These two violin concertos comprise some of the finest music for violin and orchestra written in the 20th century. They are very different: the First Concerto (1916) is one of the richest, most decadently gorgeous pieces in the string repertoire; the Second, composed a decade and a half later, has a rugged, earthy, but no less colorful and appealing character, the result of the composer’s late interest in Polish folk music. Both have been recorded with reasonable frequency, even though they are hardly as popular or frequently performed as they deserve to be.
This new release should win them many friends, if only because it stands a good chance of remaining available longer than many previous issues. Ilya Kaler is an excellent violinist, and he handles the First concerto’s ridiculously high tessitura with complete confidence, secure intonation, and a consistently voluptuous tone. Antoni Wit follows him every step of the way. Tempos, both here and in the Second concerto, are a bit slower then Danczowska’s reference edition on CD Accord, but the extra time allows both soloist and conductor to pay particular attention to details of harmony and orchestral color. Certainly the performance never drags or degenerates into a sort of perpetual, dreamy reverie, as sometimes happens in this evocative work.
Kaler adopts an aptly vigorous, gutsy approach to the rhythmically charged Second concerto, taking care to highlight its fertile melodic invention and comparatively extravert character. There’s an odd rule in classical music that anything called “No. 2” must be considered less significant than a “No. 1”, but the fact is that many listeners may find this piece easier to grasp on a first listen owing to its less rhapsodic, “stream of consciousness” musical language.
The early, impressionistic Nocturne and Tarantella makes an extremely attractive encore, and the sonics, as usual from this source, are very good. I can very easily recommend this disc as a first choice, especially if you find it difficult (or too expensive) to snag the Danczowska/Kord. The performances are distinctive enough in any case to warrant the attention of anyone who cares about this composer. [5/3/2007]
