Comparative recordings of Elgar’s Violin Concerto

[Rach3]

A 45-minute discussion of recordings historic and recent I found helpful for a work still a bit of an enigma to me. The “winner” Kennedy and Rattle .

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m00113t1 ( At about 32:00 in )

[maestrob]

A 45-minute discussion of recordings historic and recent I found helpful for a work still a bit of an enigma to me. The “winner” Kennedy and Rattle .

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m00113t1 ( At about 32:00 in )

Not surprising, considering it's the Beeb!

Interestingly, there are very few non-British recordings of Elgar's masterwork. Frankly, it was a tough sell for me as well, but Elgar's music has grown on me since several decades have passed.

[Rach3]

Frankly, it was a tough sell for me as well, but Elgar's music has grown on me since several decades have passed.

Same here. I do find his Violin Sonata and Piano Quintet and String Quartet attractive , in addition to the wonderful Cello Concerto and "Enigma" Variations and "Pomp and Circumstance" marches, but remain lukewarm about the Violin Concerto and his 2 symphonies.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2X96YaspfK0 (Violin Sonata)


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eANZvTL ... 1qoNZ6z0sU (Quintet and Quartet)

[maestrob]

Frankly, it was a tough sell for me as well, but Elgar's music has grown on me since several decades have passed.

Same here. I do find his Violin Sonata and Piano Quintet and String Quartet attractive , in addition to the wonderful Cello Concerto and "Enigma" Variations and "Pomp and Circumstance" marches, but remain lukewarm about the Violin Concerto and his 2 symphonies.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2X96YaspfK0 (Violin Sonata)


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eANZvTL ... 1qoNZ6z0sU (Quintet and Quartet)

Elgar's chamber music is very fine, I agree. I've been extolling the virtues of the slow movement of his Piano Quintet here since I joined.

I've got a live recording of II with Sir Adrian from the 1970's that would knock your socks off on a BBC free CD that I play every year. Also, Barenboim really taught his Berlin Staatskapelle how to play both symphonies during the past decade. It's true though, like Vaughan-Williams, American conductors (except Andre Previn who was really of German/Jewish background) just don't get Elgar.

For historical performances, I'm drawn to Elgar's own electrical recordings that were brilliantly remastered by pressing vinyl copies from the original stampers: the sound is amazingly good for a 1990's restoration, sold originally on gold CDs. They're now available in a single box for very reasonable.

As for the Violin Concerto, I agree with the BBC that Kennedy's version is quite good, but it doesn't draw me in as much as the symphonies and the cello concerto do.

The Enigma Variations are incredibly clever IMHO.

The kicker: I sang Sea Pictures back in my 30's. I love the recording that Dame Janet made with Barbirolli.

All that said, I still don't quite grasp his choral music.





This title just came out, so I have yet to hear it. We'll see how she does:

[barney]

All that said, I still don't quite grasp his choral music.

Brian, it's quite simple. You put the score on the table, grasp the left page with your left hand, and with the thumb and forefinger of your right hand you turn the pages as appropriate. Even I can grasp that.

[maestrob]

All that said, I still don't quite grasp his choral music.

Brian, it's quite simple. You put the score on the table, grasp the left page with your left hand, and with the thumb and forefinger of your right hand you turn the pages as appropriate. Even I can grasp that.

I guess I missed that class at Juilliard!