Ida Haendel (1928–2020) was one of the violin legends of the 20th century, a true individual whose seven-decade performing career reached back to the golden age of violin playing. This 3-CD collection brings together concertos by Brahms, Mendelssohn, Tchaikovsky, Dvorák, Khachaturian and Bartók, all of which Haendel played during the years leading up to 1967 under the baton of Hans Müller-Kray and the Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart. These recordings are among the most valuable treasures in today’s SWR archive.

[Haendel]: "it is little short of scandalous that a violinist of such mastery should have made so few recordings over the years." (Gramophone) "with Haendel's incredibly assured tone and technical mastery, she could perform the instrumental equivalent of the singer's telephone book and still entrance listeners." (Classics Today) [Hassid]: "a peerless technique and an arresting and frequently original interpretative approach. His technical security and cleanness of attack are awesome, his tone at once vibrant, virile and indescribably pure and sweet." (Brian Crimp)

The world-renowned violinist Ida Haendel CBE (1928-2020) was born in Poland, a child prodigy whose career spanned seven decades. She studied with the greatest teachers of the time, Carl Flesch and George Enescu. Haendel made her London debut playing the Brahms Concerto at the Royal Albert Hall Promenade concerts in 1937, to great acclaim. The association with the Proms was lifelong and resulted in 68 appearances there. At the outset of war she moved to the UK, before finally settling in the US. Her close affinity with the Sibelius Violin Concerto drew praise from the composer, while her performances of the Brahms, Elgar and Britten concertos were of the very highest quality. She toured widely under such great conductors as Sir Thomas Beecham, Sir Adrian Boult, Sergiu Celibidache, Bernard Haitink, Otto Klemperer, Raphael Kubelik, Charles Munch, Sir Georg Solti, Lorin Maazel and Zubin Mehta. She died at her home in Miami aged 92.