Vln Cto [Import]

Bela Bartok was one of the most original composers of the 20th century. His music is tonal unlike that of Arnold Schoenberg and his pupils, although his sound is modern, dissonant and often barbaric. All this from a man who was actually an anchorite, a keen Nature lover, and adored children and animals. He didn't intend to write a second violin concerto. Rather he was wanting a set of variations for the violin. But the dedicatee of the concerto, Zoltan Szekely, would have nothing but a full sized concerto. Well, Bartok could make both the parties happy - he wrote a concerto which begins with a twelve-tone melody and then throughout the concerto he goes of creating fantastic variations of it. Yehudi Menuhin mentions that the same set of notes appear some 33 times in the entire concerto, and each time with a new varaition. Sometimes the variations are drawn in such a way that unless one listens to keenly, one cannot figure that the variation actually stems from the original melody. The concerto is full of ideas and even after 100th listening, once can find surprises. Yehudi loved this concerto and recorded it four times. Another significant aspect of the concerto is that the composer himself had confided to Yehudi that in writing the concerto he wanted to prove to Schoenberg that one can write a twelve-tone melody and still remain tonal (Schoenberg created the twelve-tone scale and claimed that twelve-tone meldodies are atonal).

Menuhin's collaboration with Furtwangler created many masterpieces and this ofcourse one that will be deemed supreme. The twelve-tone melody and its variations, everytime they emerge from Menuhin's bow, evoke a feeling of freshness. The second movement is one of the most noble, introverted and reflective movements ever written and Yehudi's playing imparts these traits to the movement.

The solo sonata is an excellent and challenging piece for the violin of which Yehudi was the dedicatee. The reflective Tempi Di Ciaconna, the barbaric Fuga, the sweet Melodia, and the pinnacle of creation, Presto, all come out true to their spirits in Yehudi's hands. This CD is a treasure to cherish for all reasons - Bartok, Yehudi and Furtwangler. Last but not the least, Yehudi's interpretation and performance of the concerto was known to Bartok and had the composer's approval as brilliant.

Yehudi Menuhin surely had a love affair with the Bartok 2nd Violin Concerto as he recorded it 4 times (including its premiere). 3 of those were with Antal Dorati and the 4th, this one, with Wilhelm Furtwangler. To some that may seem a shock as many tend to associate Furtwangler with the 19th Century German repertoire. In concert however his tastes were quite varied and included the works of many contemporaries such as Prokofiev, Hindemith, Stravinsky and Bartok. Many forget that the 1927 premiere of Bartok's 1st Piano Concerto featured the composer as soloist and Furtwangler as conductor.
The violin playing of Menuhin is in full touch with the angular and often disjointed rhythms that Bartok somehow manages to weirdly turn into compelling and often quite beautiful melodies. Furtwangler nicely holds up his end in winding his way through the often complex orchestral writing. Menuhin commissioned the solo violin sonata and he rightly plays the piece as if he owns it. The mid 1950's sound on both recordings is excellent and one need not have any worry about it. EMI refers to this album as one of the great recordings of the 20th Century. For once that is not hype.