2012 Violinist.com Tournament, Round 2, Day 1: Mendelssohn Violin Concerto vs. Vivaldi Four Seasons
Well, we've picked our favorites, and now it's time to pick our favorites of the favorites!
In other words, our Violin Concerto Tournament enters Round 2, and the decisions will only get more difficult. For the record, we have whittled it down to eight violin concertos: Mendelssohn, Vivaldi 'Four Seasons,' Sibelius, Brahms, Beethoven, Bruch, Bach Double and (probably) Tchaikovsky. (For an overview and links to previous votes, please see our Tournament Page)
Today we have (drum roll)…
Mendelssohn Violin Concerto vs. Vivaldi Four Seasons
Just for fun, here are some more recordings for your listening enjoyment, and feel free to list your own and lobby for your favorite in the comments below:
Gorgeous first movement of the Mendelssohn with Henryk Szeryng; they have the video embedding disabled, so here is the link: http://youtu.be/C0aZt5vgFHE
Here's the third movement of the Mendelssohn, Anne-Sophie Mutter, with Kurt Masur and the Gewandhaus:
Vivaldi's "Summer" -- on accordion! http://youtu.be/NiRNzIUkDuk
Brrrr, "Winter"! Here is a Baroque instrument version, with violinist Giuliano Carmignola and the Venice Baroque Orchestra, directed by Andrea Marcon:
Replies
Godamn that was difficult! But in the end I had to go with Vivaldi cause it's one of the things that made want to play the violin.
Wow so much for being a rebel I've voted with the majority on every one of these. I missed the first showdown though I would have voted Mozart V over Vivaldi Four Seasons but that was a close one.
Ouch! This one really tore at my heartstrings as love both very much. However, Mendelssohn has a few more memories attached seeing as it was the first (and so far only) time I heard Itzhak Perlman play <3
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March 22, 2012 at 10:59 PM · I voted for Mendelssohn.I'm also quite a fan of Vivaldi, but - at least in England - the Four Seasons are so overplayed compared with the rest of his phenomenally large concerto output.