Christian Tetzlaff: Adès and Elgar Concerto Works Recording Assessment – Invigorating and Thrilling
Not every music lover who adores Elgar’s concerto for violin will automatically enjoy the violinist Tetzlaff’s new interpretation, but nobody will call it uninspired. Maybe the most remarkable feature is the tempo of the rendition, which cuts considerable time off competing recordings: the soloist could have finished and left the venue by the time a different performer completes their act. Urged by maestro John Storgårds, who leads the orchestra with dynamic energy, Tetzlaff frequently speeds toward moments of burgeoning passion, instead of broadening into them, and the effect is thrilling. The downside is that some complex sections feel fragmented in this approach; Tetzlaff is like a feline playing with a mouse, constantly coiling, prepared to pounce.
It’s not in any way entirely hurried, though. At times Tetzlaff is introspective where fellow performers are forceful, and vice versa; the melodies that evoke emotion are not necessarily those you would anticipate. It’s a genuinely revitalizing performance.
A comparable energy flows through Adès’s 2005-composed Violin Concerto, Concentric Paths, with the violinist emphasizing urgency over lyricism, and Storgårds molding the orchestral accompaniment into huge arcs. The powerful middle section unwinds with accumulating, unstoppable intensity; the third part has its catchy little tune anchored by the orchestra’s bass in a way that conjures centrifugal force.
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