Search - Frantisek Drdla, Pablo de Sarasate, Henryk Wieniawski :: The Great Violinist, Vol.5

Suave and dashing violin playing

08/27/1999

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Although little-remembered today, Manuel Quiroga was an excellent Spanish violinist of his day. Stylistically he belonged to Kreisler's generation, although he is actually a contemporary of Szigeti and Elman. His tone is bright, clear and imcomparably sweet. His sense of rubato is excellent and quite individual. Judging from these recordings, Quiroga did not seem to be an deep, intellectual player a la Szigeti, but a dashing charmer and a entertainer of the violin. In some ways his playing recalls his predecessor Pablo Sarasate (whose music Quiroga played brilliantly in this CD) and his near-contemporary, Vasa Prihoda. In short, he sounds like a "salon-violinist" of highest calibre. Quiroga's own compositions sounds very much in Sarasate tradition, and peppered with good deal of Spanish cafe music of his day. The recording is quite old (dates from 1912-28)and people whose interet is in "hi-fi" should never bother with it, but a true violin connoisseurs who can listen through various degrees of scratches and pops, they will be rewarded greatly by this suave Spanish violinist."