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The Week in Reviews, Op. 93: Gil Shaham, James Ehnes, Augustin Hadelich

August 4, 2015, 2:21 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.

Gil Shaham performed the Mendelssohn with the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

• Los Angeles Times: "In the Violin Concerto, the pleasures were straightforward. Shaham brought his gleaming tone and his boyish charm. You could see him prepare for a virtuoso passage as a high jumper might for a leap. The video screens showed the exhilaration on his face as he then met the challenge."
• Orange County Register: "His was a free, easy and limber reading, generous of bow and vibrato and also portamento. There was a digging in and relishing every bite quality to the performance, but his technique was so smooth undue aggression never entered into it."

James Ehnes performed the Barber with the Cleveland Orchestra.

• The Plain Dealer: "Ehnes, put plainly, didn't just play the music. He consumed it. Through the opening Allegro he traced the most compelling, eloquent line, only to transform in the Presto into a fierce and dazzling fiddler. By way of respite, in the Andante, he partnered with assistant principal oboist Jeffrey Rathbun in the crafting of a scene of powerful longing and depth."

Augustin Hadelich performed works by Stravinsky, Franck, and Sarasate in recital with pianist Joyce Yang.

• The Aspen Times: "Augustin Hadelich put his Stradivari Ex-Kiesewetter (1723) to extraordinary use in the evening’s recital in Harris Hall. With pianist Joyce Yang in total sync musically, they galloped joyfully through Stravinsky’s “Suite After Themes, Fragments and Pieces by Pergolesi,” a canny arrangement of the composer’s familiar Pulcinella suite, and finished the program by drawing out all the broad gestures, cycling themes and rich tonalities of the Franck Violin Sonata in A major."

Leila Josefowicz performed Francesconi’s “Duende: The Dark Notes” with the BBC Symphony Orchestra.

• The New York Times: "As ever, the soloist, Leila Josefowicz, astonished."

Ning Feng performed the Sibelius with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra.

• The Straits Times: "Berlin-based Chinese violinist Feng Ning's gentle opening notes of the Sibelius violin concerto were beautifully rounded and his performance of the rest of the concerto showed great mastery of technique and tone production."

Ariel Horowitz performed the Mendelssohn with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra .

• Washington Post: "Horowitz gave the concerto a sweetly lyrical, if somewhat methodical, performance. She took care to enunciate technical passages and excelled in the Andante’s plaintive melody."

In other news...

Gallia Kastner and Belle Ting shared first prize in the Thomas and Evon Cooper International Violin Competition in Cleveland. Joshua Brown took second.

• The Plain Dealer: "In truth, a case could be made for all three contestants earning first prize."

Hilary Hahn recently announced on Facebook:

Dear Facebook Friends,

As you may know, Hilary and her husband are eagerly awaiting the birth of their first child this summer. Hilary will then take a few short months’ leave. As such, she will not perform with the Montreal and Cincinnati symphony orchestras, the Houston Symphony, or the BBC Philharmonic in Asia this fall. She will spring back into action in mid November, resuming her 2015-16 residency activities in Vienna, and the rest of the season will continue as originally planned.

The violinists performing in her stead will be:
Montreal Symphony: Ray Chen
Houston Symphony: Simone Porter
Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra: Karen Gomyo
BBC Philharmonic tour: Viktoria Mullova and Sarah Chang

Hilary thanks all of you, the fans, the orchestras, and her colleagues, for your understanding and support during this exciting time. She wishes the performers wonderful concerts and looks forward to seeing everyone when she’s back in their cities!
-HH’s team

Alexander Treger, former concertmaster of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, will be Artistic Director of the newly formed Young Artists Symphony Orchestra (YASO). The group will be based in Los Angeles and perform at UCLA’s Royce Hall. Treger previously served as Music Director of the American Youth Symphony for 17 years. The orchestra will be open to musicians ages 15 to 26 and auditions will be held in early September.

Please support music in your community by attending a concert or recital whenever you can!

You might also like:

• Interview with Gil Shaham: Bach Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin
• Interview with Augustin Hadelich: Bartók and Mendelssohn
• Interview with Ning Feng: from China to the World Stage

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