The Week in Reviews, Op. 26: Stefan Jackiw, Nicolas Kendall, Leila Josefowicz in concert

Written by Robert Niles
Published: April 8, 2014 at 5:47 PM [UTC]

In an effort to promote the coverage of classical music, each week Violinist.com brings you links to reviews of notable violin performances from around the world. We'd love to hear about any recent concerts and recitals you've attended, too. Or just tell us what you think about these reviews!

Stefan Jackiw performed the Mendelssohn with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra

• Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: "The performance demonstrated the violinist's virtuosity, as well as his ability to forgo it for the sake of stirring lyricism."
• Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "Violinist Stefan Jackiw quickly established Friday night why he has been a sought-after soloist since he was 12."

Nicolas Kendall performed Brubeck's "Spontaneous Combustion" with the Cape Cod Symphony Orchestra

• Cape Cod Times: "The emotional showpiece of the…concert was certainly (Chris) Brubeck's "Spontaneous Combustion," a jam-session violin concerto written for firebrand fiddler Nicolas Kendall."

Aisslinn Nosky and Christina Day Martinson performed the Bach Double with the Handel and Haydn Society

• Boston Globe: "Nosky and violinist Christina Day Martinson took up the solo parts with vigor and ample technique but not always a palpably shared or complementary interpretive vision."
• Boston Classical Review: "The constant intertwining of lines in the string orchestra and between the two soloists on Friday was a puzzle to the listener’s ear and the night’s severest test of playing together without a conductor."
• Portland Press Herald: "Every voice was so clearly stated that one could follow Bach’s polyphonic structure perfectly, wondering at the same time about the mind of a man who could improvise a five-part fugue for Frederick the Great after traveling all day in a post-chaise."

Leila Josefowicz performed the Adams with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra

• Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: "Josefowicz played with a spot-on blend of fire and control, delivering even the most jaw-dropping technical passages with complete command."

Kristian Winther performed the Rautavaara with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra

• The Sydney Morning Herald: "Kristian Winther gave a fine account fronting Rautavaara's Violin Concerto, an excellent display piece through a juxtaposition of bravura and cantabile passages, with the performer's own cadenza interpolated."
• Limelight Magazine: "His Violin Concerto featured Australian soloist Kristian Winther, whose energy and ferocity was well utilised in this performance."

Christian Tetzlaff performed Shostakovich's Violin Concerto No. 1 with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra

• St. Louis Post Dispatch: "Tetzlaff was phenomenal, performing in a manner that had to be seen as well as heard in order to be believed. His technique is astonishing, as is his stamina, in a work that runs three-quarters of an hour and keeps its soloist hopping for most of that time."

Mikhail Ovrutsky performed the Korngold with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra

• The New Zealand Herald: "Ovrutsky was an agile and musicianly player. He clearly enjoyed the runaway romp of Korngold's Finale but too often a more lustrous tone would have given this luscious music the glow it needs."

Isabelle Faust performed the Berg with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra

• Herald Scotland: "The steely and sinewy soundscape of the opening set the scene for this well honed yet vital performance. (Conductor Andris) Nelsons made a great job of balancing the orchestral forces with this eloquent soloist."

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