For the Record, Op. 255: Renaud Capuçon; Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective; Tosca Opdam

September 29, 2023, 5:39 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!

Violinist Renaud Capuçon. Photo by Benjamin Decoin.

Mozart: The Violin Concertos
Renaud Capuçon, violin
Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, Capuçon conducting

Assuming the dual role of soloist and director, Capuçon turned to the subtle musical complexities of the Mozart violin concertos armed with a feeling for their spontaneity and a determination to bring them to life in the moment. Recorded last September at Lausanne’s Théâtre de Beaulieu, the 2-CD album also includes the Rondo in C major K 373 and Adagio in E major K 261. BELOW: Mozart: Violin Concerto No. 5 in A Major, K. 219: I. Allegro aperto

Transfigured
Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective

Known for its championship of neglected repertoire, the Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective presents a programme of works by members of the Second Viennese School, based around Schoenberg’s Verklärte Nacht. Schoenberg composed the work in 1899, on holiday with his friend and fellow composer Alexander Zemlinsky and Zemlinsky’s sister, Mathilde, whom Schoenberg would marry two years later. Zemlinsky’s "Maiblumen blühten überall," for soprano and string sextet, was never completed, intended originally to be a much larger work. Webern studied composition with both Zemlinsky and Schoenberg, this album includes his Piano Quintet may. Alma Schindler was another pupil of Zemlinsky, one with whom he developed a deep romantic infatuation. Their relationship ended when she herself fell in love with Gustav Mahler who, when they married, famously forbade her from pursuing her career as a composer. The four songs included here (arranged for soprano and string sextet by Tom Poster) offer an intriguing glimpse of what she might have composed in other circumstances...BELOW: Trailer for the album:

Todd Mason Violin Concerto
Tosca Opdam, violin
Todd Mason, composer
Budapest Scoring Orchestra, Péter Illényi conducting

"I think the reason there are so many violin concertos is that the violin is able to sonically soar above the orchestra, and that has a very unique, beautiful sound," said LA-based composer Todd Mason, who composed his new violin concerto during the pandemic. The workd unfolds in one continuous, 24-minute movement, performed by Dutch violinist Tosca Opdam, who said, "There is a very strong narrative throughout the concerto." BELOW: The making of Todd Mason's violin concerto:

If you have a new recording you would like us to consider for inclusion in our "For the Record" feature, please e-mail Editor Laurie Niles. Be sure to include the name of your album, a link to it and a short description of what it includes.

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