Anne Sophie Mutter

Even though Anne-Sophie Mutter recorded most of the great violin concertos early in her career, working closely with Herbert von Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic, she hadn't recorded the Violin Concerto in A minor of Antonín Dvorák. This 2013 recording with Manfred Honeck and the Berlin Philharmonic fills that gap in her legacy, and this is an exceptionally bright and passionate performance, well worth the wait. Mutter is impeccable in execution and warm in expression, especially in the infectious Finale, and her presence is quite vibrant, thanks to Deutsche Grammophon's expert microphone placement that separates the violin from the orchestra and puts it front and center in the mix.

“Performing contemporary music had added immeasurably to the way I play Tchaikovsky’s Concerto,” writes violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter in the liner notes to her 2nd recording of the work in 20 years. To be more precise, what performing contemporary music has added to Mutter’s performance of Tchaikovsky’s concerto is an abrasive tone, an aggressive technique, & an interpretation that treats Tchaikovsky’s tender little concerto as if it were a lover who liked it rough & raw. Although there is no denying Mutter’s virtuosity, her performance is at best willful & at worst wrongful.

"Performing contemporary music had added immeasurably to the way I play Tchaikovsky's Concerto," writes violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter in the liner notes to her second recording of the work in 20 years. To be more precise, what performing contemporary music has added to Mutter's performance of Tchaikovsky's concerto is an abrasive tone, an aggressive technique, and an interpretation that treats Tchaikovsky's tender little concerto as if it were a lover who liked it rough and raw. Although there is no denying Mutter's virtuosity, her performance is at best willful and at worst wrongful.

This SACD transfer of Anne-Sophie Mutter’s Beethoven violin sonatas, taken from a series of live recordings from 1998, does not transcend the questionable interpretations. In each of these famous sonatas, Mutter takes excessive liberties with respect to dynamics and phrasing, and while some listeners may appreciate the thought and care she puts into these readings, it sounds as if she is trying a bit too hard to be “musical”. For example, just before the exposition repeat of the “Spring” sonata, several instances of disproportionate agogic pauses, inconsistent use of vibrato, random adherences to sforzando markings, and a sporadic disregard for (or recasting of) dynamics combine to produce an overly fussy performance that lacks momentum and a sense of direction.

Virtuoso violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter created a sensation at Berlin’s Neue Heimat venue, recreating the impact of her legendary 2013 Yellow Lounge appearance, when she attracted one of the biggest crowds in the history of Deutsche Grammophon’s ground-breaking “classical-goes-clubbing” series. Now she’s pushing the electric atmosphere to the limit by making the first-ever live Yellow Lounge recording. The ‎ground-breaking project, co-produced by Deutsche Grammophon and ZDF, is set for global release in August, with German TV broadcasts in the summer and autumn, and a special documentary to follow in 2016. Deutsche Grammophon President Mark Wilkinson welcomed Mutter’s return to the Yellow Lounge: “Last night, in Berlin, a part of classical music changed for ever. Anne-Sophie Mutter is breaking down boundaries, and taking risks without compromising her art – ultimately pushing on a door through which we hope others will follow.”