Because there’s a rule in the music industry that all
violinists must record the Beethoven, Brahms, Violin Concerto in E minor. At Amazon I quit counting at a hundred, and I had quite
a ways to go. The point is that somebody looking for a first-choice disc or
just something to line up on the shelf next to a few first-choice discs may
find the assortment of possibilities rather daunting. And the question here is,
How does violinist Tianwa Yang’s interpretation, Maestro Patrick Gallois’s
conducting, the Sinfonia Finlandia’ playing, and Naxos’s sound stack up against
formidable competition from the likes of Perlman (EMI), Heifetz (RCA), Zukerman
(Sony), Szeryng (Philips), Chung
(Decca), Chee-Yun (Denon), and a slew of other equally recommendable folks? The
answer: Ms. Yang does all right, if maybe not quite in the highest echelon.
The still-youthful Ms. Yang, raised in China and now
residing in Germany, began playing the violin in 1991 at the age of four,
received her first media attention at the age of ten, made her first CD in 2000
at the age of thirteen, and debuted on stage in Europe in 2001. The present Mendelssohn
disc makes the eighth album in her discography, so she’s not exactly a
newcomer, and she does know what she’s doing.
Ms. Yang opens the show with the Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64, which Felix Mendelssohn
(1809-1847) premiered in 1845, his last large orchestral work. Audiences pretty
much loved it from the outset, and it’s been one of the most-popular staples of
the violin repertoire ever since. The violin enters immediately, without
introduction or fanfare, and Yang takes it head-on. Indeed, she takes all three
movements at a heady clip, outpacing all of the other recording artists I had
on hand for comparison except Heifetz, who sprints to the finish line ahead of
everyone. Not that Yang’s performance ever sounds winded or short-breathed, just
quick and lively.
Anyway, Yang has a good grasp of the situation, producing
a heady combination of excitement and passion in the faster sections and much
beauty in the slower ones. She obviously possesses a remarkable technique, and
she displays her virtuosity at every turn. Moreover, while her propensity is
for lively rhythms and zippy tempos, she leaves enough spaces in her phrasing
to allow the music to breathe freely and come alive. This isn’t a rush job but
one of accomplished dexterity in the manner of Heifetz.
The second movement glides effortlessly by with a lovely
luminosity. Then the finale exudes all the light, bouncy spirit one could hope
for, if maybe a little too much for some traditional listeners.
Mendelssohn was only thirteen when he wrote the Violin Concerto in D minor, leading some
critics to dismiss it out of hand. Nevertheless, it has its charms, not the
least being its characteristically classical tone and structure and its
slightly plaintive, sometimes melancholy solo passages. Yang continues her
emotionally compelling reading in an effective Andante and a jaunty Allegro
conclusion.
The final selection on the disc is the Violin Sonata in F minor from 1833 in
which pianist Romain Descharmes joins Ms. Yang. While neither of the disc’s
companion pieces can touch the great Violin
Concerto in E minor, they offer pleasant variety and accomplished playing,
particularly in the Sonata’s
whirlwind finish.
Naxos recorded the two concertos in 2010 at Hankasalmi
Church, Jyvaskyla, Finland, and the sonata in 2011 at Clara-Wieck Auditorium,
Sandhausen, Germany. They obtained a nicely balanced sound, the violin well
integrated with the orchestra and not completely dominating it as we sometimes
hear. The midrange appears clean, the bass adequate to the occasion, and the
dynamics steady. Maybe the sonics aren’t in the highest ranks of audiophile
stardom, but along with a moderate degree of orchestral depth, they exhibit a
welcome realism.
To hear a brief excerpt from this album, click here:
JJP
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