Sibelius - Violin Concerto [Vengerov/ Barenboim-Chicago Symphony Orchestra]
What a wonderful Violin Concerto this is, it could well turn out to be my most favourite of all eventually, this is a nice and logical coupling, i feel the Nielsen is hugely underrated, and this is only the second time i've given this disc a spin, but already i like it a lot, i've had a degree of problems with Vengerov in the past, he can be a bit slap happy with his playing, certainly wayward, but on this listen he's really quite inventive, bringing out fresh sonorities and colours, he can be a bit slow in places, lingering too long on some melody, especially in the first movement, but his ideas are still well worth listening to, ann enjoyable experience.
Maxim Vengerov is Russian, he was born in 1974, making him 37 today, still relatively young, he made this recording in 1996, the front booklet pic is a good one [by Frans Jansen], a stark white background, but it effectively makes the subjects stand out all the more, especially the red lettering of their names, a nice splash of colour.
Well all of this Concerto was fantastic, the opening movement was thrilling, but it was the rapt intensity of the second slow movement that got me,
Here's Maxim Vengerov playing the second movement Adagio Di Molto on YouTube, with Daniel Barenboim conducting.
