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Pamela Frank Plays Mozart: Violin Concertos Nos. 1-5/Haffner Serenade
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, David Zinman, Tonhalle-Orchestre Zurich
Pamela Frank Plays Mozart: Violin Concertos Nos. 1-5/Haffner Serenade
Genre: Classical
 
Following his successful series of Beethoven Symphonies with this orchestra, Zinman collaborates with the American violinist Pamela Frank in a satisfying series of Mozart Violin Concertos. It's a fascinating experience to ...  more »

     
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Amazon.com essential recording
Following his successful series of Beethoven Symphonies with this orchestra, Zinman collaborates with the American violinist Pamela Frank in a satisfying series of Mozart Violin Concertos. It's a fascinating experience to follow the way, in a single year (his 19th), Mozart progressed from the Baroque pleasantries of the First Concerto to the deeply personal expression of the last three. Frank and Zinman are pleasant guides. They aren't as warm as some Mozart interpreters (like the splendid Grumiaux), but their collaboration is alert and charming, and, as in his Beethoven, Zinman leads the orchestra with sparkling clarity. Zinman must have felt deeply involved in this project, as he wrote cadenzas for most of the five concertos. To fill in, they extract the three "concerto" movements (with violin solo) from Mozart's "Haffner" Serenade, not a bad idea. But there was also room for the two isolated Mozart Violin Concerto movements, which appear in some sets although not here. Too bad. At the price, it's still a bargain. --Leslie Gerber

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CD Reviews

The Finest Recently Recorded Mozart Violin Concertos
John Kwok | New York, NY USA | 04/26/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)

"I agree with Amazon.com's reviewer that Ms. Frank isn't as warm an interpreter of Mozart as Monsieur Grumiaux was, but she, Maestro Zinman and the Tonhalle Orchestra make a compelling case why this should be regarded as among the finest cycles of Mozart violin concerti. Indeed, Grammophone's Classical CD guide does regard it as definitive. I was greatly impressed with Ms. Frank's lyrical playing and great technical skill. I was also amazed that she played cadenzas that were largely composed by Zinman, not by Joachim or some other noted violinist of the past. Once more, David Zinman conducts the Tonhalle Orchestra as though it was a chamber orchestra, not the symphony orchestra that it is. He conducts Mozart with clarity, without being overwhelmed by warmth, opting for brisk tempi. Arte Nova's sound engineers have to be commended for producing again a first-rate well-balanced recording that is as good as their spectacular Zinman/Tonhalle Orchestra Beethoven symphony cycle."
The set to own
Jesse Irons | Baltimore, MD USA | 11/11/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)

"Pamela Frank is inspiring. Her playing is light on its feet and quick-witted, with nothing Mozart didn't write and everything he did. After listening to Ms. Frank on these CDs, one cannot imagine Mozart being played any other way - it just seems so "right".If you want two recordings, go for this one and Grumiaux (already mentioned by other reviewers). If you only want one, however, this is the one."
Sparkling clarity
Jesse Irons | 07/05/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)

"I own several other recordings of these concertos. Maybe it's the "sparkling clarity" mentioned by Leslie Gerber, maybe its the DDD sound, or maybe it's Pamela Frank's charming style, but these sound uniquely special to me. At this price, these CDs deserve 5 stars."