Customer Reviews

Menotti: Violin Concerto, The Death of Orpheus

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
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Menotti's violin concerto was written in 1952 and remains one of his most famous non-operatic works. And it is a really fine work, full of appealing melodies in a style that is somewhat along the lines of what one would have suspected Puccini of doing if he had written a violin concerto. It is unabashedly eclectic, and the structure a little loose. Even the tunes aren't good enough to make it anything close to a masterpiece, but it still has plenty of charm and many beautiful moments.

The first movement is particularly prone to ramble, and it is to Hickox credit (in particular) that he manages to keep a sufficiently tight rein on the proceedings to make it convincing. The Spoleto Festival players respond impressively throughout with beautiful textures and colors, and Jennifer Koh is an absolutely excellent soloist. The solo part is technically challenging, I imagine, but generally unflashy, except for the end of the lively finale (which are fully convincingly dealt with); more importantly, her tone is warm and she makes the solo part truly sing (which is, of course, crucial for a work like this one). It may not be a work I will return to very often, but it is one I am glad to have heard, especially in a performance as winning as this one.

The three cantatas are more recent. "Muero porque no mueroc" and "Oh llama de amor vivad" are both operatic (again in a style drawing on Puccini) and contain some beautiful moments without making any lasting overall impression. The chorus is splendid, and the soloists more than acceptable (though Roberts has some less than sterling moments). The Death of Orpheus is somewhat more modern (some jazz influences, at least), although Menotti sticks to a sensuously big tune for Orpheus's song. Again, a work worth hearing, if not one to return to for repeated listening. In the end, then, the violin concerto is the reason for acquiring this disc - but that is certainly a pretty good reason.

Menotti wrote some truly beautiful music. The Spoleto Festival has put out at least one other phenomenal recording of his works. The concerto is played very well here. There's a lot of life and color, though it seems to me that that has slightly more to do with what was written than with how it's played.

Koh is sing-song throughout, which is required for Menotti, who was a fantastic operatic composer. But it seems to me that the orchestral forces are held back just a touch. It's still worth listening to, and it's definitely enjoyable.

The works for orchestra, chorus and vocal soloists, on the other hand, do not sound nearly as great as they should. If you've ever heard Menotti's "Amahl and the Night Visitors," then you know how well this man wrote choral music. I found the soloists' expressive abilities to be strained and quite tiresome after a while. Neither the chorus nor the orchestra were able to wake these pieces up. Therefore Koh's violin, together with Menotti's musical genius, are the only two things really saving this one.

I voted positively for the previous Gian-Carlo Menotti disc from Chandos, the one featuring "L'apocalisse" and the suite from "Sebastian" and filled out by the "Fantasia," really a one-movement concerto, for cello and orchestra. The big item on the new disc in what is apparently a Menotti cycle from Chandos is the Violin Concerto (1952) in three movements; the rest of the program consists of three of Menotti's vocal-choral cantatas, two on Spanish- and one on an English-language text. Menotti enjoys his reputation because of his operas. Conductor Richard Hickox and the Spoleto Festival players have decided to present Menotti's instrumental and non-operatic vocal music in new recordings; Menotti has produced not a little in both categories. There are, for example, two concertos for piano, one for double bass, not to mention the Cello Fantasia. The Violin Concerto shows some audacity on its composer's part in this sense: Menotti spent many decades as the partner of Samuel Barber, who wrote "the" American violin concerto in 1939; any fiddle score by Menotti would inevitably invite comparison with Barber, probably of a negative sort under the claim of derivation. In fact, Menotti's concerto is its own creature entirely and is in some respects superior to Barber's oft-performed showpiece. The First Movement (Allegro Moderato) begins with lyric urgency, the solo spinning out a long melodic (and rather modal sounding) line over subtle, non-intrusive orchestral accompaniment; the orchestral part occasionally comes into its own. This is a more complicated movement psychologically than the corresponding movement of the Barber concerto. At moments, one feels how intuitively close Menotti is to the mid-century Italian instrumental composers such as Malipiero and Pizetti. Like them, Menotti grafts romantic harmony on baroque forms; the business of the Malipiero orchestra, for example, is close at hand in Menotti's Concerto -- the moto perpetuo bustle distantly reminiscent of Vivaldi or Corelli. The Second Movement (Adagio) is an aria for the solo and orchestra, of great warmth. The Third Movement (Allegro Vivace) has a scherzo-like quality. Jennifer Koh is the violinist. Since I know no other performance of the work, I can only say that she sounds convincing to me, if not as robust in her execution of the part as she might be. The three cantatas, if not terribly significant, are at least enjoyable. "The Death of Orpheus" is a kind of operatic scena for voices and orchestra. Recommended for the marvelous Concerto.

Jennifer Koh has not received the top of the heap reviews of the concerto. She should. I could be critical but the other recording of any merit is on Reference Recordings. Unfortunately it is in AZ and I am in MI and can't make a side by side comparison. But she is head and shoulders above the competition and the orchestra is ever, ever, so much better. A real relief for one who loves this concerto. It should be played more in the concert hall. If you haven't heard the this lyrical, romantic, twentieth century concerto, then better rush to buy this. The sound is extra fine; full and warm. I don't think the violin she is using is all that great but the sound is OK and enjoyable. Some old fiddles are finally giving out and this might be one of them but is seems to give her a responsive fiddle that lets her do whatever she pleases. Koh has technique galore. I do wish she would use more artistic fingerings but I am probably the only one who is going to carp about their scarcity. The Death is a good coupling as most listeners will not be familer with either work. Buy this!