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Sibelius - Violin Concerto /De Falla - Nights in the Gardens of SpainRating:
Release Date: 03 July, 2000 Retail Price: $24.99 OUR Price: $22.99 You SAVE: $2.00! Cast: Complete Cast (5 total) |
Sibelius - Violin Concerto /De Falla - Nights in the Gardens of Spain Reviews
Sibelius as Sibelius would have wanted it
Sibelius was a failed virtuoso violinist. He poured his love for the violin into this concerto, which is full of difficulties beyond his own ability as a performer. It is a virtuoso concerto in the Romantic tradition, and in Vengerov it has found the ideal interpreter. Whether or not you find the visuals off-putting is a matter of personal taste (I don't mind them, while I can't stand Joshua Bell's affectations). For me what makes this an outstanding performance is Vengerov's uncanny ability to play the music like he owns it, like he means every single note in every single phrase, and thereby honoring Sibelius's idea of what a violin can do better than Sibelius himself could manage. Personal taste aside, that's *compelling*.
AND... as if that weren't enough, he throws in not one but two encores, Bach's Sarabande and Ysaye's Ballade, that he plays with just as much gusto. Difficulties melt away and the music just comes across, raw and full of power. I admit I'm biased--I think Vengerov is the most dynamic young player alive--but really, if you're a violinist or a fan of violin music, you owe it to yourself to see it and then make up your own mind.
Not exactly what I had expected
I got this DVD because I was really interested to see Vengerov whom I had not seen before, plus Sibelius Violin Concerto is one of my favourite pieces. However I was rather disappointed. Of course he gave a very high level performance of the piece but I wouldn't describe it as a wonderful one. I actually enjoyed his encores of Ysaye and Bach much more. The impression I got while watching was "wow, it is a very difficult piece but he's managing it! Kind of rough in the last movement though. Especially the scales of thirds". It is especially unpleasant to see Vengerov plays. Looks like playing the violin is a very hard thing to do (well, of course it is impossible to play the violin but you might not want to show it). Vengerov may visually appear rather impressive to some people but if you have even seen Vadim Repin, Shmuel Askenazi, or Itzhak Perlman play, you will understand why I am not so crazy about Vengerov. But anyway, what do I know? He is undoubtledly a very fine violinist.
More Customer Reviews (9 total)
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