The Week in Reviews, Op. 78: Joshua Bell, Leonidas Kavakos and Sarah Chang

Written by Laurie Niles
Published: April 15, 2015 at 12:15 AM [UTC]

Joshua Bell performed the Tchaikovsky with the San Francisco Symphony.

• San Francisco Classical Voice: "The packed Davies Symphony Hall could be heard breathing a collective sigh of amazement as he finished a flawless and captivating first movement cadenza. Violinists on stage could be seen shaking their head in awe tinged with bewilderment. To hear a musician of Bell's caliber can be as humbling as it can be inspiring."
• The Berkeley Daily Planet: "...he was positively dazzling in his virtuosity."
• San Jose Mercury News: "Bell gave an eloquent, luminous account of the solo part, and he and Heras-Casado were in accord throughout as to pacing and emphasis."
• San Francisco Chronicle: "And for the more traditionally minded, there was violinist Joshua Bell, who wound up the concert with a splendid performance of Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto, marked by fastidious precision and broad, eloquent phrasing. That, too, is a way to do honor to the creative artists of the past."

Photo by Phil Knott

Leonidas Kavakos performed Shostakovich's First Violin Concerto with the London Symphony Orchestra.

• The Guardian: "He plays it...like one born to it, with every technical challenge fearlessly met and the emotional trajectory unwaveringly delineated. His dark lyricism spoke volumes in the severe opening nocturne and in the haunting passacaglia, with its hints of formal ritual and collective grief."
• The Independent: "And if Kavakos’s way with the Passacaglia – in which the solo line moves from desperate eloquence to a kind of serenity – was masterly, what he did with his long cadenza even took the LSO leader’s breath away – and he too is no slouch as a virtuoso."

Sarah Chang performed the Bruch with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.

• The Sydney Morning Herald: "On Saturday, this venerable score enjoyed full-blooded treatment, the soloist surging through the Vorspiel and maintaining momentum in its pendant Adagio, keeping Sir Andrew Davis and his forces on the move."

Janine Jansen performed the Tchaikovsky with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra.

• The New Zealand Herald: "Those who profess to be jaded with Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto should have experienced Janine Jansen in full flight."

Please support music in your community by attending a concert or recital whenever you can!

You might also like:

• Interview with Joshua Bell
• Interview with Leonidas Kavakos: Brahms and Bartók
• Interview with Sarah Chang