Russian-born Israeli violinist Shlomo Mintz made his concert debut with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra at the tender age of 11. Shortly after, he stepped in to perform Paganini’s first violin concerto when Itzhak Perlman fell ill, and made his Carnegie Hall debut at the age of 16.
An extensive European tour in 1977 established his international reputation and a series of recordings for Deutsche Grammophon followed. The first album to be released was a 1980 recording of the Mendelssohn and Bruch violin concertos, with Claudio Abbado leading the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
The Mendelssohn and Bruch violin concertos: two strokes of genius combined. Felix Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64 is a prime example of a composition that really has everything; that stands out as an absolute masterpiece. Max Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, Op. 26 shows a striking similarity to Mendelssohn’s concerto in several ways. For instance, it is one of the works that the travelling violin virtuoso has in his “ready repertoire” as a matter of course. And like Mendelssohn’s E-minor work, this concerto is highly popular with violinists and audiences alike.
With its re-release as part of PENTATONE’s REMASTERED CLASSICS series, this is another quadraphonic recording that finally gets the chance to come into full bloom and which can now be enjoyed in the sound quality it deserved from the beginning.
