Edward Elgar: Violin Concerto; Ralph Vaughan Williams: The Lark Ascending (2004)
Hilary Hahn, violin; London Symphony Orchestra; Sir Colin Davis, conductor
EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 291 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 151 Mb | Scans ~ 165 Mb
Classical | Label: Deutsche Grammophon | # 00289 474 5042 | Time: 01:06:04
Hilary Hahn, violin; London Symphony Orchestra; Sir Colin Davis, conductor
EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 291 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 151 Mb | Scans ~ 165 Mb
Classical | Label: Deutsche Grammophon | # 00289 474 5042 | Time: 01:06:04
Elgar’s Violin Concerto has a certain mystique about it independent of the knee-jerk obeisance it has received in the British press. It probably is the longest and most difficult of all Romantic violin concertos, requiring not just great technical facility but great concentration from the soloist and a real partnership of equals with the orchestra. And like all of Elgar’s large orchestral works, it is extremely episodic in construction and liable to fall apart if not handled with a compelling sense of the long line. In reviewing the score while listening to this excellent performance, I was struck by just how fussy Elgar’s indications often are: the constant accelerandos and ritards, and the minute (and impractical) dynamic indications that ask more questions than they sometimes answer. No version, least of all the composer’s own, even attempts to realize them all: it would be impossible without italicizing and sectionalizing the work to death.