Violinist David Oistrakh, for whom both these works were composed, called the Violin Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 77, "Shakespearean," and imbued the work with a theatrical mixture of brilliance and inwardness. The latter is missing from this reading by violinist Alina Ibragimova and conductor Vladimir Jurowski, leading the cumbersomely named State Academic Symphony of Russia "Evgeny Svetlanov," but Shostakovich called the work a "symphony for violin and orchestra," and not only because it has four movements: it is an ...
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Violinist David Oistrakh, for whom both these works were composed, called the Violin Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 77, "Shakespearean," and imbued the work with a theatrical mixture of brilliance and inwardness. The latter is missing from this reading by violinist Alina Ibragimova and conductor Vladimir Jurowski, leading the cumbersomely named State Academic Symphony of Russia "Evgeny Svetlanov," but Shostakovich called the work a "symphony for violin and orchestra," and not only because it has four movements: it is an exquisite, turn-on-a-dime essay in soloist-orchestral balance that features one of the most difficult solo parts in the repertory (remarkable, in view of the fact that Shostakovich did not play the violin). Here Ibragimova is on solid ground, and her performance is a technical marvel. If the composer's precarious state of mind under Stalinist repression does not come through, the clean, jewel-like craftsmanship of the work does. Ibragimova challenges herself even further by playing the...
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