Compare Stravinsky interpretations
Igor Stravinsky represented one of those major forces in music that had an impact on music composition for many years following his death. His contributions, such as “The Rite of Spring”, “Petroushka”, “the Firebird”, as well as other orchestral and instrumental works were phenomenal.
On this CD by Hilary Hahn, we have two violin concerti, as shown on the track listing below:
- 1. Concerto in D Major for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 77/I. Allegro non troppo (Instrumental)
- 2. Concerto in D Major for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 77/II. Adagio (Instrumental)
- 3. Concerto in D Major for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 77/III. Allegro giocoso, ma non troppo vivace (Instrumental)
- 4. Concerto in D for Violin and Orchestra (1931)/I. Toccata (Instrumental)
- 5. Concerto in D for Violin and Orchestra (1931)/II. Aria I (Instrumental)
- 6. Concerto in D for Violin and Orchestra (1931)/III. Aria II (Instrumental)
- 7. Concerto in D for Violin and Orchestra (1931)/IV. Capriccio (Instrumental)
I am focused today on Stravinsky, so I won’t write about the Brahms concerto on this CD.
With the Stravinsky, Hilary Hahn shows us that she is not only one of the best, but one of the most captivating violinists before the public now. She is a thoughtful, knowledgeable musician and a committed, involved performer. Seemingly, technical difficulties do not exist for her. Even the most challenging passages in the Stravinsky, she plays with perfect clarity and effortless ease. Hahn’s tone is warm, focused, variable, and of total purity in all registers, and at all dynamic levels. She never loses her sense of rhythm or direction, and her phrasing is elegant and flawless.
Here is Hilary Hahn in the Violin Concerto Movement 4 – Capriccio – by Igor Stravinsky:
And… for your enjoyment, let’s compare Ms. Hahn’s performance with Yitzhak Perlman’s playing of the Stravinsky Violin Concerto:
And finally, listen to Gil Shaham performing the Stravinsky Violin Concerto – 1st Movement:
If you’d like, please post your own opinion of these three interpretations. Clearly, there’s no “right answer” here; I simply welcome your opinion…
If you like the Hilary Hahn performance best, you can purchase it by clicking on the image, below:
Tags: Igor Stravinsky, Violin concerto, Hilary Hahn, Yitzhak Perlman, Gil Shaham