Partita No. 2 in D minor BWV 1004 for solo violin [32:34]
Ludwig van BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)
Violin Sonata in A minor Kreutzer Op. 47 [39:12]
Henryk WIENIAWSKI (1835 - 1880)
Scherzo-Tarantelle Op. 47 [4:38]
Johannes BRAHMS (1833-1897)
Hungarian Dance No. 1 in G minor arr. Joseph Joachim [3:17]
Maxim Vengerov (violin)
Itamar Golan (piano)
rec. live, 5 April 2012, Wigmore Hall, London. DDD
WIGMORE HALL LIVE WHLIVE0056 [79:52]
Maxim Vengerov’s returned to the concert hall in 2011 after a four
year break to recuperate from injury and devote himself to conducting. This
CD preserves his first appearance at the Wigmore Hall following resumption
of his solo violin career. On the evidence of this performance he has lost
little of the magic which had previously seen him widely acknowledged as
the greatest violinist in the world. All the old sweetness and fire are
in evidence. The rich, sumptuous tone is intact, the intonation is impeccable
and the breath-taking agility remains unimpaired. The best evidence for
that is to be found in the variations of Op. 47 but the whole programme
bespeaks Vengerov’s triumphant return to form.
The programme is ideal, bringing together two German show-pieces for violin
and a wonderful pair of encores, one sparkling and exploiting the violin’s
upper register, the other capitalising on its darker sonorities. I particularly
like the way the mood of the Partita is carried over into the Kreutzer
by the latter’s multiple-stopped introduction which seems to be both
Beethoven’s deliberate homage to the older master and the harbinger
of the arrival of a new voice.
The recording acoustic is a little over-resonant for my taste but this was,
after all, a live concert in the Wigmore Hall and despite the reverberation
details such as the clicking of piano keys and the violinist’s breathing
emerge very clearly. There is no audience noise or applause but no evidence
of any subsequent patching. Vengerov’s long-time accompanist Itamar
Golan is evidently a superb pianist, a worthy partner to a musician who,
on this showing, we may still - or is it once again? - call “the world’s
greatest violinist”.
Ralph Moore
A triumphant return to form.
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