Search - Brahms, Mullova, Abbado :: Violin Concerto

It simply can't get any better.

C. Oran Ball | Massachusetts USA | 10/14/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If one wonders what was in Brahms thoughts as he composed this, now we know. And in concert! The orchestra meets the challenge. One can hardly imagine a better gift to the hearer! But then there are her Bach recordings..."

Among the very best

Musicus | Oslo, Norway | 10/06/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I got several performances of this concerto. Only two are as good - or almost as good - as the present one, although different: the brisk and structural Heifetz/Reiner and the varm and colourful Oistrakh/Klemperer. I should mention the intense Stern/Ormandy as well, but on that the recorded sound is a little hard and there is less sense of expectation (in my humble opinon).

What is striking about Mullova's playing here is her passion, her melancoly, how she takes opportunity to express the moods of the music. If you think that this should be taken for granted, I agree, but unfortunatly it cannot; it is that little extra making the difference between the good performances and the rare ones.

Abbado conducts with a lot of spark. Acutally he did so on the much praised performance with Shaham as well, but the soloists make the difference, Shaham doing something new, Mullova something great.

The recording sound is good, without being the very best.

Summa summarum: This is a CD that makes me less satisfied with performances I used to enjoy."

The performance of a lifetime from Mullova and Abbado, in co

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 01/12/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The people at Philips must have heard something extraordinary from this live performance of the Brahms Violin Concerto taped in Tokyo in 1992. Otherwise, it's hard to fathom why they released a 39 min. CD--there's no filler here. To me, what they heard was a reading of incredible spontaneity and committment. The Brahms concerto actually seems to matter to Mullova and Abbado, and they give their all. Tempos are moderate--this is a more vital recording than the oft-recommended, broadly paced Perlman with Giulini--and the Berlin Phil. sounds gorgeous, especially in Philips' impeccable, rich sonics.



Mullova's fervent romantic style includes many expressive flourishes in the way of glissandi and portamentos. She doesn't dig in, and no note is less than beautiful. Usually that's not a mark of good Brahms playing, but she carries it off by becoming a great singer whose enchanting voice is part of the thrill. I risk turning readers off by overpraising this reading, yet I can think of no greater one since the classic Menuhin from 1949 with Furtwangler."