For the Record, Op. 274: Francesca Dego; Amalia Hall; Curtis Stewart; The Nash Ensemble

March 1, 2024, 6:57 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 Francesca Dego.

Brahms and Busoni Violin Concertos
Francesca Dego, violin
BBC Symphony orchestra, Dalia Stasevka conducting

"Recording Brahms' formidable Violin Concerto is a dream for every violinist, and particularly for me: it has been an inspiring staple on and off stage since I first performed it at age 15," said violinist Francesca Dego. "One of the reasons I fell in love with Busoni's concerto is that it is permeated with the spirit of the Brahms masterpiece. Busoni's concerto is also dedicated to Henri Petri, a student of Joachim's, and Busoni's own cadenza for the first movement of the Brahms (which I chose for this recording) uses similar lines and technical solutions to the concerto. Busoni considered himself more of a German than Italian composer, but his Italian virtuosity rings out in this joyous and demanding piece."
Francesca is based in London and plays on a 1697 Francesco Ruggeri violin. BELOW: the second movement, "Quasi andante" from Ferruccio Busoni's Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 35a.

Scharwenka: Works for Violin & Piano
Amalia Hall, violin
Christopher Park, piano

New Zealand-based violinist Amalia Hall, who is concertmaster of Orchestra Wellington and violinist of the NZTrio, presents this album of works by the Polish-German composer Philipp Scharwenka (1847-1917), a highly recognized and respected composer in his day, though less well-known now. BELOW: I. Allegro moderato from Violin Sonata in E Minor, Op. 114 by Philipp Scharwenka:

American Counterpoints
Curtis Stewart, violin
Experiential Orchestra, James Blachly conducting

This album celebrates Julia Perry’s centenary with the world premiere recording of her Concerto for Violin and Orchestra. Conductor James Blachly said the concerto is "perhaps Perry’s ultimate compositional masterpiece. It is outrageous writing for violin - virtuosic and difficult and rewarding." The album also features Perry's "Prelude for Strings," Symphony in One Movement for Violas and Basses, and "Ye, Who Seek the Truth"; as well as Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson's Sinfonietta No. 1 and "Louisiana Blues Strut" for solo violin. The project is rounded out by Curtis Stewart’s "We Who Seek." BELOW: the first movement from Julia Perry's Concerto for Violin and Orchestra:

Tchaikovsky & Korngold: String Sextets
The Nash Ensemble

"Even as a teenager, composer (Erich Wolfgang) Korngold possessed a compositional fluency and maturity which belied his youth. In contrast, Tchaikovsky feared — wholly unjustifiably — that his own creative powers to be on the wane when writing 'Souvenir de Florence.'" BELOW: the first movement "Moderato - Allegro" from Korngold's String Sextet in D major, Op. 10.

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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For the Record, Op. 274: Francesca Dego; Amalia Hall; Curtis Stewart; The Nash Ensemble

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