Nikolaj Znaider Performs Beethoven’s Violin Concerto

By -

Guest Conductor Osmo Vänskä with Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Great Reviews for Recent Performances with Cleveland Orchestra and Pittsburgh Symphony

Danish-born violinist Nikolaj Znaider returns to the Chicago Symphony on May 14-16 for three performances of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto under guest conductor Osmo Vänskä. Znaider’s most recent US appearances – in Miami with the Cleveland Orchestra and the Brahms concerto, and with the Pittsburgh Symphony in the less-frequently performed Korngold concerto – earned the kind of reviews most artists only dream about.

In March, Andrew Druckenbrod, music critic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, wrote:

“No one person should have the range of ability that Znaider possesses. A ravishing tone across the complete register, virtuosity for the quick and the nuanced, and artistic soul that allows him to sing out in the most compelling fashion. At 33, he already stands in an elite class of violinists worldwide.”

Znaider’s April performance of the Brahms concerto, with the Cleveland Orchestra at Miami ’s stunning new Adrienne Arsht Center , prompted the Miami Herald’s critic to observe: “the undisputed star of the evening was Nikolaj Znaider.”

The Danish violinist will perform Beethoven in Chicago , a city where he has long been a favorite. Znaider’s recording of the Beethoven concerto with the Israel Philharmonic and Zubin Mehta is described in American Record Guide as “the best performance of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto I’ve heard in over a decade.” The reviewer continues:

“[I had to re-hear] some incredibly played passages to try to figure out just exactly how Znaider did that. The supreme musicality of this performance comes partly from the consummate partnership between Znaider and Mehta. … Part comes from the utterly gorgeous instrument Znaider plays, and part from his awesome technique, particularly how he can nail pitches brightly and perfectly.”

The Washington Post wrote of Znaider’s performance of the Beethoven with the National Symphony under Iván Fischer:

“Znaider … shaped [Beethoven’s Violin Concerto] in the manner of a storyteller, starting off nearly inaudibly and then building and climbing before taking off into an inspired and beautifully ornamented narrative. … He combines his near-superhuman technique with a very human sense of song.”

After his Chicago performances, Znaider returns to London’s Barbican Hall for the Brahms Concerto with the London Symphony Orchestra and Sir Colin Davis (May 24), and, a week later, plays string sextets by Brahms and Schoenberg with the LSO Chamber Ensemble (May 31). He and Sir Colin will then give centennial performances of Elgar’s lush Violin Concerto with the Dresden State Orchestra (Staatskapelle) in Dresden and on tour to Bad Kissingen and Wiesbaden . Znaider plays a famous “del Gesù” violin that once belonged to the great Fritz Kreisler, who first performed the Elgar concerto – which was dedicated to him – nearly 99 years ago. Znaider’s recording of the work (one of the longest of Elgar’s creation) – with Sir Colin Davis and the Dresden State Orchestra – should be released just in time for the concerto’s centennial next November.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Role of Music in Opera

By -
There are numerous books on the topic, and every composer, librettist, director, singer and audience member has their opinion as to what role the music should play in an opera. In a play without music, the words ought to support the meaning behind a character's actions. However, in the case of action movies, often times the action is what tells the story and there aren't words, just images to forward the plot. We might hear music to accompany action, build tension, but the action tells the story. Musicals tend to speak until the emotion of the moment just "has" to break out in song - unless it's something like "Mama Mia" where the dialog is the rails we travel on between songs; the songs themselves, written before the concept of the musical, are the focus of the production, while the story is secondary. Operas are a different beast. The music provides emotion to the words spoken, but it also plays the role of ambience when there is only action. In ...
Read more

Episode 210b: Joyeuse le départ

By -
Image
Podcast:  Play in new window  |  Download Subscribe:  Apple Podcasts  |  Android  |  Google Play  |  Stitcher  |  TuneIn  |  RSS Provost Cunningham has Transmigrated, but to where! What is Dr Sage going to do with his body? And how can she bring home her friends, Abigail and Erasmus, without also bring home Cunningham? What are they going to say when they find the “skeleton” she’s hiding in her closet? Cast: Eddie Louise Clark  as Dr Sage Chip Clark  as Professor Savant Justin Bremer  as the Narrator Emily Riley Piatt  as Abigail Entwhistle, Calypso & Dean Stewart Written by  Eddie Louise Theme music by  Unwoman Sound Design by  Chip Michael
Read more

Teaching Composition – What are we trying to achieve

By -
In the process of learning composition I have spent time with a number of instructors who have encouraged me to write twelve-tone, pitch-class, electro-acoustic and other forms of experimental techniques. No matter how much I might understand and appreciate the work of other composers in the genres, these are not forms of music I resonate with. They are simply not forms of music I listen to and I struggle with the idea of writing them. However, in a Master Class by Libby Larsen she made the comment, “Learn them all, because all forms of music have something to offer.” This I very much agree. There are elements of each of the above mentioned forms (and others) that I do resonate with. Berg’s Violin Concerto is a beautiful twelve-tone work, although it is possible to look at numerous sections of the music with a “tonal” analysis. Another composer friend, Gary Bachlund commented that using these techniques can narrow the choices for how to compose a piece of work. If you look at ...
Read more