Search - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Academy of Ancient Music :: Mozart: Violin Concertos

Highly recommended

55anonymous55 | 07/31/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"These five violin concertos, written by Mozart when he was still a teenager, are some of the earliest works by Mozart found in the standard repertoire today. In fact, the music *sounds* youthful, lacks (for better or worse) the pathos that later crept into Mozart's music, and is often sublimely beautiful.



The performers on this recording, Simon Standage, Christopher Hogwood, and the Academy of Ancient Music, are all leading figures in the modern authentic performance movement. Their recording makes a strong case for performing these concertos on authentic instruments, using a historically informed style. In my first couple minutes of listening I felt startled by Standage's extremely sparing use of vibrato, but my ears quickly got used to it, and soon I felt that the music was coming through with a clarity I had never experienced before. Now that I've heard Standage, conventional performances of these concertos say to me, in effect, "Listen to my plush tone, my rich vibrato, my powerful attack..." Standage isn't calling attention to himself at all, but rather is showing simply and effectively how lovely the music is.



The cadenzas appear to be new, and are often rather witty. The bargain two-disk recording includes a number of concerto movements which I had not previously heard, along with the standard five concertos.



If you already love these works, this recording is definitely worth giving a try; and even though it is "non-standard" in its approach, I would recommend it as a first-time purchase as well.

"

Mozart: The Violin Concertos, etc / Standage, Hogwood

55anonymous55 | 02/27/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This recording of the AAM performing Mozart's Violin Concertos like most of their other performances is excellent. The use of period instruments seems particularly well suited to Mozart's music. This CD is well worth the price especially since you get over two hours of music."