Search - Tchaikovsky, Mendelssohn, Elman :: Violin Cto in D Major / Violin Cto in D Minor

Elman AND superb maestri

Mark G McCue | Denver, CO United States | 04/19/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"These treasures glow. What you see on paper as superb is exactly what you get...and these rarities are something to cherish. Elman's greatness is aided and abetted by Mitropoulos and Paray...and it stops you in your tracks when you really consider how many composers and soloists owe their premieres and debuts around the world to these two extraordinary conductors. They were as different as day and night, yet their commonalities are what we remember: literacy, cultivation, superb sense of line, raw inspiration, and extraordinary care for their soloists. Of course, a talent like Elman is going to shine in this company. They'd make ME shine.Snap this one up. This is the type of thing that takes courage to produce and a blip in sales could mean it's withdrawal from the catalog."

Important to compare to Heifetz's piece

Sam | Irvine, CA USA | 01/31/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I have listened to so many artists playing Mendelssohn's vilin concerto in E minor. They ranged from poor to mid-level to the best. The E minor is attractive to the ear, but very difficult to play well. Many artists have attempted it, some with more than one CD, but one could always pick up some problems in their performance. Once you compare the mide-level artists to Heifetz, the difference is apparent. Elman and Heifetz are the best so far. They represent two totally different expressions.If one could use the following comparison: Heifetz's performance with the Boston Symphony, conducted by Munch,is like a sophisticated sweet beautiful young lady,just ripe, while Elman's violin in this CD is like an old man telling a story in the somewhat windy evening sunset, with sorrow.But both are really really excellent!"