Shostakovich’s centenary
year has certainly resulted in a plethora
of events, concerts and recordings.
Naturally the violin concertos have
been to the fore in the celebrations.
A number of discs having featured the
first concerto to the extent that Erik
Levy, the critic, writing in the BBC
Music Magazine (November), feared it
might be in danger of over-exposure.
This I doubt as it is such a wonderful
work that I’m sure it can stand up to
any amount of scrutiny. It is interesting
though that it is mainly the young violinists
who have tackled it rather than the
next generation yet it includes some
fiendishly difficult passages. Even
David Oistrakh, its dedicatee, found
there were problems to overcome. It
had a difficult "birth" in
any case and was held back from publication
for seven years after it was written
in 1948 when the composer was in disgrace
with the authorities.
This concerto needs
a truly great performance to do it justice
and to reveal all its hidden depths.
This is particularly so in the passacaglia
which is full of pathos and heartfelt
outpourings of sadness and tragedy.
When you hear a great performance then
this work really speaks to you in a
very special way and remains with you
for long afterwards.
Earlier this year I
reviewed
Daniel Hope’s recording of both the
concertos and this mightily impressed
me. It seemed to me that he had really
got inside the works and had a thorough
understanding of and love for them which
shone through the performances. I found
the recording of the First absolutely
electrifying. The sound in both was
crystal clear and the violin came across
as sharp as a razor as it cut a swathe
through the orchestral backing. Hope’s
playing in the passacaglia is enough
to bring on tears. This just goes to
prove that great works like this and
great performers like him are a hugely
powerful combination vital to bring
the work off as it should be. I can’t
get enough of this disc and return to
it often. I defy anyone to get tired
of it.
At the time I reviewed
that disc I also listened to the young
Latvian violinist Baiba Skride’s disc
[review
by ED]; one she made in 2005.
On listening to it again for the purposes
of this review I have been forced to
reappraise it and have found it a most
rewarding experience. She is much better
than my first impression gave me to
believe with a beautifully crafted tone
matched by a true understanding of the
work’s eloquent statements. Her performance
is muscular with a power to really impress.
Her opening movement is full of gorgeous
playing which shows a real love for
the work and she makes it seem an easy
piece to play which it decidedly is
not. Her playing in the scherzo is brilliant,
making the spiky rhythms an exciting
listen and the breakneck finish is simply
superb. Her reading of the passacaglia
is especially moving with the feelings
of pathos and tragedy brought off with
a heart-rending and incisive accuracy
that fulfils Shostakovich’s intentions
to the musical letter. Like Daniel Hope
she makes the cadenza emerge quite naturally
and not simply seem a showy demonstration
of her art; self-evident throughout
in any case. She crowns the performance
with a thrilling burlesque that is quite
brilliant. It really is a humbling thought
that anyone could produce such playing
at only 25. She has a fantastic career
ahead of her.
Now to the subject
of this review – Sergey Khachatryan
(b.1985, Yerevan, Armenia) and his performances
of both concertos. He also finds no
difficulty in meeting the musical challenges
in the writing of the First Concerto.
In fact his playing is technically brilliant
with some breathtaking violin pyrotechnics
in the scherzo and burlesque. Overall
though I feel the performance lacks
the humanity with which Hope and Skride
managed so eloquently to imbue this
wonderful work. I get the feeling of
rather too clinical a performance. Brilliance
alone is not enough to get Shostakovich’s
musical message across. Don’t get me
wrong; he is a marvellous violinist
who will doubtless improve with age
and maturity. The fact that the engineers
have placed him too close to the mike
making the interchange between violin
and orchestra more tenuous and less
well defined than it should be, doesn’t
help. And the overall impression is
that Kurt Masur presides over a somewhat
sluggish and muddy sound at times.
The Second Concerto
is less well known and, though it doesn’t
present as many problems for the soloist,
it is, nevertheless, a beautiful work
that does not deserve to remain in the
shadow of it earlier stable-mate. When
Daniel Hope’s disc was reviewed in BBC
Music Magazine his performance of this
concerto was chosen to become the benchmark
and with good reason for it is truly
superb. In this centenary year this
performance should help it to gain the
recognition it ought to have and to
find a more regular place in concert
programmes. At this juncture I really
ought to pay the orchestra and conductor
the compliments they deserve as they
do a fantastic job in support of Hope
(in both concertos). In Shostakovich’s
works the orchestra has major statements
to make which the BBC Symphony Orchestra
achieve convincingly in spades. The
fact that it is Shostakovich’s son who
is at the helm makes for an authenticity
that is difficult for other conductors
to match. The engineers have done a
superlative job on this disc of getting
the balance absolutely perfect and the
partnership between soloist and orchestra
is ever apparent whilst the sound is
crystal clear. Finally it is the stamp
of authority that Hope manages to put
on these works that is the overriding
feeling one is left with after listening
to his performances. Here is someone
who really knows the music
and is not just using his undoubted
ability merely to play the notes.
It is difficult to single out any particular
parts to highlight but a good example
is the closing passages of the second
movement which are simply gorgeous.
Also around 6 minutes into the last
movement Hope’s brilliance is amply
demonstrated both pyrotechnically as
well as tonally. Hope dedicated his
disc to David Oistrakh but he needn’t
feel that he is in his shadow – he is
a true equal.
As with the first concerto
Khachatryan plays the second wonderfully
well and there is no lack of ability
on display – far from it. I just get
the feeling that he hasn’t yet managed
to entirely plumb the depths of these
works and to get to grips with the emotional
messages that Shostakovich programmed
into the music. I’m convinced this will
come with time and experience though
he might be forgiven for wondering what
else he has to do to "improve"
on his performances. You don’t learn
these things, I’m sure. They just
click into place one day. It’s difficult
to say anything else but I don’t want
anyone to think that this disc is to
be set aside in favour of Daniel Hope’s;
it would be worth having both. Khachatryan
is an obvious rising star whose progress
I shall watch with keen interest. His
playing is technically impeccable. It
is the emotional side that is somewhat
lacking but, as I say, it will surely
come and then he will be a force to
be reckoned with and the contests between
violinists will have reached even greater
heights than at present.
Steve Arloff
Sergey Khachatryan (violin)
