Customer Reviews

Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto In E Minor, Op. 64 / Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto In D Major, Op. 35

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This recording of these two classic violin concertos was the first I heard of Mendelssohn and Tchaikovsky's masterful works. Since that time, I have heard countless other violinists toy with these virtuosic labyrinths, but the first masters the duo by far.

Isaac Stern does exactly what is required of the soloist in both concertos. The Mendelssohn he plays with a sort of cheerful melancholy, if that is indeed possible. The Concerto in D is given the serving of joy that it deserves without it being sickeningly sweet; it is given a fair amount of sadness as well. Paradoxical and ingenious, the compositions make one think a lot, and the talented Stern answers our questions and inspires new ones with each listen. Not only does the violinist hold us at the edge of our seats or lull us to sleep with his feeling, his technique is flawless. He does not attack each note; he weaves them together to form a brilliant recording.

Other fiddlers play it with too much feeling, or too much passiveness, and, of course, there is the plethora of those who aren't technically capable of the insane cadenzas. Stern has the right amount of everything.

The sound quality is not excellent; luckily, there are now some editions with more effectively remastered versions. But even if this is the only disc available, Stern is the one to hear. Also, his Brahms Violin Concerto and Double Concerto recordings in the same series are quite excellent.

Hopefully, all of you will sit back, relax, and be taken to another world.

This is a great CD. I've owned it for 10 years and listened to it countless times. I continue to be amazed each time.

No doubting the quality of the compositions, the performances of said compositions but the sound quality is really very poor. Let's hope Sony gets its act together and remaster the entire "Great Performances" catalog using the best possible master source in the vaults and re-release them all in mini-lp replica sleeve packaging. I can dream, can't I?

I've heard just about everybody play these 2 concertos from Fritz Kreisler to Jack Benny. This Isaac Stern set is absolutely the best and has stood the test of time. The engineering is also excellent. If you want to own the definitive set of Mendelssohn/Tchaikovsky, this is it. If I could give 10 stars rather than 5, I would. These are the all-time best ever classic performances. Superb.

TWO of the greatest violin concertos ever written, performed by Isaac Stern, conducted by Eugene Ormandy, backed by the Philadelphia Orchestra (back when they were almost the best in the world). So why didn't I give my purchase 5 stars? 1) Disk has a slight scratch that prevented the CD reader on one of my PCs from reading the first track. Your purchase is unlikely to have the same scratch, so in principle this is a 4.5 star item. 2) Took off 0.5 star because the age of the recording shows occasionally, and because I would have preferred slightly different timing in some sections (due to having fallen in love with Tchaikovsky's concerto years ago from a recording by different artists). If you've never heard either before, consider this a 4.75 star item.

Aunque tiene décadas ya, es una versión insuperable. La fuerza melódica de Isaac Stern es arrasadora, conmovedora al máximo. Nunca he vuelto a escuchar algo semejante. Lo recomiendo encarecidamente, it is a must!

This was just what I wanted. I had these two concertos on vinyl (and still do) but no longer have a turntable (sigh)