The Week in Reviews, Op. 522: violist Antoine Tamestit; TwoSet Violin; Lisa Batiashvili

October 22, 2025, 12:04 AM · 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.

Performing "Harold in Italy" with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra: viola soloist Antoine Tamestit and harpist Emily Levin. Photo by Todd Rosenberg, courtesy of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

Violist Antoine Tamestit performed Berlioz's "Harold in Italy" with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Klaus Mäkelä.

Chicago Classical Review: "This was the most involving Harold in Italy one is ever likely to encounter—not just because of the peripatetic Tamestit but for the romping, massively committed playing of the orchestra under Mäkelä’s direction."
Chicago Sun-Times: "(Tamestit) seemed completely at home in this work, delivering vibrant, nimble playing throughout with a handsome, lighter-than-expected sound."
Splash: "Tamestit never distracted, instead marking his romantic attendance with a recurrent theme, displaying the sensitivity, originality and connection to “the gorgeous smoky sound” of his 1672 Stradivarius, for which he is lauded."

TwoSet Violin performed their "Sacrilegious Games" concert in San Francisco at Davies Symphony Hall.

San Francisco Classical Voice: "...there was something exquisite and wonderful in hearing the names of long dead composers come out of the mouths of teenagers and tweens, eyes sparkling with joy and anticipation of attending a concert in a symphony hall."

Lisa Batiashvili performed Sibelius's Violin Concerto with Orchestre Métropolitain de Montréal and Yannick Nézet-Séguin.

Bach Track: "From the outset, Batiashvili was spell-binding, tantalisingly emerging from a mist that had been ethereally concocted by her OM companions....Batiashvili's expressive palette was exhaustive, transitioning in successive movements from magus to prima donna to mischievous imp."

Leila Josefowicz performed Stravinsky's Violin Concerto in D major
with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and Dalia Stasevska.

Bach Track: "A figure in the violin was equal parts playful and lyrical, and Josefowicz not only had total command of the difficult writing, but did so with a palpable sense of joy. There was seamless cohesion with the orchestra, with the work’s terse, aphoristic gestures tightly in sync."

Augustin Hadelich performed John Adams' Violin Concerto with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Andris Nelsons.

Boston Musical Intelligencer: "The lauded 41-year-old...made the foreign finger patterns of the Adams feel natural."

Isabelle Faust performed Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D major with the National Symphony Orchestra and Emmanuel Tjeknavorian.

Washington Classical Review: "She has the complete package of seraphic top notes, impeccable intonation, free bow arm, faultless double stops and virtuosity to burn. Passagework was never routine, but instead was impeccably phrased, and given melodic contour. She also wasn’t afraid to play with a vibrato-less tone, which is both stylistically appropriate and made the addition of vibrato a real event."

Nikki Chooi performed Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D major with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and JoAnn Falletta.

Buffalo Rising: "Nikki Chooi (say “chewy”) can play anything, and he was wonderful in this concerto. When I closed my eyes, I could hear other great violinists: the impeccable intonation of Gil Shaham, the flair of Joshua Bell, the warmth of Itzhak Perlman."

Stefani Matsuo and violist Christian Colberg performed Mozart's Sinfonia Concertante with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and Dame Jane Glover.

Cincinnati Business Courier: "...in the slow movement...Matsuo’s phrases were infused with pathos, answered with great beauty by Colberg’s viola. They used little vibrato in their cadenza, which helped to expose the emotion of the moment. Their performance had the smiling-through-tears quality that only Mozart could have written."

The Belcea Quartet performed at the University of Chicago Presents series.

Chicago Classical Review: "...such was the technical poise, seamless ensemble and interpretive insight in their stellar performances Friday night, one was left wondering if the Belcea roster has ever had a finer lineup than it does currently. Quite simply, these were stunning, world-class chamber performances, led by the Belcea’s stoic, eponymous leader (Corina Belcea) with faultless violin playing."

Maria Ioudenitch performed Prokofiev's Violin Concerto No. 1 and Sarasate's "Carmen Fantasy" with the Gonzaga Symphony Orchestra and Kevin Hekmatpanah.

The Spokesman-Review: " Judging only from what we saw on Monday night, however, it is not too soon to describe her as one of today’s most outstanding performing musicians, and a violinist who can stand comparison with the greatest."

María Dueñas performed with the National Symphony Orchestra (Dublin) and Hans Graf.

Bach Track: "The young Spanish violinist Maria Dueñas delivered a sensational performance of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D major, her poised artistry and luminous tone captivating from the first phrase."

Leonidas Kavakos performed Béla Bartók’s Violin Concerto No. 2 with the San Francisco Symphony and Jun Märkl.

San Francisco Chronicle: "Kavakos is a thoughtful musician. In the concert hall, though, his thinking can be difficult to follow, as his performance of Béla Bartók’s Violin Concerto No. 2 showed."

Chloé Kiffer performed Mozart's Violin Concerto No. 5 with Modus Operandi Orchestra and Justin Bischof.

BlogCritics: "Soloist and orchestra moved in smooth synchrony, creating sweeping landscapes of ineffable thought and emotion. Kiffer crowned the glowing first movement with a gorgeous, spectral cadenza."

Pinchas Zukerman performed Paul Ben-Haim’s Violin Concerto with the Israel Philharmonic and Lahav Shani at Carnegie Hall.

New York Classical Review: "Despite a somewhat slender tone overall, Zukerman’s saucy violin danced clear of the robust orchestration, barking low on the G string one moment and skipping in the stratosphere the next, all with precise intonation."

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Replies

Stephen Brivati

October 23, 2025 at 03:11 AM · "Kavakos is a thoughtful musician. In the concert hall, though, his thinking can be difficult to follow, as his performance of Béla Bartók’s Violin Concerto No. 2 showed."

The San Fran Chronicle is a thoughtful paper. In their critic section, they can be difficult to follow….

Richard Pairaudeau

October 23, 2025 at 04:56 PM · If the "foreign finger patterns" (Boston Musical Intelligencer) in the John Adams concerto come to the attention of the UK authorities they may find themselves deported to their country of origin!

Stephen Brivati

October 23, 2025 at 11:14 PM · Ironic that a concerto written by the first ever vice-president of the US should result in having one’s fingers deported….

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The Week in Reviews, Op. 522: violist Antoine Tamestit; TwoSet Violin; Lisa Batiashvili

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