For a long period it had been a rule
of thumb that Mendelssohn’s’ music had suffered a steady decline from the early
masterpieces such as the Octet, and the Overtures to the Midsummer’s Night Dream and the Hebrides.
If ever a work proved the critics wrong it is the Concerto in E minor, op.64
for Violin and Orchestra.
The Concerto was completed in
1844, three years before the composer’s death, and was first performed in
Leipzig by Ferdinand David with the Gewandhaus Orchestra in the following year.
Interestingly the Danish composer Niels Gade conducted the concert. David wrote
to the composer that ‘[the concerto] fulfils all the demands one can make of a
violin concerto…violinists cannot be too grateful to you for this gift.’ It has
remained a favourite with audiences ever since. The secret of the work’s
popularity is its vigour, the serenity of the slow movement and technical
display which avoids sheer virtuosity simply for the sake of being difficult.
Joachim once wrote that ‘the Germans have four violin concertos. The greatest, most
uncompromising is Beethoven's. The one by Brahms vies with it in seriousness. The richest, the most
seductive, was written by
Max Bruch. But the most inward, the heart's jewel,
is Mendelssohn's’.
At present (January 2016) there
are some 204 recordings of Felix Mendelssohn’s Concerto in E minor, op.64 for
Violin and Orchestra listed in the Arkiv catalogue. Any attempt by this (or
any) reviewer to provide a detailed comparison between versions of the concerto
will be doomed to failure. From a personal point of view, I was introduced to
this work by way of an old vinyl version of Isaac Stern and the Philadelphia
Orchestra conducted by Eugene Ormandy, released in 1959. Since that time, I
have enjoyed recordings and concerts of the concerto by Yehudi Menuhin, Jascha
Heifetz, Nigel Kennedy and Nicola Benedetti and others.
Jennifer Pike’s interpretation is
dramatic, passionate and always nuanced. The violin tone is well-rounded and
perfectly balances vivacity with deep intimacy in the progress of the concerto.
It impressed and moved me. This performance is certain to become one of the great
standard recordings.
Another work that defied
Mendelssohn’s critics is the incidental music to William Shakespeare’s fairy
play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream. From
the first note of the Overture to the last of the ‘Finale’, this music matches
the wit, magic, frivolity and subtlety of the play. In 1842 Mendelssohn was
commissioned to write the incidental music for Karl
Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel’s German translation of the play. Not
unnaturally, Mendelssohn recycled the early overture written in 1826 when he
was only 17 years old. He used this as the inspiration for the following 13
numbers. Six of these are simply
‘melodramatic’ mood pieces designed to underscore spoken texts: they are omitted
from this recording. It leaves the eight sections recorded here. This includes
the hackneyed, but well-written ‘Wedding March’, the ‘Scherzo’, ‘The Dance of
the Clowns’, and the ‘Nocturne’. For me it is always a joy and a pleasure to
hear this music. In the present recording all the dreamlike atmosphere is
present and correct. I was particularly impressed with the beautiful Song ‘Ye
Spotted Snakes’ with its Sullivan-esque chorus.
This masterly performance of
these two essential orchestral works were recorded in the iconic Town Hall in
Birmingham, where masterpieces such as Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius and Mendelssohn’s Elijah received their premieres: Arthur Sullivan, The Beatles and
Bob Dylan have graced the venue with their artistry. The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra is
conducted here by their guest conductor Edward Gardner.
Jennifer Pike needs little
introduction to enthusiasts of the violin. Her career was launched 13 years ago
in Lichfield Cathedral with the present concerto. Last year (2015) she made her
debut at the Carnegie Hall, New York with Ralph Vaughan Williams’ The Lark Ascending: she received a
standing ovation. For Chandos, Pike has recorded a wide range of music
including Sibelius’ Violin Concerto, Sonatas by Franck, Debussy, Ravel, Brahms
and Schumann as well as concerted music by Miklós Rózsa and Ernest Chausson. She has, in
all cases, received excellent reviews.
The present volume has dispensed
with the pen sketch by the composer featured in the last three issues, which is
a pity. The liner notes, (in English, German and French) by Bayan Northcott are
extensive and discuss the works in detail: the booklet also includes Gerald
Larner’s essay-length article on Mendelssohn and his relationship with
Birmingham. The usual biographical details of the soloists, the orchestra, chorus
and conductor are also given.
This latest release in Chandos’
‘Mendelssohn in Birmingham’ series is, as noted, the fourth volume in the
series. So far, it has featured all the Symphonies and a good selection of the
overtures. The present CD features one of the best known and loved violin
concertos in the repertoire and the incidental music to Shakespeare’s magical
play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream. I
thoroughly enjoyed everything about this disc: the outstanding playing of
soloist and the orchestra, the superb quality of the recording and the first-rate
documentation provided in the liner notes.
Track Listing:
Concerto in E minor, op.64 for
Violin and Orchestra (1838-45)
Incidental Music to ‘A Midsummer
Night’s Dream’, op.61 (1826/1842)
Rhian Lois (soprano), Keri Fuge
(soprano), CBSO Youth Chorus, (op.61), Jennifer Pike (violin) (op.64) City of
Birmingham Symphony Orchestra/Edward Gardner,
CHANDOS CHSA 5161
With thanks to MusicWeb International where this review was first published.
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