COMPOSERS: Mendelssohn
LABELS: Claves
WORKS: Violin Concerto in E minor; Symphony No. 4 in A (Italian); The Hebrides Overture
PERFORMER: Daniel Röhn (violin); Capella Istropolitana/David Heer
CATALOGUE NO: CD 50-2102
Mendelssohn’s finest and most popular overture, concerto and symphony – if choice of works were everything, this would have made an excellent introduction to this composer. But although the Capella Istropolitana sounds like an alert and disciplined band, there isn’t a lot of excitement or inner life to be found in these polished, well-mannered performances. The only point in the Violin Concerto when the music-making rises above a gentle simmer is towards the end of the finale – thanks mostly to soloist Daniel Röhn’s agile, taut playing. The first movement is generally too laid-back – not a hint of Mendelssohn’s marking ‘appassionato’. Things improve a bit in the Italian Symphony, and yet it still tends to sound calculated – ‘cultivated’ in the pejorative sense. As for the Hebrides Overture, there’s nothing elemental about this seascape – it’s a safely cosseted pretend sea-journey at a well-regulated theme park, not in any sense the real thing. The recording tends to boom in full orchestral fortes, with upper strings and woodwind not immune from hardness. Stephen Johnson
Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E minor; Symphony No. 4 in A (Italian); The Hebrides Overture
Mendelssohn’s finest and most popular overture, concerto and symphony – if choice of works were everything, this would have made an excellent introduction to this composer. But although the Capella Istropolitana sounds like an alert and disciplined band, there isn’t a lot of excitement or inner life to be found in these polished, well-mannered performances. The only point in the Violin Concerto when the music-making rises above a gentle simmer is towards the end of the finale – thanks mostly to soloist Daniel Röhn’s agile, taut playing.
Our rating
2
Published: January 20, 2012 at 1:18 pm