Mozart Violin

This double-CD group of Mozart violin-and-piano sonatas can stand on its own, and the title merely reads Mozart Violin Sonatas. It is, however, the third installment in a consistently fine Mozart cycle from pianist Cédric Tiberghien and violinist Alina Ibragimova. Deeper in the graphics the sonatas are denoted as being "for keyboard and violin," and indeed it is the keyboard that plays the dominant role even as the ways in which Mozart shakes up this configuration is part of the interest.

"Mozart Violin Sonatas," proclaims the main graphic of this release by pianist Cédric Tiberghien and violinist Alina Ibragimova. Then the track list title reads "Sonatas for keyboard and violin." In reality the program contains both types, for the two-CD set traverses much of Mozart's output for the two instruments, and his attitude toward the relationship between them changed over the course of his career.

At the ripe old age of 19 Mozart wrote five violin concertos, and they represent his coming of age as a composer of orchestral music. From here on, it's basically one masterpiece after another. Though not difficult works, technically speaking, they partake in full measure of Mozart's uniquely sensual brand of melody. That means that successful performances must know how to spin out a singing musical line, while at the same time making the most of the rare opportunities for soloistic display.

For Mozart, wind instruments had their own voices, full of warmth and tenderness, as much as singers did, and his concertos are animated with an operatic sense of drama. His own experience as a violinist allowed him to write five concertos for the instrument that are full of sparky virtuosity, here conveyed with sovereign authority by Henryk Szeryng. This collection (originally released as part of the legendary Philips Classics Mozart Edition) is full of truly authoritative performances featuring internationally acclaimed artists.

Originally released in the 1980s as separate albums, Itzhak Perlman's recordings of Mozart's violin sonatas were reissued in this box set in 1991 as a special collector's edition. In these sonatas for keyboard and violin, the piano dominates as the violin often tags along in unison with the piano's melody, rarely departing from it except in an ornamental capacity. Even so, Perlman brings his customary good humor and energy to these pieces, and through his vibrant and spirited playing makes the violin's obbligato more or less equal to the pianist's elaborate part.

For her first collaboration with the period ensemble Il Giardino Armonico, violinist Isabelle Faust performs the five Violin Concertos of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, along with three shorter concertante works. This is an extraordinary set, for the historically informed performances, the polished sound of the group, the almost palpable presence of the players, which Harmonia Mundi has captured with superior engineering, and for the unrepressed joy in the music. Faust is the center of attention, naturally, and her refined and expressive playing immediately pulls the listener in. These are far from the most demanding concertos in the repertoire, so Faust is less concerned with technical execution than with conveying the pure feeling of the music, which is delightfully buoyant and uplifting. Under the direction of Giovanni Antonini, the group provides warm and sparkling accompaniment that gives Faust all the support she needs, but there's no doubt that she sets the emotional tone for these exquisite recordings. Highly recommended, especially for devotees of Classical style at its finest.

Bright, stylish, and lovely, Pamela Frank's recordings of Mozart's five Violin Concertos with David Zinman conducting the Zurich Tonhalle Orchestra are surely among the best since Arthur Grumiaux's classic recordings with Colin Davis and the London Symphony of half a century ago. Frank's tone is lean but supple, her intonation is warm but pure, and her technique is second to none. Better yet, Frank's interpretations are ideally balanced between controlled intensity and singing expressivity, the balance that is the essence of Mozart's art. Zinman's accompaniments are themselves ideally balanced between supporting Frank and challenging her.

The answer to the question what would post-Oistrakh Soviet Mozart sound like? is Vladimir Spivakov. The answer to the question what does Spivakov's Mozart sound like? is lightly, lively, elegant, and, every once in a while, extremely intense. In these recordings from the late '70s and early '80s of Mozart's violin concertos and Sinfonia Concertante with the English Chamber Orchestra and violist Yuri Bashmet, Spivakov plays and conducts with graceful artistry, consummate virtuosity, and deep humanity. In opening Allegros, Spivakov is airborne in the zephyrs of spring. In the closing Rondos, Spivakov is dancing in the ballrooms of Europe. But sometimes, especially in the central Andantes, Spivakov can sing with an intimacy and intensity that reveal a more profound Mozart, a Mozart touched not only by eternity but by mortality.

Hilary Hahn and Natalie Zhu prove they are an excellent duo team in their first recording together, featuring four of Mozart's sonatas for violin and piano. All dating from 1778 and later, Mozart treats the two instruments more equitably in these sonatas than in his earlier ones. Hahn and Zhu are technically flawless together. They match each other as closely as two different instruments can to achieve a true duet sound. Just as Hahn "digs" into her strings for extra friction in the opening of the Sonata in E minor, K. 304, Zhu aims for the same tone quality with her touch. The two use longer note values, enhanced by vibrato and pedal, to give the music a pretty sound. It's probably more than a Classical era purist would like, but this is by no means a Romantic interpretation. Their slow movements, particularly those of K. 376 and K. 526, have beautifully rounded, cantabile phrases. The Allegro con spirito of K. 301 has bright accents and intense diminuendos and crescendos, demonstrating that this music isn't all elegance and delicacy.

Anyone interested in a high-quality performance of Mozart's violin concertos on period instruments needs to look no further than this inexpensive set. All the youthful exuberance of the music comes through brilliantly in this interpretation, enhanced by the transparent texture of period instruments. Everything from tempi to dynamics is well-chosen and well-rendered, and nothing stands out as being out of place.