Nicola Benedetti – Fantasie
British violinist Nicola Benedetti presents her fourth album, “Fantasie”, a selection of well-loved violin pieces that form an amazing violin showcase of her musical capabilities.
As you will see below, the repertoire is varied. The CD features a combination of virtuosic, Gipsy-influenced show stoppers with introspective meditations and lyrical compositions.
A list of selections follows:
Fauré:
- Après un rêve, Op. 7 No. 1
Alexei Grynyuk (piano)
Massenet:
- Méditation (from Thaïs)
London Symphony Orchestra, Daniel Harding
Pärt:
- Spiegel im Spiegel
Alexei Grynyuk (piano)
Rachmaninov:
- Vocalise, Op. 34 No. 14
Alexei Grynyuk (piano)
Ravel:
- Tzigane
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Vasily Petrenko
Saint-Saëns:
- Introduction & Rondo capriccioso, Op. 28
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Vasily Petrenko
Sarasate:
- Zigeunerweisen, Op. 20
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Vasily Petrenko
Vaughan Williams:
- The Lark Ascending
London Philharmonic Orchestra, Andrew Litton
Performed by Nicola Benedetti (violin)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicola_Benedetti
Upon winning the prestigious BBC Young Musician of the Year competition at the age of 16, Nicola Benedetti recorded her winning Szymanowski Concerto no. 1, gaining critical acclaim. The albums that followed contained world premiere works written especially for Benedetti by the pre-eminent British composers, James MacMillan and Sir John Tavener.
Ms. Benedetti has established a fantastic career performing with major orchestras across the UK, US and Japan, gaining praise for her bold interpretations of concertos such as Tchaikovsky, Mendelssohn, Sibelius, Glazunov and Szymanowski.
For her album called “Fantasie” Benedetti has put aside the concerti to explore some of the recital greats, including Vaughan Williams’ ‘The Lark Ascending’.
The Gramophone Magazine, in its Awards Issue 2009 wrote:
“The Lark Ascending is beautifully played, with pure, unforced tone, and in the unmeasured passages Benedetti imaginatively suggests the bird’s unfettered, unpredictable flight. By contrast, she produces an alluring, vibrant tone for the Méditation from Thaïs, and a similarly passionate approach animates several of the newly recorded tracks-the Rachmaninov and Fauré, particularly.”
Here is Nicola Benedetti talking about being a Soloist, with extracts of the Sibelius violin concerto
And here is Nicola Benedetti and the Scottish symphony orchestra Bruch’s violin concerto
Tags: Nicola Benedetti, violin, Fantasie