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The Week in Reviews, Op. 484: Geneva Lewis; Augustin Hadelich; Leila Josefowicz

January 21, 2025, 6:42 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. Click on the highlighted links to read the entire reviews.

Geneva Lewis performed Sibelius’ Violin Concerto in D minor with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra.

• Bach Track: "New Zealand born, USA raised violinist Geneva Lewis gave an astounding performance, her boldly confident opening theme over a hushed orchestra soon turned passionate as the brooding timpani heralded sweeping motifs from the orchestra. "
• VoxCarnyx: "Lewis’s precision approach to the Sibelius Violin Concerto, a pinnacle of the orchestral repertoire for her instrument, was exemplary. There was no lack of feeling and expression in her interpretation but it was the pin-sharp focus on every note in the score that really impressed."

Augustin Hadelich, filling in for Hilary Hahn, performed Brahms’ Violin Concerto with the Cleveland Orchestra.

• Cleveland.com: "Augustin Hadelich...was called upon on short notice this week due to Hilary Hahn’s withdrawal. Hadelich left his distinct stamp on Brahms’ Violin Concerto, swapping the usual Joseph Joachim cadenza for his own, a dazzling tour through the first movement’s principal themes....Hadelich then sent chuckles and murmurs of recognition through the crowd with his encore, his wonderfully showy arrangement of the classic fiddle tune Orange Blossom Special."

Leila Josefowicz performed Igor Stravinsky's Violin Concerto in D Major with the Princeton Symphony Orchestra, in celebration of PSO Music Director Rossen Milanov's 60th birthday.

• TAPinto Princeton: "In the thundering finale the music maintains the swirling interaction between soloist and orchestra as Josefowicz and first violinist and concertmaster Basia Danilow, engage in a brief, mischievous duet."
• NJArts.net: "One of those close friends is Josefowicz, whose intensity and verve for playing adventurous, contemporary works made the perfect match for Stravinsky’s Violin Concerto (1931)"

Isabelle Faust performed Alban Berg's Violin Concerto with the London Philharmonic.

• Bach Track: "Faust is one of today’s most acclaimed exponents of the work, and the first marvel was her near-silent pianissimo sailing effortlessly to the back of the hall; followed by the effortless technique through which she coloured her intensely-felt rhetoric, lyrical and fiery, with a panoply of poetic micro-detail." (fantastic writing in this review, it's worth a read...)

Gil Shaham, pianist Orli Shaham and cellist Sterling Elliott performed Beethoven's Triple Concerto with the Madison Symphony Orchestra.

• The Cap Times: "With vibrant energy and contagious smiles, the soloists were thrilling to watch. They looked as though they were having a most delightful time with each other and the MSO, and the joy came through in their playing, especially in moments of levity when, so moved by the music, the soloists’ smiles seemed to spill over into jubilant giggles."

Itzhak Perlman performed film score music with the Tucson Symphony Orchestra.

• Tucson.com: "In between impeccably performing music from more than a half-dozen great films with the orchestra...Perlman interacted with the audience in a way we’d never experienced before.He cracked jokes, asked us questions and made us feel like Music Hall was his living room and we were spending 45 minutes with an old friend."

Chloe Hanslip performed Phillip Glass's Violin Concerto No. 1 with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and Joseph Young.

• Bach Track: "Both Young and Hanslip found much firmer ground in the final movement, where Hanslip shone. Her bow control was very impressive, making the constant rhythmic movement look effortless."

Guido Sant’Anna performed in recital with pianist Henry Kramer for the La Jolla Music Society.

• Times of San Diego: "Powered by his 1874 Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume, Sant’Anna delivers a strong, clean tone, neither “wiry” nor overlush — expressive no question but with a mature restraint and moderate vibrato. On stage, he projects a relaxed, almost athletic poise, as if he knows there’s nothing he can’t handle."

Sophie Druml and pianist Ania Drumlperformed Mendelssohn’s Concerto for Violin and Piano with the Fargo-Moorhead Symphony Orchestra.

• InForum: "There was no sibling rivalry in sight Saturday night as Ania would occasionally look over her right shoulder approvingly at her older sister as the two smiled. They played with impeccable timing as Ania’s piano runs fed into Sophie’s violin flourishes."

Please support music in your community by attending a concert or recital whenever you can!

You might also like:

• The Week in Reviews, Op. 483: Joshua Bell; Augustin Hadelich; Ray Chen
• The Week in Reviews, Op. 482: Lisa Batiashvili, Gil Shaham, Gary Levinson
• The Week in Reviews, Op. 481: Ray Chen, Georg Kallweit, H + H Society

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