The Week in Reviews, Op. 191: Ray Chen, Eli Matthews, Gil Shaham

July 31, 2017, 2:45 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.

Ray Chen performed the Mendelssohn with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

Chicago Tribune: "Mendelssohn’s E minor Violin Concerto, a sweetly innocuous warhorse in less caring hands, turned out to be a dazzling calling card for the preternaturally gifted Chen, returning to Ravinia after his recital debut there in 2011."

Ray Chen. Photo by Tom Doms.

Eli Matthews performed Paganini's Violin Concerto No. 1 with the Cleveland Orchestra.

The Plain Dealer: "With his dashing performance of Paganini's Violin Concerto No. 1, he set straight all who think of the orchestra only in the aggregate, who forget that any one of its 100-plus members could step into the spotlight at any moment... It was a display not only of great technical skill but also of great heart, of rare musical emotion. In short, one could not help but be moved."

Gil Shaham performed the John Williams Violin Concerto with Los Angeles Philharmonic.

Los Angeles Times: "Shaham was right on target, sustaining the lines affectionately, even bringing some mischief to the brief scherzo-like eruption in the second movement."

Anne Akiko Meyers performed Piazzolla's Four Seasons of Buenos Aires and Corigliano's Lullaby for Natalie with the Eastern Music Festival.

CVNC: "Accompanying Meyers was the Grammy award winning guitarist Jason Vieaux in a 'world premiere' arrangement (of Lullaby for Natalie). This is indeed a gorgeous piece and a marvelously intimate arrangement, perhaps the best of the lot because of the tenderness of the two instruments. The gentle performance completely mesmerized the audience."

Alina Ibragimova performed Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 1 with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra and Bartok's Second Violin Concerto with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra.

New Zealand Herald: "Bartok's Second Violin Concerto was the object of Alina Ibragimova's charismatic artistry. We may have been lured into this 1938 work with placid major chords but, within a page, we were transfixed by the soloist's often fiery narrative."

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