Pyotr Il’yich TCHAIKOVSKY (1840-1893)
Violin Concerto in D major, Op.35 [30:32]
Julius CONUS (1869-1942)
Violin Concerto in E minor [18:21]
Pablo de SARASATE (1844-1908)
Zigeunerweisen, Op.20/1 [8:22]
Erich Wolfgang KORNGOLD (1897-1957)
Violin Concerto in D major, Op.35 [21:57]
Jascha Heifetz (violin)
Philharmonia Orchestra/Walter Susskind (Tchaikovsky)
RCA Victor Symphony Orchestra/Isler Solomon (Conus), William Steinberg (Sarasate)
Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra/Alfred Wallenstein (Korngold)
rec. July 1950, EMI Abbey Road Studio No.1, London (Tchaikovsky); December
1952, United Artists Studios, Hollywood (Conus); June 1951 (Sarasate) and
January 1953 (Korngold), Sound Stage 9, Republic Pictures, Hollywood
NAXOS HISTORICAL 8.111359 [79:12]
Mention the name of Jascha Heifetz in certain circles and you're still likely
to hear the same half-baked clichés about an excess of speed and shortage
of soul. Now, from Naxos and restoration wizard Mark Obert-Thorn, comes conclusive
proof to the contrary, if any were needed. Naxos’s invaluable Heifetz
series plants both feet in the 1950s, bringing us some of his most sensitive
and appealing recordings, including two rarities in the Heifetz discography.
There's no doubt that Heifetz tempos occasionally verged on self-parody. It
comes as some surprise, then, to hear the room afforded to the principal melody
of the Tchaikovsky concerto in this 1950 recording with Walter Susskind and
the Philharmonia, the second of his three studio recordings. It's still swift,
but Heifetz allows subtle flexibility and warm character to colour the music.
It's utterly lovely playing, with Heifetz's cheekily smudged finger-work into
the second theme [2:48] being a particular highlight - although an errant
chord from what sounds like a harp, clearly plucked by accident, invades this
unaccompanied passage. One less appealing aspect of the recording - as with
all of his studio recordings of the work - is Heifetz's inclusion of his (and
Auer's) retouched virtuoso passages which, thankfully, seem to have fallen
by the wayside in recent decades. They're totally unnecessary blemishes on
the score and, when hearing the meal that the normally faultless Heifetz makes
of the last of these 'improvements' [14:37], I'm at a loss to understand why
he chose to include them at all. In comparison with the 1937 EMI recording,
with the London Philharmonic under John Barbirolli (Naxos Historical 8.111359),
I hear a greater intensity of expression in this 1950 account, particularly
in his rhapsodic reading of the slow movement. The finale is a little less
appropriately capricious than the 1937 set, though Heifetz's exchanges with
the wind and cellos in the slower central section [from 2:33] are wonderfully
conversational. Even with the above caveats, this is one of the major Tchaikovsky
recordings and one of Heifetz's most appealing performances.
He is imploringly persuasive in a less than memorable concerto by Russian
violin virtuoso Julius Conus. This work dates from 1898 and is oddly slanted
towards the first movement, being almost totally without a finale. Apparently
a favourite of Heifetz's teacher, Leopold Auer, it's picked up a few recordings
over the years and while it is a competent work - especially in the singing
solo line - there's a dearth of memorable thematic material and some plodding
orchestration, particularly in the tutti sections. It tends towards a gloomy
Russian angst, rather like Tchaikovsky in Manfred mode. Heifetz makes
the best possible case for the solo part and both this, and the Sarasate Zigeunerweisen,
which follows, display his unmatched ability to sustain a long line at maximum
intensity. In the kitsch solemnity of Sarasate's gypsy pastiche, Heifetz impresses
holding the tension across the almost involuntary flourishes which pervade
the solo line.
Perhaps the most historically important document here is Heifetz’s only
recording of Korngold’s Violin Concerto. Heifetz pressed Korngold to
complete the concerto, which had been started some years before with another
violinist in mind. The result is a fitfully appealing work firmly rooted in
Korngold’s Hollywood style. It seems a perfect match for Heifetz’s
hyper-suave sound. Typically intense, he is sweet but urgent at the concerto’s
outset, though I yearned for something gentler in the second theme. There
are issues of production, however, which detract. The balance between soloist
and orchestra in the finale reduces the orchestra to a distant supporting
role, as though they are playing in the next room, presenting nothing like
a realistic concert balance. That’s not to say, however, that Mark Obert-Thorn
has done anything other than a fine job with these transfers, which tend to
have a greater depth than those in RCA’s Heifetz Collection,
released in the mid-1990s. Tully Potter’s expert liner-notes round off
a valuable and hugely enjoyable issue.
Andrew Morris
1950s Heifetz recordings of the highest class in vivid transfers from the
ever dependable Mark Obert-Thorn.
see also review by Jonathan Woolf