iván Fischer (Decca) ***1/2
27.	Shlomo Mintz/Claudio Abbado (DG) ***1/2
28.	Ulf Hoelscher/Klaus Tennstedt (EMI) ***1/2
29.	Gidon Kremer/Leonard Bernstein (DG) ***
30.	Isaac Stern/Eugene Ormandy (Sony) *** 
31.	Hilary Hahn/Sir Neville Marriner (Sony) ***
32.	Gil Shaham/Claudio Abbado (DG) ***
33.	Elmer Oliveira/Gerard Schwarz (Artek) ***
34.	Arthur Grumiaux/Sir Colin Davis (Philips) ***
35.	Mincho Minchev/Vasil Stefanov (Vivace, Balkanton BCA) ***
36.	Thomas Zehetmair (Avie) ***
37.	Ilya Kaler/Pietari Inkinen (Naxos) ***
38.	Gidon Kremer/Herbert von Karajan (EMI) ***
39.	Nathan Milstein/Eugen Jochum (DG, Belart) ***
40.	Zino Francescatti/Leonard Bernstein (Sony) ***
41.	Uto Ughi/Wolfgang Sawallisch (RCA) ***
42.	Takako Nishizaki/Stephen Gunzenhauser (Naxos) ***
43.	Maxim Vengerov/Daniel Barenboim (Teldec) ***
44.	Henryk Szeryng/Bernard Haitink (Philips) ***
45.	Leonidas Kavakos/Riccardo Chailly (Decca) **1/2
46.	Julian Rachlin/Mariss Jansons (Warner) **1/2
47.	Sarah Chang/Kurt Masur (EMI) **1/2
48.	Lisa Batiashvili/Christian Thieleman (DG) **1/2
49.	Antje Weithaas (CAvi-Music) **1/2
50.	David Nadien/Vilem Sokol (Cambal d'amour) **1/2
51.	Thomas Zehetmair/Christoph von Dohnányi (Teldec) **1/2
52.	Aaron Rosand (Vox) **1/2
53.	Pinchas Zukerman/Zubin Mehta (RCA) **1/2
54.	Susanne Lautenbacher/Robert Wagner (Vox, Family Library of Great Music) **1/2
55.	Viktor Tretyakov/Yuri Temirkanov (Brilliant Classics) **1/2
56.	Viktor Tretyakov/Vladimir Fedoseyev (Revelation, Olympia) **1/2
57.	Alexei Bruni/Ilmar Lapinsch (EMG) **1/2
58.	Joseph Swensen (Linn) **1/2
59.	Vladimir Spikakov/Yuri Temirkanov (RCA) **1/2
60.	Renaud Capuçon/Daniel Harding (Erato) **1/2
61.	Kyung Wha Chung/Simon Rattle (EMI) **1/2
62.	Itzhak Perlman/Daniel Barenboim (EMI) **1/2
63.	Raphaël Oleg/Libor Pešek (Denon) **1/2
64.	Rachel Barton Pine/Carlos Kalmar (Cedille) **1/2
65.	Frank Peter Zimmermann/Wolfgang Sawallisch (EMI) **1/2
66.	Frank Peter Zimmermann/Alan Gilbert (New York Philharmonic) **1/2
67.	Bohuslav Matoušek/Vladimir Válek (Stradivari) **1/2
68.	Dmitry Sitkovetsky/Sir Neville Marriner (Hänssler) **1/2
69.	Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg/Edo de Waart (EMI) **1/2
70.	Borika van den Booren/Eduardo Marturet (Brilliant) **1/2
71.	Nikolaj Znaider/Valery Gergiev (RCA) **1/2
72.	Benjamin Schmid/Cristian Mandeal (Oehms) **
73.	Andrés Cárdenes/Ian Hobson (Artek) **
74.	Takayoshi Wanami/Adrian Leaper (IMP) **
75.	Ivan Czerkov/Helmut Bucher (Denon) **
76.	Christian Tetzlaff/Thomas Dausgaard (Virgin) **
77.	Katrin Scholz/Michael Sanderling (Berlin Classics) **
78.	Isabelle Faust/Daniel Harding (Harmonia Mundi) **
79.	Evgueni Bushkov/Alexander Rahbari (Discover) **
80.	Nigel Kennedy/Klaus Tennstedt (EMI) **


----------



## Jerry

My favourite recording is Ferras / Karajan / DG.

The best I have heard is Yehudi Menuhin live at the Royal Festival Hall, London, probably in the late 1970's / early 1980s. Just astonishing power and excitement.


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

Ooh, one more major recommendation. This is my favorite of Ginette Neveu's four recordings. I just found out that it got reissued last fall by SWR with a "splice" issue at the end of the first movement cadenza fixed. (Tahra has an awful sounding out-of-tune splice ruining what is otherwise one of the greatest recordings I have heard of this passage)

This is really a magical recording. Neveu was so passionate and the consummate artist. I have to add this to my above "must-have" list. In fact, toss in Busch/Munch, Zimbalist/Koussevitzky, and Ferras/Kempe as well!  Call it the Immortal 12.


----------



## Classical Music Listener

> I find the Heifetz to be a bit too fast. However if you like it, seek out the recording Heifetz made with Arturo Toscanini, live from Carnegie Hall. It is "slightly" more relaxed and a better Brahmsian than Toscanini would be hard to find.


Hpowders, I am grateful for this Toscanini recommendation. I get the "relaxed" impression while listening, and indeed, I prefer this recording to Reiner. The Carnegie hall is one of the more poetic and passionate I have heard.

I prefer ones like this: passionate, lyrical, and "relaxed."


----------



## wkasimer

hpowders said:


> Correct pairing. Wrong violinist. The finest in both concertos is the breathtakingly beautiful and passionate playing of Rachel Barton Pine.


I thought that I owned this, and spent a couple of weeks trying to find my copy among the stacks of CD's in various places at home and the office, without success. So when I saw a used copy this weekend, I bought it (and realized that it was probably mine, sold to the same store years ago).

She plays beautifully, and I like the recorded balance, but what's up with the tempo choices? While I don't like the first movement to be rushed a la Heifetz with Reiner, the first movement of RBP's recording isn't merely slow - there are many points where it loses all forward momentum and threatens to grind to a halt. There are conductors who have been able get away with extraordinarily slow tempi - Furtwangler and Giulini most notably, as well as Levine - and still maintain musical coherence. But the conductor here, Carlos Kalmar, doesn't possess that skill.


----------



## Brahmsian Colors

Animal the Drummer said:


> Exactly my nominations too. Unlike my fellow poster above I'd prioritise the Grumiaux recording, but both are excellent.


Just browsing this thread again, I noticed in my reply (post #9) to Animal the Drummer's comment above, I may have misunderstood him when I said "I agree completely". To clarify. the Szeryng/Monteux *is and has been* my number one choice. Regarding the Grumiaux/Van Beinum vs. the Oistrakh/Klemperer, I prefer the former over the latter.


----------



## Brahmsian Colors

hpowders said:


> I grew up idolizing Heifetz, but in my 20's-30's, I realized that he simply plays too fast for me.


It wasn't until my 60s that I started feeling this way about *some* of Heifetz's recordings, e.g., his Brahms Concerto with Reiner on RCA. But his playing in the Brahms Double Concerto with Piatigorsky and Wallenstein from the original RCA Soria series strikes me as a horse of a different color.


----------



## HocusPocus

Brahmsianhorn said:


> So here is my ranked list including only stereo/studio recordings. I also included live recordings like Mutter/Masur where the sound is just as good as studio.
> 
> Among mono recordings, I would say the ones with the best sound are Oistrakh/Konwitchny and Milstein/Steinberg. They would both be in the Top 10 on this list if they were included, though I think Oistrakh/Szell and Milstein/Fistoulari are both better performances. The earliest stereo recordings are Heifetz/Reiner and Morini/Rodzinski.
> 
> Basically, I would say there are 8 must-have Brahms VC recordings:
> 
> 4 historic - Huberman/Rodzinski, Kreisler/Barbirolli or Blech, Heifetz/Koussevitzky, Szigeti/Harty
> 4 modern - Perlman/Giulini, Oistrakh/Szell, Krebbers/Haitink, Milstein/Fistoulari
> 
> I may be biased because it is my favorite work, but can anyone think of another that has so many good choices for recordings? There are literally dozens of great recordings of this work.
> 
> (Again, my apologies to fans of Rachel Barton Pine. There obviously must be something I am not hearing.)
> 
> *Brahms Violin Concerto recordings in stereo/studio sound, ranked*
> 
> 1.	Itzhak Perlman/Carlo Maria Giulini (EMI) *****
> 2.	David Oistrakh/George Szell (EMI) *****
> 3.	Herman Krebbers/Bernard Haitink (Philips) ****1/2
> 4.	Nathan Milstein/Anatole Fistoulari (Praga, EMI) ****1/2
> 5.	Erica Morini/Artur Rodzinski (DG, Westminster, Millennium) ****1/2
> 6.	Anne-Sophie Mutter/Kurt Masur (DG) ****
> 7.	Leonid Kogan/Kirill Kondrashin (EMI, Guild) ****
> 8.	Janine Jansen/Antonio Pappano (Decca) ****
> 9.	Henryk Szeryng/Pierre Monteux (RCA, JVC) ****
> 10.	Xue-Wei/Ivor Bolton (ASV) ****
> 11.	Yehudi Menuhin/Rudolf Kempe (EMI) ****
> 12.	Arthur Grumiaux/Eduard van Beinum (Philips, Regis) ****
> 13.	David Oistrakh/Otto Klemperer (EMI) ***1/2
> 14.	Jascha Heifetz /Fritz Reiner (RCA) ***1/2
> 15.	Vadim Repin/Riccardo Chailly (DG) ***1/2
> 16.	Joshua Bell/Christoph von Dohnányi (Decca) ***1/2
> 17.	Henryk Szeryng/Antal Doráti (Mercury) ***1/2
> 18.	Christian Ferras/Herbert von Karajan (DG) ***1/2
> 19.	Pinchas Zukerman/Daniel Barenboim (DG) ***1/2
> 20.	David Garrett/Zubin Mehta (Decca) ***1/2
> 21.	Anne-Sophie Mutter/Herbert von Karajan (DG) ***1/2
> 22.	Hideko Udagawa/Sir Charles Mackerras (Chandos, Nimbus) ***1/2
> 23.	Viktoria Mullova/Claudio Abbado (Philips) ***1/2
> 24.	Julia Fischer/Yakov Kreizberg (Pentatone) ***1/2
> 25.	Tasmin Little/Vernon Handley (EMI) ***1/2
> 26.	Boris Belkin/Iván Fischer (Decca) ***1/2
> 27.	Shlomo Mintz/Claudio Abbado (DG) ***1/2
> 28.	Ulf Hoelscher/Klaus Tennstedt (EMI) ***1/2
> 29.	Gidon Kremer/Leonard Bernstein (DG) ***
> 30.	Isaac Stern/Eugene Ormandy (Sony) ***
> 31.	Hilary Hahn/Sir Neville Marriner (Sony) ***
> 32.	Gil Shaham/Claudio Abbado (DG) ***
> 33.	Elmer Oliveira/Gerard Schwarz (Artek) ***
> 34.	Arthur Grumiaux/Sir Colin Davis (Philips) ***
> 35.	Mincho Minchev/Vasil Stefanov (Vivace, Balkanton BCA) ***
> 36.	Thomas Zehetmair (Avie) ***
> 37.	Ilya Kaler/Pietari Inkinen (Naxos) ***
> 38.	Gidon Kremer/Herbert von Karajan (EMI) ***
> 39.	Nathan Milstein/Eugen Jochum (DG, Belart) ***
> 40.	Zino Francescatti/Leonard Bernstein (Sony) ***
> 41.	Uto Ughi/Wolfgang Sawallisch (RCA) ***
> 42.	Takako Nishizaki/Stephen Gunzenhauser (Naxos) ***
> 43.	Maxim Vengerov/Daniel Barenboim (Teldec) ***
> 44.	Henryk Szeryng/Bernard Haitink (Philips) ***
> 45.	Leonidas Kavakos/Riccardo Chailly (Decca) **1/2
> 46.	Julian Rachlin/Mariss Jansons (Warner) **1/2
> 47.	Sarah Chang/Kurt Masur (EMI) **1/2
> 48.	Lisa Batiashvili/Christian Thieleman (DG) **1/2
> 49.	Antje Weithaas (CAvi-Music) **1/2
> 50.	David Nadien/Vilem Sokol (Cambal d'amour) **1/2
> 51.	Thomas Zehetmair/Christoph von Dohnányi (Teldec) **1/2
> 52.	Aaron Rosand (Vox) **1/2
> 53.	Pinchas Zukerman/Zubin Mehta (RCA) **1/2
> 54.	Susanne Lautenbacher/Robert Wagner (Vox, Family Library of Great Music) **1/2
> 55.	Viktor Tretyakov/Yuri Temirkanov (Brilliant Classics) **1/2
> 56.	Viktor Tretyakov/Vladimir Fedoseyev (Revelation, Olympia) **1/2
> 57.	Alexei Bruni/Ilmar Lapinsch (EMG) **1/2
> 58.	Joseph Swensen (Linn) **1/2
> 59.	Vladimir Spikakov/Yuri Temirkanov (RCA) **1/2
> 60.	Renaud Capuçon/Daniel Harding (Erato) **1/2
> 61.	Kyung Wha Chung/Simon Rattle (EMI) **1/2
> 62.	Itzhak Perlman/Daniel Barenboim (EMI) **1/2
> 63.	Raphaël Oleg/Libor Pešek (Denon) **1/2
> 64.	Rachel Barton Pine/Carlos Kalmar (Cedille) **1/2
> 65.	Frank Peter Zimmermann/Wolfgang Sawallisch (EMI) **1/2
> 66.	Frank Peter Zimmermann/Alan Gilbert (New York Philharmonic) **1/2
> 67.	Bohuslav Matoušek/Vladimir Válek (Stradivari) **1/2
> 68.	Dmitry Sitkovetsky/Sir Neville Marriner (Hänssler) **1/2
> 69.	Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg/Edo de Waart (EMI) **1/2
> 70.	Borika van den Booren/Eduardo Marturet (Brilliant) **1/2
> 71.	Nikolaj Znaider/Valery Gergiev (RCA) **1/2
> 72.	Benjamin Schmid/Cristian Mandeal (Oehms) **
> 73.	Andrés Cárdenes/Ian Hobson (Artek) **
> 74.	Takayoshi Wanami/Adrian Leaper (IMP) **
> 75.	Ivan Czerkov/Helmut Bucher (Denon) **
> 76.	Christian Tetzlaff/Thomas Dausgaard (Virgin) **
> 77.	Katrin Scholz/Michael Sanderling (Berlin Classics) **
> 78.	Isabelle Faust/Daniel Harding (Harmonia Mundi) **
> 79.	Evgueni Bushkov/Alexander Rahbari (Discover) **
> 80.	Nigel Kennedy/Klaus Tennstedt (EMI) **


Impressive list, never heard half of it...I am years behind you :tiphat:


----------



## Pugg

HocusPocus said:


> Impressive list, never heard half of it...I am years behind you :tiphat:


Not only you who is behind, you can believe me.


----------



## Larkenfield

“ Isaac Stern/Eugene Ormandy (Sony) *** “

I rate it much higher, at least ****, because of Stern’s gorgeous tone and Ormandy’s warm support, especially in the second movement. Stern was in his prime. Brahms hit the ball completely out of the park with this fabulous concerto and he didn’t need steroids.


----------



## DavidA

Larkenfield said:


> " Isaac Stern/Eugene Ormandy (Sony) *** "
> 
> I rate it much higher, at least ****, because of Stern's gorgeous tone and Ormandy's warm support. Stern was in his prime. Brahms hit the ball out of the park with this fabulous concerto!


I have this but prefer Oistrakh's tone.


----------



## Jan Snauwaert

Brahmsianhorn said:


> So here is my ranked list including only stereo/studio recordings. I also included live recordings like Mutter/Masur where the sound is just as good as studio.
> 
> Among mono recordings, I would say the ones with the best sound are Oistrakh/Konwitchny and Milstein/Steinberg. They would both be in the Top 10 on this list if they were included, though I think Oistrakh/Szell and Milstein/Fistoulari are both better performances. The earliest stereo recordings are Heifetz/Reiner and Morini/Rodzinski.
> 
> Basically, I would say there are 8 must-have Brahms VC recordings:
> 
> 4 historic - Huberman/Rodzinski, Kreisler/Barbirolli or Blech, Heifetz/Koussevitzky, Szigeti/Harty
> 4 modern - Perlman/Giulini, Oistrakh/Szell, Krebbers/Haitink, Milstein/Fistoulari
> 
> I may be biased because it is my favorite work, but can anyone think of another that has so many good choices for recordings? There are literally dozens of great recordings of this work.
> 
> (Again, my apologies to fans of Rachel Barton Pine. There obviously must be something I am not hearing.)
> 
> *Brahms Violin Concerto recordings in stereo/studio sound, ranked*
> 
> 1.	Itzhak Perlman/Carlo Maria Giulini (EMI) *****
> 2.	David Oistrakh/George Szell (EMI) *****
> 3.	Herman Krebbers/Bernard Haitink (Philips) ****1/2
> 4.	Nathan Milstein/Anatole Fistoulari (Praga, EMI) ****1/2
> 5.	Erica Morini/Artur Rodzinski (DG, Westminster, Millennium) ****1/2
> 6.	Anne-Sophie Mutter/Kurt Masur (DG) ****
> 7.	Leonid Kogan/Kirill Kondrashin (EMI, Guild) ****
> 8.	Janine Jansen/Antonio Pappano (Decca) ****
> 9.	Henryk Szeryng/Pierre Monteux (RCA, JVC) ****
> 10.	Xue-Wei/Ivor Bolton (ASV) ****
> 11.	Yehudi Menuhin/Rudolf Kempe (EMI) ****
> 12.	Arthur Grumiaux/Eduard van Beinum (Philips, Regis) ****
> 13.	David Oistrakh/Otto Klemperer (EMI) ***1/2
> 14.	Jascha Heifetz /Fritz Reiner (RCA) ***1/2
> 15.	Vadim Repin/Riccardo Chailly (DG) ***1/2
> 16.	Joshua Bell/Christoph von Dohnányi (Decca) ***1/2
> 17.	Henryk Szeryng/Antal Doráti (Mercury) ***1/2
> 18.	Christian Ferras/Herbert von Karajan (DG) ***1/2
> 19.	Pinchas Zukerman/Daniel Barenboim (DG) ***1/2
> 20.	David Garrett/Zubin Mehta (Decca) ***1/2
> 21.	Anne-Sophie Mutter/Herbert von Karajan (DG) ***1/2
> 22.	Hideko Udagawa/Sir Charles Mackerras (Chandos, Nimbus) ***1/2
> 23.	Viktoria Mullova/Claudio Abbado (Philips) ***1/2
> 24.	Julia Fischer/Yakov Kreizberg (Pentatone) ***1/2
> 25.	Tasmin Little/Vernon Handley (EMI) ***1/2
> 26.	Boris Belkin/Iván Fischer (Decca) ***1/2
> 27.	Shlomo Mintz/Claudio Abbado (DG) ***1/2
> 28.	Ulf Hoelscher/Klaus Tennstedt (EMI) ***1/2
> 29.	Gidon Kremer/Leonard Bernstein (DG) ***
> 30.	Isaac Stern/Eugene Ormandy (Sony) ***
> 31.	Hilary Hahn/Sir Neville Marriner (Sony) ***
> 32.	Gil Shaham/Claudio Abbado (DG) ***
> 33.	Elmer Oliveira/Gerard Schwarz (Artek) ***
> 34.	Arthur Grumiaux/Sir Colin Davis (Philips) ***
> 35.	Mincho Minchev/Vasil Stefanov (Vivace, Balkanton BCA) ***
> 36.	Thomas Zehetmair (Avie) ***
> 37.	Ilya Kaler/Pietari Inkinen (Naxos) ***
> 38.	Gidon Kremer/Herbert von Karajan (EMI) ***
> 39.	Nathan Milstein/Eugen Jochum (DG, Belart) ***
> 40.	Zino Francescatti/Leonard Bernstein (Sony) ***
> 41.	Uto Ughi/Wolfgang Sawallisch (RCA) ***
> 42.	Takako Nishizaki/Stephen Gunzenhauser (Naxos) ***
> 43.	Maxim Vengerov/Daniel Barenboim (Teldec) ***
> 44.	Henryk Szeryng/Bernard Haitink (Philips) ***
> 45.	Leonidas Kavakos/Riccardo Chailly (Decca) **1/2
> 46.	Julian Rachlin/Mariss Jansons (Warner) **1/2
> 47.	Sarah Chang/Kurt Masur (EMI) **1/2
> 48.	Lisa Batiashvili/Christian Thieleman (DG) **1/2
> 49.	Antje Weithaas (CAvi-Music) **1/2
> 50.	David Nadien/Vilem Sokol (Cambal d'amour) **1/2
> 51.	Thomas Zehetmair/Christoph von Dohnányi (Teldec) **1/2
> 52.	Aaron Rosand (Vox) **1/2
> 53.	Pinchas Zukerman/Zubin Mehta (RCA) **1/2
> 54.	Susanne Lautenbacher/Robert Wagner (Vox, Family Library of Great Music) **1/2
> 55.	Viktor Tretyakov/Yuri Temirkanov (Brilliant Classics) **1/2
> 56.	Viktor Tretyakov/Vladimir Fedoseyev (Revelation, Olympia) **1/2
> 57.	Alexei Bruni/Ilmar Lapinsch (EMG) **1/2
> 58.	Joseph Swensen (Linn) **1/2
> 59.	Vladimir Spikakov/Yuri Temirkanov (RCA) **1/2
> 60.	Renaud Capuçon/Daniel Harding (Erato) **1/2
> 61.	Kyung Wha Chung/Simon Rattle (EMI) **1/2
> 62.	Itzhak Perlman/Daniel Barenboim (EMI) **1/2
> 63.	Raphaël Oleg/Libor Pešek (Denon) **1/2
> 64.	Rachel Barton Pine/Carlos Kalmar (Cedille) **1/2
> 65.	Frank Peter Zimmermann/Wolfgang Sawallisch (EMI) **1/2
> 66.	Frank Peter Zimmermann/Alan Gilbert (New York Philharmonic) **1/2
> 67.	Bohuslav Matoušek/Vladimir Válek (Stradivari) **1/2
> 68.	Dmitry Sitkovetsky/Sir Neville Marriner (Hänssler) **1/2
> 69.	Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg/Edo de Waart (EMI) **1/2
> 70.	Borika van den Booren/Eduardo Marturet (Brilliant) **1/2
> 71.	Nikolaj Znaider/Valery Gergiev (RCA) **1/2
> 72.	Benjamin Schmid/Cristian Mandeal (Oehms) **
> 73.	Andrés Cárdenes/Ian Hobson (Artek) **
> 74.	Takayoshi Wanami/Adrian Leaper (IMP) **
> 75.	Ivan Czerkov/Helmut Bucher (Denon) **
> 76.	Christian Tetzlaff/Thomas Dausgaard (Virgin) **
> 77.	Katrin Scholz/Michael Sanderling (Berlin Classics) **
> 78.	Isabelle Faust/Daniel Harding (Harmonia Mundi) **
> 79.	Evgueni Bushkov/Alexander Rahbari (Discover) **
> 80.	Nigel Kennedy/Klaus Tennstedt (EMI) **


I miss so many great interpretations in this list. Though I would say it is amazing nevertheless to have listened to so many recordings of Brahms' violin concerto. I only give two examples of extraordinary violinists who don't appear in this ranking: Shoji Sayaka (my absolute favorite); Julia Fischer.


----------



## Cortot

Definitely Bronislaw Huberman. 

The closest interpretation of my dream. Also certified by the composer  Brahms cried and admired when Huberman played this concerto as a kid. I didn't listen to this concerto too much because I couldn't find interpretation I wanted, Huberman gave what i wanted.


----------



## 20centrfuge

I'm not one who always samples EVERYTHING in a search of the holy grail. When I find one that feels excellent, I usually live with it for a while unless I'm really a connoisseur of that composer. 

So in the case of this piece I heard the Itzhak Perlman recording and have really loved it. It is gorgeous! So, finding nothing lacking I haven't listened to others.


----------



## flamencosketches

20centrfuge said:


> I'm not one who always samples EVERYTHING in a search of the holy grail. When I find one that feels excellent, I usually live with it for a while unless I'm really a connoisseur of that composer.
> 
> So in the case of this piece I heard the Itzhak Perlman recording and have really loved it. It is gorgeous! So, finding nothing lacking I haven't listened to others.


The Perlman/Giulini/Chicago is indeed phenomenal. However, I discovered the Heifetz/Reiner/Chicago right around the same time and my Brahms VC listening has been dominated by the latter in the time since. But I reckon the Perlman is no lesser.


----------



## Mandryka

I wouldn't want to give the impression that I've ever given more than a second's thought to this concerto, but I get the feeling that some Brahms type people often say that Mengelberg/Krebbers is a bit special. Anyway, you can judge for yourself.


----------



## Allegro Con Brio

Cortot said:


> Definitely Bronislaw Huberman.
> 
> The closest interpretation of my dream. Also certified by the composer  Brahms cried and admired when Huberman played this concerto as a kid. I didn't listen to this concerto too much because I couldn't find interpretation I wanted, Huberman gave what i wanted.


Yes, it certainly has an intoxicating, soulful gypsy atmosphere.

I have to give my overall first vote to Oistrakh/Klemperer, but I don't mind me some Perlman/Giulini either for a dark, brooding, searching interpretation.


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

Mandryka said:


> I wouldn't want to give the impression that I've ever given more than a second's thought to this concerto, but I get the feeling that some Brahms type people often say that Mengelberg/Krebbers is a bit special. Anyway, you can judge for yourself.


IMO the 1973 Krebbers/Haitink is better in both sound and interpretation. In fact I now rank it the top choice for stereo versions ahead of even Perlman and Oistrakh.


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

My top four choices regardless of sound quality:


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

And top four choices in modern sound:


----------



## NLAdriaan

Brahmsianhorn said:


> And top four choices in modern sound:


Modern sound? The most 'modern' recording of this selection is 43 years old.


----------



## DaddyGeorge

NLAdriaan said:


> Modern sound? The most 'modern' recording of this selection is 43 years old.


Modern means that in addition to cracking, you can also hear the violin... 
Sorry for the awkward joke, I don't want to open Pandora's box called Old recording bias.


----------



## premont

NLAdriaan said:


> Modern sound? The most 'modern' recording of this selection is 43 years old.


Relatively modern sound, compared to the sound of the shellac age.


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

DaddyGeorge said:


> Modern means that in addition to cracking, you can also hear the violin...
> Sorry for the awkward joke, I don't want to open Pandora's box called Old recording bias.


I have 163 Brahms Violin concerto recordings loaded onto my iphone, dating from 1927 thru 2016. Pretty much have heard it all and base my preferences on the performance, nothing else.

Incidentally, the newest one I loaded, Janine Jansen, is very good.


----------



## wkasimer

NLAdriaan said:


> Modern sound? The most 'modern' recording of this selection is 43 years old.


I assume that "modern" means "stereo". The reality is that the recordings that Brahmsianhorn referenced above may be more than 40 years old, but they still sound fine, with sonics that are no impediment to enjoyment. I've heard no shortage of truly dreadful digital recordings made in the last decade, and plenty of recordings made in the late 50's that put them to shame.


----------



## wkasimer

Brahmsianhorn said:


> Incidentally, the newest one I loaded, Janine Jansen, is very good.


That's one of my favorites, too. Pappano on the podium doesn't hurt.


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

The 1960 Milstein/Fistoulari has fantastic sound. There are some who lament that recording quality isn't what it was back then.


----------



## DaddyGeorge

Brahmsianhorn said:


> I have 163 Brahms Violin concerto recordings loaded onto my iphone, dating from 1927 thru 2016. Pretty much have heard it all and base my preferences on the performance, nothing else.
> 
> Incidentally, the newest one I loaded, Janine Jansen, is very good.


It was just a joke (a little sarcastic, I admit), as explained. I do not question your personal preferences.


----------



## realdealblues

Off the top of my head I have:

Anne-Sophie Mutter/Herbert Von Karajan
Arthur Grumiaux/Eduard Van Beinum
Arthur Grumiaux/Colin Davis
Christian Ferras/Herbert Von Karajan
David Oistrakh/Franz Konwitschny
David Oistrakh/Otto Klemperer
David Oistrakh/George Szell
Frank Peter Zimmerman/Wolfgang Sawallisch
Gidon Kremer/Herbert Von Karajan
Gidon Kremer/Leonard Bernstein
Henryk Szeryng/Antal Dorati
Henryk Szeryng/Pierre Monteux
Itzhak Perlman/Carlo Maria Giulini
Itzhak Perlman/Daniel Barenboim
Jascha Heifetz/Fritz Reiner
Leonidas Kavakos/Riccardo Chailly
Nathan Milstein/Eugen Jochum
Pinchas Zukerman/Zubin Mehta
Sarah Chang/Kurt Masur
Thomas Zehetmair/Christoph Von Dohnanyi
Yehudi Menuhin/Wilhelm Furtwangler
Zino Francescatti/Leonard Bernstein

I honestly like most of them for different reasons. Grumiaux/Beinum, Perlman/Giulini and Oistrakh/Klemperer or Szell are probably my personal favorites but I like having a nice variety.


----------



## flamencosketches

Brahmsianhorn said:


> My top four choices regardless of sound quality:


I've been curious about this one for some time. With how much I've been enjoying Heifetz's RCA recordings lately, it may be time to "strike while the iron's hot" and pick up this one. But then again... do I really need a 5th Brahms VC recording? (It will be the 6th actually-just remembered that I have Oistrakh/Klemperer/ORTF en route to me... in all fairness, I ordered this one for the Mozart Sinfonia Concertante).

Of the recordings I have, I rate them thus:

Perlman/Giulini/Chicago
Heifetz/Reiner/Chicago
Oistrakh/Konwitschny/Dresden
Hahn/Marriner/ASMF

... but I enjoy them all, and all for different reasons. It's not every day that I'm in the mood to hear this work, but it is a great one. No clue why I've felt the need to acquire so many recordings, but what can you do.


----------



## DaddyGeorge

realdealblues said:


> Off the top of my head I have:
> 
> Anne-Sophie Mutter/Herbert Von Karajan
> Arthur Grumiaux/Eduard Van Beinum
> Arthur Grumiaux/Colin Davis
> Christian Ferras/Herbert Von Karajan
> David Oistrakh/Franz Konwitschny
> David Oistrakh/Otto Klemperer
> David Oistrakh/George Szell
> Frank Peter Zimmerman/Wolfgang Sawallisch
> Gidon Kremer/Herbert Von Karajan
> Gidon Kremer/Leonard Bernstein
> Henryk Szeryng/Antal Dorati
> Henryk Szeryng/Pierre Monteux
> Itzhak Perlman/Carlo Maria Giulini
> Itzhak Perlman/Daniel Barenboim
> Jascha Heifetz/Fritz Reiner
> Leonidas Kavakos/Riccardo Chailly
> Nathan Milstein/Eugen Jochum
> Pinchas Zukerman/Zubin Mehta
> Sarah Chang/Kurt Masur
> Thomas Zehetmair/Christoph Von Dohnanyi
> Yehudi Menuhin/Wilhelm Furtwangler
> Zino Francescatti/Leonard Bernstein
> 
> I honestly like most of them for different reasons. Grumiaux/Beinum, Perlman/Giulini and Oistrakh/Klemperer or Szell are probably my personal favorites but I like having a nice variety.


Thank you! 
I also don't just have a few favorites. I really like that concerto and and when I want to listen to it I usually choose a recording that I haven't heard in a long time. 
Overall, I don't quite understand the clear preferences and even absurdly rankings (not only) for this Concerto. Usually (especially in the past) really only the great artists could record it. I enjoy the diversity in approach, the difference in sound. Amazing variety of solo instruments, what violin sounds best?! Phrasing, interaction with the orchestra, the variability of dynamics and tempos, often quite different. But I don't have a strong vision how it should be played. When I listen, I don't pretend to be a member of the jury, and I don't award points. If the performer can support his notion with his artistry and devotion (which happens almost always), let him play his own ideas. 
So, I think recordings (at least most of them) are mainly different, not better or worse...


----------



## flamencosketches

^That's interesting. I also find that this is a work where I feel comfortable listening to a different recording each time rather than sticking with one "go-to", which is not always the case for me. I definitely don't plan on becoming like Brahmsianhorn whose CDs of this work number in the hundreds. But I do think there is value in having several different recordings, perhaps more so than other works-there is something about the concerto form that rewards differences in interpretation, and _especially_ w/r/t the Brahms concertos.

It seems that David Oistrakh saw the Brahms VC as something of a "signature piece" for him. I wonder if there's any quote out there where he discusses his relationship with this piece, from an interview or something. He definitely plays it like no other. Listening now to the DG recording w/ Konwitschny & the Staatskapelle Dresden, I'm starting to think that this might actually be my favorite of them all, if only for the excellent solo part. The sound is not at all bad for '50s mono.


----------



## larold

Looks like I'm the only one that likes Kennedy and Tennstedt on EMI. I originally saw this on video and was taken by it. It is the slowest traversal in the catalog, I believe, at about 46 minutes.

There's a lot not to like, I agree. Kennedy's violin seems recessed in the recording, far more so than he may sound on a stage. The CD was short shrift too with nothing more than the concerto on the CD.

However, having heard it all other versions seem impatient to me, and the leisurely interpretation gives me more to enjoy.


----------



## realdealblues

DaddyGeorge said:


> Thank you!
> I also don't just have a few favorites. I really like that concerto and and when I want to listen to it I usually choose a recording that I haven't heard in a long time.
> Overall, I don't quite understand the clear preferences and even absurdly rankings (not only) for this Concerto. Usually (especially in the past) really only the great artists could record it. I enjoy the diversity in approach, the difference in sound. Amazing variety of solo instruments, what violin sounds best?! Phrasing, interaction with the orchestra, the variability of dynamics and tempos, often quite different. But I don't have a strong vision how it should be played. When I listen, I don't pretend to be a member of the jury, and I don't award points. If the performer can support his notion with his artistry and devotion (which happens almost always), let him play his own ideas.
> So, I think recordings (at least most of them) are mainly different, not better or worse...


When it comes to Violin, Cello, Piano, etc. Concertos or Sonatas where you get a much more personal account because our focus is generally on the soloist and often the soloists play quite differently I find it hard to narrow it down to one and only listen to that one recording. I prefer to have a wide variety and it's rare for me to listen to the same recording more than once in a year. I will usually just pick one at random that I haven't heard in a long time. There are some guys like Grumiaux whose tone I just happen to really love so maybe I reach for one of his recordings more frequently when going through violin recordings, but I still like to have contrasting views.

There are some works that I have specific favorites that I usually reach for on a consistent basis but usually they are large scale orchestra pieces and my focus is more on the general flow of the work, but even still have I have like 50 Beethoven Symphony Cycles and while I do have a couple of strong favorite cycles I will still usually grab one I haven't heard in a while just for a different interpretation, sound, execution, etc.


----------



## Brahmsianhorn

flamencosketches said:


> I've been curious about this one for some time. With how much I've been enjoying Heifetz's RCA recordings lately, it may be time to "strike while the iron's hot" and pick up this one. But then again... do I really need a 5th Brahms VC recording? (It will be the 6th actually-just remembered that I have Oistrakh/Klemperer/ORTF en route to me... in all fairness, I ordered this one for the Mozart Sinfonia Concertante).
> 
> Of the recordings I have, I rate them thus:
> 
> Perlman/Giulini/Chicago
> Heifetz/Reiner/Chicago
> Oistrakh/Konwitschny/Dresden
> Hahn/Marriner/ASMF
> 
> ... but I enjoy them all, and all for different reasons. It's not every day that I'm in the mood to hear this work, but it is a great one. No clue why I've felt the need to acquire so many recordings, but what can you do.


It's interesting. I revere Heifetz's 1939 version with Koussevitzky, and yet I am not a fan at all of his RCA version with Reiner, which I find cold and uninvolved. How does this make sense with the same violinist? Well, maybe it has more to do with the guy at the podium. I noted this interesting review of the Naxos CD on Amazon.com which likewise admires the Koussevitzky Brahms but contrasts it with the Beethoven under Toscanini. There are of course similarities in approach between Toscanini and Reiner.

_In the Beethoven, Toscanini's famous penchant for brisk tempi and strict, unbending rhythm sometimes results in superficiality and severely limits the soloist's freedom and flexibility, but Heifetz's charm and elegance make the Finale effervescent. By contrast, the Brahms under Koussevitzky is expansive, intense, urgent, dramatic, warm, fiery, and very free; the slow movement is inward, leisurely, and ecstatic, the Finale exuberant. The performance should lay to rest the image of Heifetz as a cold, impersonal player, an impression originally created by his restrained appearance on stage._


----------



## DavidA

larold said:


> Looks like I'm the only one that likes Kennedy and Tennstedt on EMI. I originally saw this on video and was taken by it. It is the slowest traversal in the catalog, I believe, at about 46 minutes.
> 
> There's a lot not to like, I agree. Kennedy's violin seems recessed in the recording, far more so than he may sound on a stage. The CD was short shrift too with nothing more than the concerto on the CD.
> 
> However, having heard it all other versions seem impatient to me, and the leisurely interpretation gives me more to enjoy.


I remember Kennedy in his juvenile way told everyone he was going to "Cheer up old Brahms!" My goodness though, the lethargic performance is anything but cheerful!


----------



## Geoff48

Menuhin/Kempe. Somehow the potential fragility of Menuhin’s technique is just right for this Concerto. Not that he has any major problems in this recording. I know many prefer his more youthful version with Furtwangler but somehow I feel that he gets better support from Kempe.
There are many other great records of the Brahms, Oistrakh with Klemperer really strong and magisterial, the sweetness of Perlman with Giulini to name two of my favourites but it is Menuhin to whom I always return


----------

