Mozart: Violin Concerto No. 2 in D major, K211

“Zehetmair makes an extraordinary sound, small and light and yet able to hold your attention at every moment.” The Telegraph, 21 February 2009

“Thomas Zehetmair is altogether more gracious and urbane in performances recorded over a five-year period… His tone is sweet and subtly varied, his phrasing always alive, with those tiny nuances more naturally achieved with the shorter, lighter Classical bow. I enjoyed the darkly majestic Sinfonia concertante... both for the characteristically vivid orchestral contribution and the sensitive interplay between violinist and the attractive, husky-toned viola of Ruth Killus.” Gramophone Magazine, July 2009

“Complete technical fluidity, at the service of a lively musical imagination, backed up by some superbly shaped orchestral playing under Abbado.” BBC Music Magazine, Proms 2008 *****

“Virtuoso 'violinism' and energising direction notwithstanding, neither Giuliano Carmignola nor Claudio Abbado seems inspired by the B flat Concerto, K207. Nor does slick dispatch do much for the first movement of the D major, K211; but this is not the shape of things to come.
Carmignola steps away from neutrality in the succeeding Andante. The music breathes a life of its own as he ardently inflects its phrases to shape the tension and relaxation of his line which – as elsewhere – he also embellishes. And pauses are decorated with lead-ins. Here is personal involvement that from now on is present in full flower.
It's a flowering for Abbado too, as he summons a passionate advocacy that takes in the implications of key and time signatures on atmosphere and pacing, uses dynamic markings and intuitive accents to keep rhythm aloft, adjusts the timbres of the wind instruments (oboes are vivid or subdued, horns play in alto or basso) to suit the colouration he requires, and aerates the orchestral fabric for maximum clarity. Conducting and interpretation are in the realms of greatness – and no mistake.
In the solo concertos, Carmignola is recorded with varying but small changes of volume. His positioning is steadier in the Sinfonia concertante; and so is his placement with the artistic, if slightly reticent, Danusha Waskiewicz. Nevertheless, their skilled dovetailing and intelligent use of tone colour speak of symbiosis. Abbado remains primus inter pares, watchful, supportive and fortifying. Pity the sound isn't always clear and detailed. Superlative music making deserves consistently superlative recording.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“Mozart-conducting and interpretation are in the realms of greatness.” Gramophone Magazine, September 2008

“These recordings were made at Bologna in 2007 and must be ranked among the finest in this repertoire, whether on period or modern instruments. Impeccable recording.” Penguin Guide, 2011 edition

“In Carmignola, [Abbado] has an ideal soloist, prepared to rethink these delightful works, as well as the great Sinfonia Concertante, with violin and viola solos in the light of scholarly research and reappraisal. The results are little short of revelatory, especially in the concertos’ and Sinfonia’s fast outer movements. They scamper along at Carmignola’s vivacious tempi and provoke dazzling feats of virtuosity from the orchestral accompaniments, which sometimes sound polite. The soloist’s tone is bright and sweet (but never saccharine), and Abbado’s Bolognese band is already clearly a crack ensemble — the principal viola, Danusha Waskiewicz, brings lustrous tone and bravura to the Sinfonia’s second solo part, and it is a long time since I have heard such exhilarating, devil-may-care playing in the famous “Turkish” Rondo of the A major concerto. A marvellous set.” Sunday Times, 20th July 2008 ****

“[The conducting is] almost miraculous, with its exuberant, lively tempi, perfectly balanced lighter-than-air textures, and exquisite attention to the smallest details of phrasing and articulation. The sense of the players listening as intently to each other as they do to following Abbado's directions is obvious in every bar... There are a few moments in the violin concertos, and especially in the Sinfonia Concertante, when the music could benefit from a little more room to breathe, though Abbado and his soloists do show that the slow movement of the Sinfonia doesn't need to be taken as an indulgent adagio to weave its magical spell.” The Guardian, 18th July 2008 ****

“Carmignola, renowned for his Baroque, is a clean interpreter of Mozart's violin concertos, his sweet-sounding strings flitting in well-matched dialogue with the attentive period detailing of Abbado's young ensemble.” The Times, 19th July 2008 ****

“…Kreizberg’s accompaniments are pacey, spry and debonair. They’re well matched by the playing of his soloist, which is nigh-on technically unimpeachable…she’s a musician who seeks out the character and spirit of each theme and even each phrase.” George Hall (BBC Music Magazine – Benchmark recording 5 stars)

“…there is some capricious and pity playing and Biondi highlights many details to delightful effect, bringing out some Turkish-inspired touches, notably in the G major Rondo, the romping brio of K207's finale and the dramatic sforzati chords that punctuate all three works. Biondi takes his cue from Italian opera in the slow movements where the ensemble plays with delightful lyricism and sweetness.” BBC Music Magazine, August 2006 ***

“Josef Suk also has a long-standing familiarity with this marvellous work [KV 364], but as violinist. Here he partners Iona Brown on the viola: and what a splendid team they make!... the performance as a whole is noble and dignified... The couplings may simplify the difficult question of choice (if a choice has to be made). Iona Brown gives an absolutely ravishing account of the second of the five violin concertos... thus completing her recording of these works, a series which is outstanding for its freshness and spontaneity in a highly-competitive field. As before, the ASMF respond instinctively to her skilled direction, and the recording is exemplary” Gramophone Magazine