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Brahms: Double Concerto; Schumann: Cello Concerto / Kliegel
Naxos Apr 1995
CD
$19.99

Vivaldi: Concerti For 2 Violins / Cicillini, Venturini

Tactus

$21.99 Jan 01, 2012

The concertos for two violins by Vivaldi are a lesser-known part of his oeuvre. He composed a considerable number of them, though. The 28 concertos for this scoring span almost his entire career. The first examples were included in his collection of 12 concertos which was printed as his op. 3 in 1711 under the title L'Estro Armonico. The latest concerto which can be dated is from 1740. It is not entirely clear for whom these works were intended. Some may have been written as part of Vivaldi's activities as teacher in the Ospedale della Pietà in Venice. The character of the solo parts is various, and in many cases they are so demanding that they can only be played by real virtuosos. Vivaldi was such a virtuoso himself. In his liner-notes Fabrizio Ammetto comes up with the suggestion that Vivaldi could have played them with his father, Giovanni Battista, a skilled professional violinist and probably his only formal teacher.

The roles of the two violins can greatly differ. Sometimes they play in parallel thirds, elsewhere they are involved in a contrapuntal texture with imitation. There are also episodes in which the second violin accompanies the first or vice versa. Lastly they can develop a dialogue which can take the character of cooperation or rather confrontation. The roles of the violins can change within a single concerto or even movement. That is part of the attraction of these concertos for both performers and listeners.

The programme starts with the Concerto in D (RV 513). It is one of the most virtuosic pieces and the only one which was printed - apart from the op. 3 concertos. The edition dates from 1736 but the concerto was probably written about ten years earlier. Particularly remarkable is the written-out cadenza for both violins in the last movement which includes various modulations.

The Concertos in B flat (RV 526) and in A (RV 520) belong to a collection of twelve which Vivaldi offered to the Habsburg emperor Charles VI. Unfortunately the parts of the first solo violin are missing. These have been reconstructed by Fabrizio Ammetto. The features of the violin parts in the double concertos mentioned above are helpful in the process of reconstruction. This has resulted in two beautiful concertos with a nice interplay of the two solo violins.

The Concerto in B flat (RV 764) is a reworking of a concerto for oboe and violin (RV 548). The largo is especially beautiful, with the two violins involved in an engaging dialogue supported by the basso continuo alone. The Concerto in A (RV 521) is a case of literal imitation between the two violins, and is described by Fabrizio Ammetto as "probably the result of an experiment in polychoral composition". He suggests that Vivaldi may have placed the soloists and even the tutti violins in different locations. It is a most intriguing concerto, with demanding solo parts.

The Concerto in B flat (RV 528), another reconstruction, is also known from Bach's transcription for harpsichord (BWV 980). It exists in another version, with one solo part (RV 381). It seems not quite clear which was the original version. In this version for two violins the second plays a subordinate role; in the slow movement it doesn't participate at all. The liner-notes fail to make clear what exactly has been reconstructed here. The disc ends with the Concerto in F (RV 765) which also exists in a version with violin and organ as solo instruments (RV 767). The technical demands of the soloists are limited here.

This disc is very interesting in regard to the repertoire. No fewer than three concertos (RV 528, 764 and 765) are recorded here for the first time. The fact that some concertos needed to be reconstructed makes this disc even more valuable as such pieces are obviously not often played. Fortunately the interpreters are fully up to the job; their playing is technically sound and they grasp the character of the various concertos well.

Often this kind of music is played with one instrument per part. That is not the case here: the tutti comprises four violins, two violas and two cellos; one of the latter also participates in the basso continuo. The result is a more robust sound and a larger contrast between soli and tutti. It is impossible to say which number of players is closer to the historical truth. It seems that it could vary from one place to another or from one occasion to another. I would have liked a more intimate acoustic, but that in no way diminishes my appreciation for this disc.

-- Johan van Veen, MusicWeb International

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Vivaldi: Concerti For 2 Violins / Cicillini, Venturini
Tactus Jan 2012
CD
$21.99

Wordsworth: Orchestral Music, Vol. 2

Toccata

$20.99 Aug 02, 2019

The music of William Wordsworth (1908-88) - a great-great-grandson of the poet's brother Christopher - lies downstream from that of Vaughan Williams and Sibelius; like that of his contemporary Edmund Rubbra, Wordsworth's music unfolds spontaneously, as a natural process. This second volume brings two concertos, both major works - though long forgotten, and strongly contrasted in their approach: the gritty and muscular Piano Concerto is cast in a single, tightly argued span, whereas the lyrical Violin Concerto is expansive and unhurried - and deeply touching. They are complemented by the Three Pastoral Sketches, which grow gently from understated autumnal hues to a dignified and moving climax. All three scores show an extraordinary command of orchestral color.

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Wordsworth: Orchestral Music, Vol. 2
Toccata Aug 2019
CD
$20.99

Naxos Bach Edition 3 - Bach: Harpsichord Concertos I / Hill

Naxos

$19.99 Jan 01, 2000

Bach's D minor Concerto BWV 1052 is one of his very greatest works, whether heard in its arrangements for harpsichord solo, violin solo, or even organ solo (first movement) as the prelude to one of the church cantatas. The music has a brooding, almost tragic intensity, partly the result of the tensely stern melodic material, partly due to the fact that all three movements are set in minor keys. It's also a very large work, at more than 20 minutes one of the largest of all Baroque concertos. Robert Hill gives a stunning performance of the work here, comparable to the great recording by his mentor and teacher, Gustav Leonhardt. Unlike many period instrument people, Hill's refusal to rush the outer movements gives the music an extra measure of grim strength, and his deft passagework allows every Bachian note to register with unforced clarity. He's also excellently accompanied by an orchestra of modern strings, and has selected an instrument that allows the music to cut through the accompaniment without the tone ever turning metallic. The antithesis of BWV 1052 is the sunny E major Concerto BWV 1053. It's equally well done by soloist Christoph Anselm Noll. In fact, all four soloists acquit themselves admirably, making this budget priced issue the equal of any other available version of this music. First rate. --David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

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Naxos Bach Edition 3 - Bach: Harpsichord Concertos I / Hill
Naxos Jan 2000
CD
$19.99

Paganini Played On Paganini's Violin
Dynamic Jan 2002
CD
$18.99

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BRAHMS, J.: Symphony No. 1 / Double Concerto, Op. 102 (Furtw
IDIS Oct 2008
CD
~~$16.99~~ $8.49

In Memoriam - Yehudi Menuhin - Rare Broadcast Performances

Music and Arts Programs of America

$19.99 Oct 05, 2009

None of the material on this compilation has circulated beyond the scope of Japanese and Russian imports. Disc One's centerpiece is a 1945 broadcast of the Beethoven Concerto, reproduced in dry yet full-bodied sound. Lacking the rapt introspection coloring Menuhin's 1947 commercial recording with Furtwängler, the performance still remains one of the violinist's most eloquent and cleanly played versions of a work that was with him throughout his career. Three movements from Lalo's Symphonie Espagnol follow, impressively reproduced and played with fire and brimstone by the San Francisco Symphony under Pierre Monteux's expert baton. The second disc is less persuasive. While Menuhin and fellow violin legend David Oistrakh sensitively merge in a 1958 Bach D minor Concerto (BWV 1043), one has to listen past George Georgescu's slightly plodding Enescu Philharmonic. Poor sound, however, mars an inspired 1947 Lucerne Festival pairing of Menuhin with conductor Ernest Ansermet, who leads his L'Orchestre de La Suisse Romande in Bartok's Second Violin Concerto. Fortunately, Menuhin recorded the work four times, the best of which is his first stereo version (Dorati/Minneapolis/Mercury). Disc two closes with an interview excerpt where Menuhin speaks to Frederic Maroth about Bartok as both man and musician. The booklet notes reprint Allan Kozinn's comprehensive and frank obituary on Menuhin published in the New York Times.

--Jed Distler, ClassicsToday.com

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In Memoriam - Yehudi Menuhin - Rare Broadcast Performances
Music and Arts Programs of America Oct 2009
CD
$19.99

Bach: Sonatas for Violin & Harpsichord / Butterfield, Wollston

SOMM Recordings

$24.99 ~~$32.99~~ Save 25% Mar 31, 2023

SOMM Recordings announces a double-disc set of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Sonatas for Violin and Harpsichord brilliantly performed by two virtuosos of their instruments, Adrian Butterfield (violin) and Silas Wollston (harpsichord).

The selection of eight sonatas includes six works for violin and obbligato harpsichord (BWV 1014-1019), likely composed between 1720 and 1723 during Bach’s final years in Cöthen, and the later Violin Sonatas in G major (BWV 1021) from 1732, and early (though belatedly catalogued) E minor (BWV 1023) from around 1709. Bonus tracks include three alternative movements composed for the BWV 1019 Sonata in G major that illustrate the development of Bach’s thinking in relation to sonata form and intimate musical expression. These intricately designed sonatas also serve to reveal Bach’s innovative way of employing the harpsichord’s singing voice as an equal to the violin and are surely precursors to the rich sonata tradition that emerged in the 19th century.

Butterfield and Wollston’s erudite booklet notes place the sonatas within the context of Bach’s own musical inheritance and influences while arguing for their abiding appeal: “More than 300 years after their composition, they still sound excellent, give much joy and continue to tug at the listener’s heartstrings”.

Making his SOMM debut, Silas Wollston is partnered by Adrian Butterfield, whose previous releases for the label feature him alongside London Handel Players colleagues in Handel’s Complete Sonatas & Works for Violin and Continuo with Katherine Sharman (cello) and Laurence Cummings (harpsichord), described by Early Music Review as “required listening” (SOMMCD 068); the Seven Trio Sonatas, Op.5, judged “assured and surprisingly lyrical” by Gramophone (SOMMCD 044); and Geminiani’s Complete Sonatas, Op.1 (SOMMCD 248-2), featuring performances that International Record Review declared “want for nothing in terms of technical brilliance and musical integrity”.

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Bach: Sonatas for Violin & Harpsichord / Butterfield, Wollston
SOMM Recordings Mar 2023
CD
~~$32.99~~ $24.99

Vivaldi: The Four Seasons & More on Organ & Violin / Gorol, Heinke

MDG

SACD

$24.99 Oct 21, 2022

Vivaldi's "Four Seasons" is one of the greatest evergreens of all time. The sound painting of the Venetian violin virtuoso simply casts a spell over everyone. David Gorol and Theophil Heinke go one better: Their arrangement for violin and organ makes use of the richness of sound of the queen of instruments and adds a whole new dimension to Vivaldi's already broad palette. In addition, there is the A minor Concerto, which Bach had already transferred to the organ. The fact that a historical jewel, the famous Trost organ in Waltershausen, can also be heard in its original sound makes this brand-new Super Audio album a triple listening pleasure. Above all, Vivaldi's sound extremes are considerably expanded with the organ: it thunders and flashes in the summer thunderstorm, it's a joy; the horns blow cheerfully for the hunt, and at the latest when the birds warble in spring, one no longer wants to miss the flute stops of the listed instrument.

The adaptation is by no means trivial: the highly virtuosic violin part, which David Gorol presents on a modern instrument with somnambulistic certainty and a fine feeling for the drama of the score, remains untouched. In favor of a brilliant expression, a retuning to the historical pitch of the organ was dispensed with - a challenge for Heinke, who thus has to orchestrate in extremely unusual keys. As an encore, Gorol and Heinke also offer the distinctively arranged A minor Double Concerto. Here, the violin performs directly with the second soloists part played by the organ.

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Vivaldi: The Four Seasons & More on Organ & Violin / Gorol, Heinke
MDG Oct 2022
SACD
$24.99

J.S. BACH

WARNER CLASSICS

$17.28 Dec 27, 2024

Following his critically acclaimed Beethoven album, Nemanja Radulovic returns this fall with a terrific J.S. Bach album. Featuring the well-known Baderie as you have never heard it before, a brilliant transcription of la Sicilienne, Erbarme Dich, from Matthaus Passion, with Philippe Jaroussky, the Double concerto for oboe & violin BWV 1060, Concerto for violin in E Major BWV 1042,. Infused by a very personal and chamber music style approach, Nemanja's Bach sparkles. Gramophone about Beethoven: "For me, though, it's the Violin Concerto that's the prize on this disc. It's a dazzling, profoundly personal interpretation, and I'm already completely obsessed with it."

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J.S. BACH
WARNER CLASSICS Dec 2024
CD
$17.28

Guitar Collection - Bach: Guitar Transcriptions / Voorhorst

Naxos

$13.99 ~~$19.99~~ Save 30% Mar 01, 2002

"...intelligently scored and very well played, from the solo flute Partita in A minor BWV 1013 to the keyboard Preludes in E and C and the solo violin sonata in G minor BWV 1001 (here transposed to A minor). Equally ambitious is guitarist Enno Voorhorst's transcription of the harpsichord concerto BWV 974, which originally was an oboe concerto by Alessandro Marcello... Voorhorst is unquestionably a fine musician whose mastery of the guitar in this repertoire is beyond doubt; perhaps he will offer some performances of original guitar works on his next recording. The sound is fully supportive of the solo instrumental setting and affords a natural, intimate acoustic." - David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com

"The playing is technically sound, stylishly embellished, and in general a model of refinement, taste, and restraint. Voorhorst's tone is consistently round and full." - American Record Guide

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Guitar Collection - Bach: Guitar Transcriptions / Voorhorst
Naxos Mar 2002
CD
~~$19.99~~ $13.99

Bach: Works for Harpsichord / Skowroneck

Tyxart

$20.99 May 22, 2020

J.S. Bach's 6 English Suites (BWV 806-811) were written around 1715 during Bach's time at the court in Weimar (1708-1717). In spite of their title, most of the English suites begin with a large-scale polyphonic Prelude in the style of the Italian concerto grosso, whereas most of the dance movements are written in the French manner. The Prelude of the sixth suite (BWV 811) featured on this album is preceded by a slow introduction, which gives the piece some extra length and weightiness. The Gigue of this suite is particularly challenging because of its frequent organ points that are sustained by long trills, to be played against other voices in the same hand. Technically, this texture can be seen as a precursor of the so-called "Beethoven trill". The Prelude, Fugue and Allegro in E-flat major (BWV 998), written about twenty years after the English Suites, were conceived for "lute or harpsichord". Written in the soothing key of E-flat major, these pieces evoke a pastoral mood. The final selection on this recording (Suite) is Gustav Leonhardt 's (1928-2012) G minor arrangement of the second Violin Partita in D minor (BWV 1004). This transposed version makes exquisite use of the harpsichord's sonoraus potential. The famous Ciaccona, well known from a number of famous transcriptions for piano, concludes this suite. The harpsichord played on this recording was made in 1976 by Martin Skowroneck (1926-2014) after an original two-manual harpsichord from 1728 by Christian Zell. The instrument's plectra are made of bird's quill.

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Bach: Works for Harpsichord / Skowroneck
Tyxart May 2020
CD
$20.99

Bach: Trio Sonatas

IBS Classical

$16.99 ~~$21.99~~ Save 20% Jun 20, 2025

This CD illustrates how present-day musicians can arrange Bach's compositions in accordance to his teachings, beyond the narrow limits set by the ideal of fidelity to the score. With good criteria, Il Maniatico Ensemble has arranged the six sonatas BWV 525 to 530, originally intended for organ, adapting them to an ensemble consisting of oboe, keyboard (harpsichord or organ), and cello. Johann Sebastian Bach himself is a good example of this conception of the musical work, far from the conceptual changes introduced by Romantic aesthetics. His arrangements of pieces by others and by himself are well known. He arranged concertos by Vivaldi, Marcello, and Telemann for organ; he turned oboe and violin concertos into harpsichord concertos; he transformed movements of concertos into cantata choruses; he reused and adapted vocal compositions in order to include them in other vocal compositions, etc. The present recording includes one of these arrangements by Bach himself. It is a version of the BWV 1030 sonata in B minor for flute and obbligato harpsichord, a work that is central to the flute players' repertoire canon. An autograph score by Bach himself of the sonata BVW 1030 for flute and harpsichord is preserved, and presumably he wrote it around 1736/37, during Bach's last years as conductor of the Collegium Musicum in Leipzig.

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Bach: Trio Sonatas
IBS Classical Jun 2025
CD
~~$21.99~~ $16.99

Herbert von Karajan - The Early Lucerne Years

Audite Musikproduktion

$20.99 ~~$27.99~~ Save 25% Sep 15, 2023

For the first time; this edition makes available Herbert von Karajan's previously unpublished early live recordings from the Lucerne Music Festival - made in a decade in which Karajan was rebuilding his career. Included are legendary soloists such as Clara Haskil and Géza Anda; Robert Casadesus and Nathan Milstein. The Lucerne International Music Festival (today's Lucerne Festival) was the first organiser outside Austria to engage Herbert von Karajan after his ban from performing and denazification proceedings; thus enabling him to return to the international podiums. "I will never forget that," Karajan later confessed. For almost four decades; from 1948 to 1988; he was to make his mark on Lucerne Festival. His annual guest appearances with the Berlin Philharmonic (from 1958) enjoyed cult status. But already in the decade before; which this edition documents; Karajan thrilled audiences and critics alike in Lucerne and quickly rose to become the defining artistic personality alongside Wilhelm Furtwängler: with the Philharmonia Orchestra and the Vienna Symphony Orchestra; but above all on the podium of the Swiss Festival Orchestra; which he held in high esteem and which he conducted in a total of nine concerts.

The preserved Lucerne live recordings range from Bach's C major Concerto for Two Keyboard Instruments BWV 1061 (with Clara Haskil and Géza Anda) to Arthur Honegger's Symphonie liturgique. The exciting; rhythmically tightly formed interpretations show Karajan to be an extremely form-conscious; textually faithful conductor of great expressive power. He spurs his orchestras on to top performances; but also acts as a sensitive and at the same time extremely present accompanist - for example in Brahms' Violin Concerto with Nathan Milstein or in Mozart's dramatically pointed C minor Concerto K. 491 with Robert Casadesus. As a digital bonus; the edition includes Bach's Mass in B minor; which Karajan celebrated at the end of the 1951 festival with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra; the Vienna Singverein and a top-class quartet of soloists (Elisabeth Schwarzkopf; Elsa Cavelti; Ernst Haefliger and Hans Braun): a stylistically distant; but nevertheless fascinating audio document due to Karajan's very personal approach. The sound of the live recordings on the 3-CD box set has been carefully restored. The 62-page; trilingual booklet contains essays by Wolfgang Rathert and Erich Singer on Karajan's new career start in the post-war years and on his special relationship with Lucerne Festival. It contains numerous previously unpublished photos.

REVIEW:

Included among the contents of this set are quite a few gems. Most unexpected but welcome is Brahms’s Violin Concerto with Nathan Milstein. Karajan and his Swiss Festival Orchestra are fully ablaze, Milstein’s tone typically lean and sinewy. Overall, this is an intriguing batch of musically worthwhile live Karajan discoveries, very well transferred from clean analogue sources.

— Gramophone

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Herbert von Karajan - The Early Lucerne Years
Audite Musikproduktion Sep 2023
CD
~~$27.99~~ $20.99

MENDELSSOHN: VIOLIN CONCERTOS

HYPERION

Vinyl

$27.54 Oct 11, 2024

Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in E minor is one of the best-loved works of the genre. It was played here with brilliance and charm by a dazzling young violinist whose versions of the classics of the repertoire have garnered great critical acclaim. Also recorded here is the early Violin Concerto in D minor, written when the composer was only thirteen. This LP is part of Hyperion's 2024 Vinyl Edition.

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MENDELSSOHN: VIOLIN CONCERTOS
HYPERION Oct 2024
Vinyl
$27.54

Josef Otto Af Sillen: Violin Concerto In E Minor; Symphony No. 3
Sterling Records Aug 2013
CD
$20.99

Mendelssohn: Complete Concertos

BIS

SACD

$21.99 Jan 01, 2008

If the String Symphonies, collected on the accompanying release SACD1738, are the works by the young Mendelssohn on his way to becoming a fully-fledged composer, the concertos give a more all-round picture of the composer. Beginning in 1822, when he composed the Concerto in D minor for Violin and the Concerto in A minor for Piano, Mendelssohn kept returning to the concertante format throughout his life, until the great E minor Violin Concerto, written three years before his death, in 1844. Between these works can be found the two rarely heard Concertos for Two Pianos - youthful, but surprisingly mature works - as well as his two piano concertos Opp 25 and 40, and three concert pieces for piano and orchestra. Soloist in these is Ronald Brautigam, who will be well-known for his acclaimed surveys of the solo piano music of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven. Isabelle van Keulen takes on the works involving solo violin, and was at the time of the original release described as a 'winning soloist with a soft tone like the finest-spun silk - plus strength to match, when required' (Gramophone). Swedish pianists Roland Pöntinen and Love Derwinger partner each other in the concertos for two pianos, virtuosic works first performed by Felix and his sister Fanny. The accompaniments throughout are provided by Amsterdam Sinfonietta, under Lev Markiz, and were characterized as 'both polished and warmly supportive' (Gramophone).

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Mendelssohn: Complete Concertos
BIS Jan 2008
SACD
$21.99

Bach: Violin Concertos on Vinyl / F.P. Zimmermann, Berlin Baroque Soloists

Haenssler Classic

Vinyl

$32.99 Oct 21, 2022

Frank Peter Zimmermann, one of the most important violinists of our time, and his son Serge, who made his orchestral debut in 2000 at the age of nine with a violin concerto by Mozart, have succeeded in making a wonderful recording of the violin concertos by Johann Sebastian Bach together with the Berliner Barock Solisten. A great listening experience! The Double Concerto in D minor, one of Bach's most popular instrumental works, presents the principle of a contrapuntally linked, concertante dialogue between the solo violins in all movements.

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Bach: Violin Concertos on Vinyl / F.P. Zimmermann, Berlin Baroque Soloists
Haenssler Classic Oct 2022
Vinyl
$32.99

The Rise Of The North Italian Violin Concerto Vol 1

Avie Records

$19.99 Sep 01, 2006

THE RISE OF THE NORTH ITALIAN VIOLIN CONCERTO 1690–1740—VOL. I: THE DAWN OF THE VIRTUOSO • Adrian Chandler (vn), dir; Mhairi Lawson (sop); 1 La Serenissima (period instruments) • AVIE 2106 (77:51 & )

NAVARA Sinfonia/Sonatas: in C; in a. COMPOSER X Laudate pueri Dominum, RV Anh 20. 1 LEGRENZI 3 Balletti e correnti, op. 16. ALBINONI Concerto in G, op. 2/8. VALENTINI Concerto with 4 Violins Obbligato, op. 7/11. VIVALDI Violin Concertos: in G, RV 310; for 4 Violins, RV 580

According to the booklet’s biography, the Arts and Humanities Research Council awarded Adrian Chandler a fellowship at Southampton University to study the development of the violin concerto in northern Italy from 1690 to 1740, a project that apparently resulted in Avie’s recording items from that literature. Although the title of the collection, “The Dawn of the Virtuoso” might suggest some of Vivaldi’s most fanciful flights, the level of technique demanded by the collection’s works remains on a rather low level. Navara’s five-part Sinfonia or Sonata in C Major (as well as the one in A Minor), for example, may feature what the notes describe as “imposing” violin parts, but they can hardly make an electrifying impression on today’s audiences, inured by Ernst and Paganini to relatively subdued technical feats like Navara’s (while curiously, Vivaldi’s violin parts can still make a listener’s heart pound).

The Laudate pueri Dominum by “Composer X” apparently belonged to a group of pieces that Vivaldi himself had studied. Mhairi Lawson’s rich lower register lends a somber quality to the work, although she brings startlingly dramatic excitement to the “Suscitans” section. Legrenzi’s Balletti e corrente (a selection of six very brief pieces scored for what the Adrian Chandler’s notes describe as the “typical” north Italian ensemble of two violins, alto viola, tenor viola, and cello: Balletto II in G Minor, Corrente II in G Minor, Balletto IV in E Minor, Corrente IV in E Minor, Balletto VI in F Major, and Corrente VI in F) sound bracingly crisp and energetic, bubbling with virtuosic energy if not energetic virtuosity.

Chandler identifies Albinoni’s op. 2 as the first work regularly to include solo passages. But although Albinoni supposedly distributed the “lion’s share” of these in the Eighth Concerto, written for four solo violins with strings, striking solos in the manner of Vivaldi’s Concertos, op. 3 (the tenth of which La Serenissima includes in the collection) just don’t make an appearance. Valentini’s Eleventh Concerto, in six movements (one of them multisectional), sounds far more progressive in the quicksilver writing for the solo instruments in the second movement and especially in the brilliant fourth-movement Presto—as well as in the bold but skillfully laid-out chromatic passages of the opening one. At more than 17 minutes’ duration, the piece dwarfs all the other purely instrumental ones in the program. After all these historical divagations, Vivaldi still sounds masterly, both in his solo Concerto, RV 310, and in the celebrated Concerto for Four Violins, RV 580, to which Chandler and the ensemble have added stirring rhetorical flourishes and richly conceived ornamentation.

La Serenissima, recorded crisply in an amply resonant ambiance, plays with a bracingly accented and thumping, though bubbling, bounce that emphasizes the bass’s strong underpinning role; they eschew both the lushness of modern instrumental sounds and the whining and edgy abrasiveness of period ones. Much of the repertoire may be unfamiliar to listeners, but Chandler and La Serenissima make it highly accessible. Recommended to general listeners as heartily as to students of the period.

FANFARE: Robert Maxham

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The Rise Of The North Italian Violin Concerto Vol 1
Avie Records Sep 2006
CD
$19.99

Andre Cluytens conducts Franck & Khachaturian (Lucerne Festi

Audite Musikproduktion

$14.99 Sep 04, 2026

Andre Cluytens (1905-1967) was known for flowing elegance, fidelity to the score, and temperament without any trace of showmanship. He was the first Frenchman to conduct at Bayreuth, made the first complete recording of Beethoven's symphonies with the Berlin Philharmonic, and was also a frequent and welcome guest in Lucerne. In 1954, he met the young Igor Oistrakh and earned standing ovations with Khachaturian's brilliant Violin Concerto and Franck's Symphony in D minor.

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Andre Cluytens conducts Franck & Khachaturian (Lucerne Festi
Audite Musikproduktion Sep 2026
CD
$14.99

Bach: Sonatas For Violin & Harpsichord / Hobarth, Hakkinen

Aeolus

SACD

$32.99 Nov 13, 2015

Almost every music lover has probably heard Erich Höbarth play at least once: active as Nikolaus Harnoncourt’s concertmaster, as first violinist of the Quatuor Mosaïques, and in many other positions of musical life, heard in numerous recordings and television broadcasts, he is an almost omnipresent figure. Höbarth unites historical performance practice with the self-assured poise of an individual artistic personality. The Viennese violinist has found here a congenial partner in the young Aapo Häkkinen from Helsinki, who, exactly like Höbarth, can already boast extensive experience as an ensemble director.

Violin and Harpsichord – these are namely the instruments that Bach himself played as ensemble director and as soloist, and that he brings together in the present sonatas as if at a chamber music summit meeting. Already in the eighteenth century, the six-sonata cycle BWV 1014–1019 numbered among his best works. Höbarth and Häkkinen captivate with wonderful ensemble playing. Aapo Häkkinen plays a – today rarely found – 16’ harpsichord, that is to say, with an additional, lower sounding register. It has been reported that Bach likewise had a 16’ instrument at his disposal in Köthen, where he composed the sonatas. - Aeolus Music

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Bach: Sonatas For Violin & Harpsichord / Hobarth, Hakkinen
Aeolus Nov 2015
SACD
$32.99

Naxos Bach Edition 4 - Bach: Harpsichord Concertos II / Hill

Naxos

$19.99 Jan 01, 2000

One of the nicest things about Naxos' complete survey of Bach's orchestral music is that each disc always includes a substantial musical "bonus" that distinguishes it from the numerous competing performances available. In this case, conductor Helmut Müller-Brühl and his intrepid band of keyboard and string players offer a reconstruction of the Concerto for Three Harpsichords BWV 1064 in its original version for three violins. Comparison of the two versions is fascinating, not least because the players offer a fractionally more expansive tempo in the slow movement of the violin version, acknowledging the stringed instrument's superior ability to sustain a long, lyrical melody. It's this sensitivity to the natural qualities of the solo instruments themselves that allows the players to set ideal tempos, and to perform each work with just the right mix of high spirits and idiomatic musicianship. In short, these are performances as good as any, and a great buy. --David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

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Naxos Bach Edition 4 - Bach: Harpsichord Concertos II / Hill
Naxos Jan 2000
CD
$19.99

Eller: Violin Concerto, Fantasy, Symphony Legend & Symphony No. 2 / Elts, Skride, Estonian National Symphony

Ondine

$18.99 Nov 09, 2018

Heino Eller (1887-1970) can be considered as one of the founders of Estonian professional music culture. Eller’s legacy is twofold – in his prolific instrumental compositions he forged an elaborate style that successfully combined both modern and national elements, and as a prominent professor of composition during half a century he influenced generations of Estonian composers. This new recording by the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Olari Elts and featuring violinist Baiba Skride includes some of the highlights from the composer’s catalogue of orchestral works and is a fitting tribute to the centenary of Estonia’s independence. Heino Eller’s Violin Concerto in B minor was the first in its genre in Estonian music. First written in the 1930s the one-movement work was scheduled to be performed in Tallinn on June 1940. For reasons unknown, the work was withdrawn until March 1965 when Neeme Järvi conducted the premiere. Another work for violin and orchestra, Fantasy, was first written in 1916 and orchestrated in 1964. Fantasy is one of the earliest compositions that bears the hallmarks Eller´s individual style, and its sensitive lyricism and charming simplicity give the work an enduring appeal. The Symphonic Legend is Eller’s largest score prior to the First Symphony (1936). It was premiered on June 1923 in Tartu, and Eller revised the score for performance in 1938. A work with a wealth of musical material and masterly orchestration, Symphonic Legend was next performed only in 2014 by Olari Elts with the Estonian NSO, and the current recording is the first. Heino Eller wrote three Symphonies between the 1930s and 1960s. Unlike his other two Symphonies, the 2nd Symphony has only one movement. The severe and at times tragic nature of the music was incompatible with the demands of the official Soviet cultural ideology.

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Eller: Violin Concerto, Fantasy, Symphony Legend & Symphony No. 2 / Elts, Skride, Estonian National Symphony
Ondine Nov 2018
CD
$18.99

Naxos Bach Edition 1 - Concertos For Oboe, Oboe D'amore

Naxos

$19.99 Jan 01, 2000

It's well known that the vast majority of what have come down to us as Bach's Harpsichord Concertos were originally written for violin, oboe, oboe d'amore, or some combination of the two. The originals have all disappeared, but reconstructions are possible within a very small margin of error, particularly in the case of the Double Concerto BWV 1060, which has been performed and enjoyed in its original form for violin and oboe (or oboe d'amore) for more than half a century. Naxos' complete edition of Bach's orchestral music properly includes the most famous of all the reconstructions, the violin version of the Harpsichord Concerto in D minor BWV 1052, in the violin concerto volume of this series, leaving this disc to the double concerto noted above, as well as four oboe/oboe d'amore works. Soloists Christian Hummel and Lisa Stewart offer attractive, tastefully ornamented, sweet-toned performances on modern instruments that take into account period performance practice. For anyone who enjoys Bach's orchestral music or the more familiar harpsichord versions of these works, this disc is self-recommending. --David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

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Naxos Bach Edition 1 - Concertos For Oboe, Oboe D'amore
Naxos Jan 2000
CD
$19.99

Vivaldi & Friends - La Folia (Madness & Other Concertos) / Sorrell, Apollo's Fire

Avie Records

$19.99 Dec 01, 2010

Cleveland-based baroque orchestra Apollo’s Fire has made an indelible impression since launching on Avie last year, making their Billboard Classical Chart debut in the Top 10. Vivaldi & Friends presents concertos by the Red Priest with a twist: two authentic concertos—one for four violins, the other for two cellos—interspersed with J. S. Bach’s transcription of Vivaldi’s A minor concerto for four harpsichords and Jeannette Sorrell’s own transcription of “Summer” from the ever-popular Four Seasons. In this unique version, she performs the original violin parts on the harpsichord. The album ends with an enigmatic Tango Concerto by contemporary composer René Duchiffre, written in the idiom of Bach and Vivaldi for the unusual combination of two violas da gamba. Vivaldi & Friends is released to coincide with the group’s extensive tour with star countertenor Philippe Jaroussky.

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Vivaldi & Friends - La Folia (Madness & Other Concertos) / Sorrell, Apollo's Fire
Avie Records Dec 2010
CD
$19.99