Brahms - Violin Sonata 1 [Frank/Serkin]
Well here's my fifth review of these Brahms Sonatas this year, i'm loving these pieces, and like i've mentioned before, i have many recordings of these Sonatas, but the more the merrier if you love them, and each recording gives its own very special slant on the work.
Both Frank and Serkin give individual readings, it's as if they're purposely trying to find something different to say than the usual, on this slightly bass heavy recording, Peter Serkin's piano has a ring to it which might seem to ring in the ear too much, also the Sonata is slightly more darker and sombre than usual, mainly due to Frank not letting the violin sing sweetly, and playing a somewhat dullish tone.
The movement i enjoyed the most is the first, the opening is played a little too fast, and it misses some of the romanticism that should permeate this music, making it into more of a lament, Serkin at times can be too quiet, ending up being merely an accompanyist, certainly Frank comes across as the stronger voice, in the middle of the movement there's a nice fierce battle between violin and piano at [4:34-5:09], the music develops a nice forte, and Serkin has some exciting playing, endlessly fascinating, Brahms's Violin Sonatas are a lifetime of discovery.
You can hear Ida Haendel play this movement on YouTube.
