The Week in Reviews, Op. 428: Jennifer Koh and Jaime Laredo; Geneva Lewis; Sergey Khachatryan

December 6, 2023, 12:00 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.

Violinists Jennifer Koh and Jaime Laredo. Photo by Jürgen Frank.

Jennifer Koh and Jaime Laredo performed "Two x Four" with members of the Juilliard Orchestra at the Kennedy Center's Fortas Chamber Music Series.

The Washington Post: "In Bach’s Concerto for Two Violins, Strings and Continuo in D minor (BWV 1043), Koh and Laredo seemed to tell a story about their former dynamic as student/teacher at Curtis: Koh’s lines were bright, lively and piquant; Laredo’s rustic and leathery. Trading lines and smiles, they played the hell out of it. At one point, Koh even kicked off her heels."

Geneva Lewis performed Kaija Saariaho’s "Graal Théâtre" with Parlando.

New York Classical Review: "The soloist was the superb violinist Geneva Lewis, who captured all of the haunting virtuosity of the piece with her exquisite playing."

Sergey Khachatryan performed Aram Khachaturian’s Violin Concerto in D Minor with the Armenian National Philharmonic Orchestra.

The Armenian Mirror-Spectator: "This composition featured Khachtryan, with several solo interludes, playing with exquisite precision and powerful emotion."

Chloé Kiffer performed Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s Violin Concerto with the Modus Operandi Orchestra.

New York Classical Review: "Violinist Chloé Kiffer returned the favor with rhapsodic bowing, whether in legato or staccato modes, and purity of tone. In the first movement, she maintained a lyrical intimacy in contrast to the orchestra’s bold expression of its theme."

Bella Hristova performed Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1 with the Sedona Symphony.

Sedona Red Rock News: "Her playing remained clear and precise even as the violin expressed its yearning over the ominous tones of the ensemble."

Ji Won Kim performed Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra.

Limelight: "This was a beautifully conceived and well-shaped rendition of this masterpiece – strong, pure toned and expressive. The playing was consistently spontaneous sounding with a tender poignant slow movement and light sparkling finale that even more so than usual reflected the composer’s mastery in his ‘fairy music’ mode."

Miclen LaiPang performed the world premiere of Lansing McLoskey’s Violin Concerto with the Frost Symphony Orchestra.

South Florida Classical Review: "With LaiPang playing with a singing, strong tone, flow was the strength of the piece, especially the opening half where the music seemed to represent icebergs on the ocean, slowly approaching and melding with each other."

Cellist Pei-Jee Ng performed Shostakovich’s First Cello Concerto with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra.

bachtrack: "He’s an enormously expressive soloist, with clever phrasing, such as the way he deliberately leaned into the fourth note of the first movement’s D-S-C-H theme, giving it an extra punch just as the motto tailed off."

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Christian Lesniak

December 7, 2023 at 05:04 AM · I saw the Isidore Quartet last week, playing Mozart's Dissonance Quartet, Billy Childs' 2nd Quartet and Beethoven's 15th, and they seemed to have made some kind of Isabelle Faustian bargain in their approach to the classics.

There didn't seem to be much cohesion in the sound for the Mozart. The cello and viola had a really nice sound, and seemed to be using a subtle vibrato, but the first violinist stuck out of the texture by often eschewing vibrato, or turning it off and on seemingly at random, which tended to break up the phrasing - I understand that in Mozart's time, the dimmer switch had not yet been invented, and that a vibrato that you suddenly turn on at the end of the note better reflects the light switches of his day, but it's a pretty grating affectation. Without vibrato, his tone was really thin and strident. I thought he must be having a bad day or something, and that surely when they switch violinists at halftime, the other violinist will be better suited in the Beethoven. The non-vibrato approach occassionally exposed some intonational issues, but this would end up being more prominent in the Beethoven.

I was utterly confused at how well they played the Billy Childs' quartet, "Awakening", which very effectively paints a picture of a health crisis his wife had, her hospital stay, and her convalescence. It's full of extended techniques like passages in harmonics, Bartok pizz, and a whole lot of effects that are used very effectively. My confusion came because immediately, the quartet played much more in sync, with a unified and very beautiful sound, and full vibrato. I had to wonder why they didn't bring this approach to the Mozart, which I thought would have been very effective; in any case, they made great advocates for this piece, which I had never heard before.

After intermission, the violinists switched, and the effect was largely the same; a thin and strident tone in the first violin, some intonational issues, and the same kind of off-on-off vibrato; have they been under the thrall of Isabelle Faust or some other post-modern violinist? But the cellist and violist continued to play with really lovely sounds, and I was particularly impressed with the richness of the violist's tone. Some of the sections of the Beethoven benefit from a non-vibrato approach, but this really put the intonation issues under a spotlight. It doesn't have to feel like a long piece, but it did that evening.

It seemed puzzling to me that both violinists seemed to be playing this way on purpose. However, I did listen to them playing this same Beethoven Quartet in the 2022 Banff competition on Youtube (which they won), and in that video, I thought they played much better, with a nice sound from all players, and without the intonation issues.

Maybe it was an off night or they've just been touring for a bit, but I really hope that they aren't moving in some kind of historical direction with their Mozart and Beethoven, because it seems like these guys are talented. I hope they figure out their approach, because I was not convinced.

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The Week in Reviews, Op. 428: Jennifer Koh and Jaime Laredo; Geneva Lewis; Sergey Khachatryan

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