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Review of Brahms & Korngold from The Toronto Star
Early Praise for Brahms & Korngold: Violin Concertos
Nikolaj Znaider's New Recording of the Brahms and Korngold Violin Concertos is Available Now
From The Toronto Star By John Terauds NIKOLAJ ZNAIDER Brahms & Korngold Violin Concertos (RCA Red Seal): The 33-year-old Dane has a lyrical side that makes his interpretation a bit sweeter than Repin's. It's hard not to compare this recording of the haunting Korngold concerto with Canadian James Ehnes's award-winning effort. Znaider's playing is more effusive, Ehnes's smoother. Both are compelling. Valery Gergiev leads a fabulous-sounding Vienna Philharmonic here. 3.5 Stars (Out of 4) Read and except from The Cleveland Plain Dealer's Rave Review of Nikolaj Znaider's Concert with the Cleveland Symphony and conductor Pinchas Steinberg That sense of discreet but alert accompaniment served the audience well in Brahms' Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 77, with Danish violinist Nikolaj Znaider in his first U.S. appearance of 2009. Fresh off recording the concerto with the Vienna Philharmonic, Znaider had the notes well-embedded in his fingers, so his performance Thursday night was one that spoke with exceptional authority. Brahms' concerto is anything but an empty virtuoso showpiece. Easily the most intellectual of the big standard concertos, it nevertheless makes huge demands on the soloist, not only in terms of technique but in the thrust of its rhetoric and narrative. Znaider proved that, even at his relatively tender years, he is more than equal to the challenge that Brahms first set before Joseph Joachim, for whom the work was written in 1878. Znaider met Brahms' challenge with a commanding, Apollonian technique. His bowing was flawless, moving among the strings seamlessly, and the triple-stopped chords in the lengthy first movement were played as precisely as if they had been sounded on a keyboard. Yet there was fire aplenty. Beneath Brahms' hard-fought logic there is a suppressed passion that Znaider emphasized brilliantly in his phrasing and attack. At times, he seemed to communicate directly with the players around him, leaning in and playing like a chamber musician, so much so that it seemed he was co-conductor with Steinberg. Please click here for the full review EARLY PRAISE FOR NIKOLAJ ZNAIDER'S RECORDING OF BRAHMS & KORNGOLD VIOLIN CONCERTOS Nikolaj Znaider's new recording of the Brahms & Korngold: Violin Concertos has been highlighted in Rochester, New York's Democrat and Chronicle's "What our critics are listening to" feature: NIKOLAJ ZNAIDER: BRAHMS/KORNGOLD VIOLIN CONCERTOS. Znaider, a 32-year-old Danish violinist, is backed in this RCA recording by unmovable forces, those being conductor Valery Gergiev and the Vienna Philharmonic. To give some perspective, Gergiev is a manic, interpretive machine when he conducts, and the Vienna Philharmonic is considered one of the finest in the world. Add into the already high-end variables a performer with the zeal of Znaider, and you have a set of perfect conditions. Znaider kneads into the thick orchestral textures of the Brahms while showing off plenty of panache and virtuosity. The Korngold is even stronger; a lesser-known work that's as sensitive as it is powerful, lyrical as it is fun, and Znaider proves exactly why Gergiev and the Vienna Philharmonic chose to record with him. —Anna Reguero Click here to visit the Democrat and Chronicle's website INTERNATIONALLY ACCLAIMED VIOLINIST NIKOLAJ ZNAIDER LIVE RECORDING WITH VALERY GERGIEV CONDUCTING
One of the leading musicians among the new generation of violinists, Nikolaj Znaider joins forces with Valery Gergiev and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in a new RCA Red Seal recording of the Brahms and Korngold Violin Concertos. Of his performance of the Brahms Concerto with the Philadelphia Orchestra last spring, the Philadelphia Inquirer commented, "the Danish-born violinist has an unfailing natural and unusually warm sound. He was most often the author of gorgeously musical phrasing, human and emotional
Both concertos were recorded in the famous golden acoustics of Vienna's Musikvereinssaal. This is a live recording and is in keeping with Nikolaj Znaider's own conviction that "It's dangerous to regard music in isolation. It only assumes meaning through its context. Music doesn't exist until it's played." The recording combines a concerto known all over the world with one that is not very well known: Erich Wolfgang Korngold was born in the year that Brahms died, and his concerto, completed in 1945, is set in the same key as the Brahms. Both concertos were written for famous virtuosi – Joseph Joachim and Jascha Heifetz – and both combine sweeping, lyrical parts with stirring rhythms rich in contrast and rustic humour. Znaider plays these two masterpieces on the instrument that once belonged to the great violinist Fritz Kreisler (1875–1962) – the legendary "Guarneri del Gesù". His performance schedule this season includes the following engagements: Severance Hall with the Cleveland Orchestra on February 12-15 (Brahms Concerto); Heinz Hall with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra on March 27, 29 (Korngold Concerto) and Knight Concert Hall in Miami with the Cleveland Orchestra on April 3, 4 (Brahms Concerto). Znaider, who has performed with nearly all the world’s top orchestras, has added conducting to his musical portfolio. Recently, the Swedish Chamber Orchestra appointed him principal guest conductor. An ardent recitalist and chamber musician, the violinist has also shared the stage with the foremost artists of today, such as Leif Ove Andsnes, Yuri Bashmet, Lang Lang, Lynn Harrell and Pinchas Zukerman. JOHANNES BRAHMS (May 7, 1833 - April 3, 1897) ERICH KORNGOLD (May 29, 1897 - November 29, 1957) Available now: Amazon.ca • Amazon.co.uk • Amazon.com • Amazon.de • Amazon.fr • iTunes
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Nikolaj Znaider - violin Celebrated as one of the foremost violinists of today, Nikolaj Znaider is regularly invited to work with the world’s leading orchestras including, Vienna Philharmonic, Berlin Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, St. Petersburg Philharmonic, New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, Cleveland Symphony, and enjoys artistic collaborations with acclaimed conductors including Barenboim, Dudamel, Sir Colin Davis, von Dohnanyi, Dutoit, Gergiev, Jansons, Jurowski, Maazel, Masur, Mehta, Rostropovich, Temirkanov and Thielemann. Born in Denmark to Polish-Israeli parents, Znaider studied with the eminent Russian pedagogue Boris Kushnir and drawing on this eclectic background his playing has been heralded in the Strad Magazine as "extraordinarily intelligent, soulful and impassioned, yet without a hint of indulgence" and the Chicago Tribune said "Perhaps not since the young Gidon Kremer burst upon the violin world in 1970 has a violinist caused quite the stir of Nikolaj Znaider". A keen recitalist and chamber musician, Znaider has shared the stage with the foremost artists of today such as Daniel Barenboim, Leif Ove Andsnes, Yuri Bashmet, Yefim Bronfman, Lynn Harrell, Lang Lang and Pinchas Zukerman. In January 2008, he made his recital debut at the Vienna Musikverein to much critical acclaim - Die Presse wrote "for many, the 32 year old is already today the best violinist of the world". An exclusive RCA RED SEAL/BMG SONY MASTERWORKS recording artist, Znaider’s recording of the Beethoven and Mendelssohn Violin Concerti with the Israel Philharmonic under Zubin Mehta has been greeted with critical acclaim. The most recent addition to his discography is the complete works for violin and piano of Johannes Brahms with Yefim Bronfman and his recording of the Brahms and Korngold Violin Concerti with the Vienna Philharmonic and Valery Gergiev is due for release later this year. His award winning recordings of Prokofiev and Glazunov Violin Concerti with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Mariss Jansons and ‘Bravo’, his album of Romantic Virtuosic violin music have also been critically acclaimed. Gramophone Magazine selected this album as Editor’s Choice, saying, "Znaider’s confident, abundantly characterful account of the Prokofiev is, on balance, the finest I’ve heard... his playing is a model of scrupulous observation and profound musicality." Znaider is passionate about the education of musical talent and is Founder and Artistic Director of the Nordic Music Academy, an annual summer school whose vision it is to create conscious and focused musical development based on quality and committment. Nikolaj Znaider plays the "Kreisler" Guarnerius "del Gesu" 1741 on extended loan to him by The Royal Danish Theater through the generosity of the VELUX FOUNDATIONS and the Knud Højgaard Foundation.
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TOUR SCHEDULE Please click the venue name for more information and to purchase tickets JUL • AUG• SEP• OCT• NOV• DEC• JAN• FEB • MAR 2009
2010
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