Extractions: VIOLIN CELLO CONCERTO CLICK HERE to return to the Section on Elgar's Major Works for Orchestra CLICK HERE to return to the Edward Elgar Home Page Note: If you live in the UK and wish to purchase some of the recordings discussed in this section, I've provided links to Amazon UK for specific recordings. If you live in the USA, go to Amazon.com or , two excellent sources for CDs. VIOLIN CONCERTO IN B MINOR, OP. 61 Duration: 50 minutes Introduction This concerto, written at the peak of Elgar's career, carries on the tradition of Beethoven and Brahms, as noted above. Like both of those composers' violin concerti, it is long, with an expansive opening movement cast in traditional form (sonata form, including a lengthy opening orchestral exposition of the themes before the soloist enters); the slow movement is quiet and songful, but rises to an impassioned climax; and the finale ends with a very positive affirmation. Structurally, Elgar's finale is innovative: at its heart is a (very) long cadenza which looks back nostalgically to themes heard earlier in the work, and which features a unique orchestral accompaniment utilizing a strummed pizzicato. As with the Beethoven and Brahms concerti, it requires not only a top-drawer soloist, but also a top-rank conductor to hold the long work together and keep it from rambling. And, as with those concerti, there are no glitzy emotional outbursts to carry the work along. For the first-time listener, the stumbling block to the violin concerto is that long cadenza in the finalelonger than just about any other cadenza in the concerto repertoire. At first hearing, it may seem TOO long, holding up the forward momentum of the piece. Upon repeated hearing, however, it becomes apparent what Elgar is up to: he has integrated the cadenza structurally into the piece so that it is no longer merely a solo showpiece essentially unrelated to the rest of the concerto. Instead, it becomes the emotional and structural climax of the whole work. Here Elgar has the soloist nostalgically reflect on themes from earlier in the work, tying them all together in a final meditation, before the dash to the finish line that ends the concerto. However, the cadenza is certainly demanding on the soloist, as he has to hold the stage and sustain interest for such an extended stretch of music.
Forums > A Question To Be Answered By All Violinists! Violinists of this era were good, but on the whole the portamento is a bit tooheavy for me. music123 Not the best, but nigel kennedy is pretty cool. http://forums.abrsm.org/lofiversion/index.php/t4440.html
The Kennedy Experience - Culture Shock News A considerable contribution to this affection of mine has been made by theviolinist nigel kennedy who entered the Guinness Book of Records with his http://www.sofiaecho.com/article/the-kennedy-experience/id_11065/catid_47
Extractions: So when on March 17 a colleague called me on my mobile and said that Kennedy has just whizzed past her on his bike and has entered the building of the Musical School in Sofia only a block away from The Sofia Echo office, I grabbed a digital camera, a permanent marker and my press pass for the concert on the following day and ran up Oborishte Street hoping to at least get an autograph.
British Violin Sensation Kennedy British violin sensation kennedy straddles the classics For well over a decadeNigel kennedy, as he was first known, has been acknowledged as Britain s http://www.news.cornell.edu/Chronicle/98/11.5.98/Kennedy.html
Extractions: "Structures, not strictures" is Kennedy's description of the unusual Cornell Concert Series program he will present Monday, Nov. 9, at 8 p.m. in Bailey Hall. Juxtaposing works by Bach, Bartok and his own arrangement of songs by rock icon Jimi Hendrix, the British violinist with the single moniker will perform both as soloist and with the "Kennedy Collective," an ensemble comprising two guitarists, two cellists, double bass, flute and oboe. "As is the case with most musicians' recitals, I have chosen works which inspire me," notes Kennedy, "and I hope, mainly through my interpretations, but also because of the context in which I have placed all these works, to be able to shed new light on them. This is, after all, surely the function of an interpreting artist." Tickets for the concert at $25, $22, $19 and $16 for the general public and $15, $13, $11.50 and $9.50 for students and are on sale at the Lincoln Hall Box Office, 105 Lincoln Hall, 255-5144. Tickets may also be ordered via the Cornell Concert Series web site at http://www.arts.cornell.edu/ccs
