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For the Record, Op. 101: Vilde Frang Paganini & Schubert; Miró Quartet Complete Beethoven

November 14, 2019, 4:50 PM · Welcome to "For the Record," Violinist.com's weekly roundup of new releases of recordings by violinists, violists, cellists and other classical musicians. We hope it helps you keep track of your favorite artists, as well as find some new ones to add to your listening!

Paganini & Schubert: Works for Violin & Piano
Vilde Frang, violin
Michail Lifits, piano

Vilde Frang and pianist Michail Lifits perform works by these two violinist-composers: "Niccolo Paganini (1782-1840) was the living legend, a celebrity who revolutionized the violin. Franz Schubert (1797-1828) was a modest genius, achieving little recognition in his lifetime and yet is now acknowledged, amongst many other things, as the greatest song composer of all time, who dramatized hundreds of poems into most compelling musical storytelling," Frang wrote in her notes about the album. Both found inspiration for their violin works in the human voice. BELOW: Frang performs Grand Caprice, Op. 26, after Schubert's "Der Erlkönig."

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Musicians Seek Residuals for Recording Soundtracks for Streaming Platforms

Laurie Niles

November 13, 2019, 3:49 PM · Recording musicians are fighting for a contract that would allow them residuals from films and TV shows that are made exclusively for streaming platforms.

On Tuesday, the day that Disney launched its new DisneyPlus streaming service, members of the American Federation of Musicians (AFM) Local 47 in Los Angeles held a "Rally for Residuals" outside the Walt Disney Picture company lot. The contract is so important for recording musicians that the union has mobilized a national campaign called #BandTogether, with rallies held in Nashville and New York as well.

While directors, actors and writers do receive streaming residuals, musicians do not.
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The Week in Reviews, Op. 297: Elena Urioste; Ning Feng; Ray Chen

Laurie Niles

November 12, 2019, 1:17 PM · In an effort to promote the coverage of live violin performance, Violinist.com each week presents links to reviews of notable concerts and recitals around the world.

Elena Urioste performed Samuel Coleridge-Taylor's Violin Concerto with the Chineke! Orchestra.

theartsdesk.com: "The American violinist Elena Urioste brought the work everything it deserves: a rich, glowing tone, rhythmic panache, shedloads of charisma and a tenderness that cradled the slow movement as if it were the most precious jewel in the world, which I think it actually may be."
MusicOMH: "Elena Urioste made it...absolutely her own, displaying a lightness of touch as well as a rich tone (particularly in the low-string passages and the cadenza in the first movement) that brought out to the full the piece’s charm."

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REVIEW: Ray Chen Recital with pianist Julio Elizalde at Disney Hall

Laurie Niles

November 11, 2019, 10:19 PM · Crowd-pleasing fun dominated Ray Chen's recital with pianist Julio Elizalde at Disney Hall last Wednesday, but for me the highlight of the evening was also the most sober offering -- the "Chaconne" from Bach's Partita No. 2 in D minor for solo violin, written in the early 1700's.

Chen, a popular soloist who won first prize at the 2008 Menuhin Violin Competition and the 2009 Queen Elisabeth Competition, is known for his humorous and down-to-earth presence online -- for example, his comedy videos on Youtube, serenading a horse on Facebook, and the fact that he takes hundreds of selfies with fans after every single performance he plays.

But make no mistake, Chen has a serious side, and on that side, the Chaconne looms large. Keep reading...

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