The Week in Reviews, Op. 406: Jaewon Wee; Karen Gomyo; Kerson Leong & Livia Sohn
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.
Violinist Jaewon Wee.
Jaewon Wee won first prize in the first Dallas International Violin Competition and performed the Sibelius Violin Concerto with the Dallas Chamber Symphony.
- The Dallas Morning News: "Her white-hot performance of the Sibelius Violin Concerto certainly defied the cliche of this as cool Nordic music. Her technical command was astonishing, from gutsy scrubbings and speed-of-light runs to sweet lyricism and pinpoint pianissimos on high."
Karen Gomyo performed the Brahms Violin Concerto with The Festival Orchestra at the Mainly Mozart Festival in San Diego.
- San Diego Reader: "...violinist Karen Gomyo play(ed) the bejeezus out of the Brahms Violin Concerto. I cannot imagine a better performance."
Kerson Leong and Livia Sohn performed Pärt’s Tabula Rasa and other works, along with the Balourdet Quartet, at the Rockport Chamber Music Festival.
- Boston Musical Intelligencer: " Leong and Sohn played off each other, almost like birds calling out from arboreal perches, comparing their days as the sun sank."
Maya Shankar delivered the commencement address at the Juilliard School in May.
- The Washington Post: "Look for opportunities to practice imaginative courage, remember that why you do something is more important than what you do and, whenever possible, try and seek out awe."
Paul Huang performed Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy with the Taiwan Philharmonic at David Geffen Hall in New York City (in April).
- The Strad: "A nearly imperceptible beginning to Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy exploded with emotion in just moments in the expert hands of violinist Paul Huang. His masterful bow control and fast vibrato contributed to a rich, sustained sound in the first movement."
Isabelle Faust performed Mozart with violist Antoine Tamestit...
- The Strad: "The pair’s Mozart was delightfully shaped, the unison start to K424 played in a sotto voce that made you feel as if you were eavesdropping on an intimate conversation."
Anne-Sophie Mutter performed Mozart’s First Violin Concerto with the Boston Symphony Orchestra (in April).
- The Strad: "Her reading was characterised by masterful character contrasts and fine execution; the first cadenza was played with confidence and grace, while the double-stops were pristine in intonation and balance. "
Please support music in your community by attending a concert or recital whenever you can!
You might also like:
- The Week in Reviews, Op. 405: Sirena Huang, Hilary Hahn, Jeremy Black
- The Week in Reviews, Op. 404: Stella Chen; Leila Josefowicz; William Hagen
- The Week in Reviews, Op. 403: Vadim Gluzman, Frank Huang, Augustin Hadelich
Replies
Richard, having heard her playing live, I'd agree that is the wrong verb, though they seemed to be attempting to praise her playing....
Richard, observou bem o comentário desprepositado.
Cada violinista acaba por ter a sua própria técnica. E somente quem é violinista sabe bem o que digo.
Ninguém supera ninguém na música. Cada violinista dá o ser melhor contributo possível.
A música agradece.
" Esfregadela corajosa" de facto é um comentário desprepositado e infelizmente triste.
Pergunto será por acaso o Dallas Morning News, não estará na altura de rever os seus artigos?
Thank you for your comments, Laurie and Paolo. It seems that we are broadly in agreement that this will have been a fine performance by an eminent young violinist, who served the Sibelius concerto well. That concerto is of course one of the Olympian heights in its genre.
The Dallas Morning News reviewer is not writing a hostile review, but clumsy (careless?) word choices have created a situation where some readers find the quoted section of the review saying more about the reviewer than the performer. I don't know the Dallas Morning News - I live thousands of miles from Dallas - so I am unaware of its reputation or circulation numbers. But surely a local newspaper in a city such as Dallas with its fine symphony orchestra would ensure that its music reviewer had the passion, art and skill to do the music and a young and promising soloist justice?
@Paulo Arruda: Could you, or possibly another v.com member, give us an English translation for your post? Then more of the audience can "hear" the whole dialogue and get the continuity of replies. See this page, item 5. Thanks.
This article has been archived and is no longer accepting comments.
Violinist.com is made possible by...
Dimitri Musafia, Master Maker of Violin and Viola Cases
Johnson String Instrument/Carriage House Violins
Laurie's Books
Discover the best of Violinist.com in these collections of editor Laurie Niles' exclusive interviews.
Violinist.com Interviews Volume 1, with introduction by Hilary Hahn
Violinist.com Interviews Volume 2, with introduction by Rachel Barton Pine
June 28, 2023 at 07:19 PM · The Dallas Morning News surely made a mistake when it commended Jaewon Wee for 'gutsy scrubbings': what an unfortunate and (surely) inaccurate phrase!