Search - Hilary Hahn :: Hilary Hahn Plays Bach [Limited Edition] [Japan]

{~~}==# HILARY HAHN simply WONDERFUL... the "Big Bang" of Hi

Martin Müller | Frankfurt am Main | 02/10/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Many congratulations for such a GREAT and WONDERFUL Johann Sebastian Bach Debut album!! There are so many recordings of these Bach sonatas and partitas for solo violin, but this one stands out as one of a really extraordinarily superb quality. Besides the superb quality of this recording, this recording is so particular since Hilary Hahn recorded these very difficult pieces for solo violin when she was still a "teenaged girl" aged 17 - and with this 1997 recording Hilary Hahn proved her extra class at this very young age by such a mature and remarkable as well as intelligent interpretation which can be heard in the same quality only from few other remarkable violinists. With her Debut album Hilary Hahn showed what a serious and mature violin virtuoso she is. This recording makes you immediately recognise how intensely and profoundly Hilary Hahn approaches the Bach sonata as well as the two partitas, how she explores and immerses them and so discovers and brings out for all to hear the spirit of them and gets out what is deeply inside them and inside their literature. And in doing so, Hilary Hahn knows exactly how to play each note and she manages to play these pieces technically without mistakes and provides a superb intonation and interpretation of them. Hilary performs these pieces for solo violin with much energy and spirit, but well under control and straightforwardly, she transfers all the excitement and vibrations of these wonderful pieces in an almost frightening precision and cleanliness of intonation and so she establishes a true communication between her and us, the listeners and her audiences. Hilary Hahn (even back then) avoides any unnecessary over-emphasising and flourish - and false notes could already not be heard from her even in this, her Debut recording! So, for me this a FIVE STARS RECORDING, not only but also due to the fact that Hilary Hahn was so brave to record these very difficult pieces at such a young age, so early in her career - and of such tremendous quality and precision -, while other violin virtuosos normally take more time to record them!



This way this Debut album of Hilary Hahn in some way can be considered kind of a "Big Bang of Hilary Hahn's Violinistical Universe" which has been expanding since then - and now has been doing so for ten years! -, and Hilary Hahn once a year releases to our great delight new interpretations from her yearly published CD recordings! From then on it has been clearly obvious and visible how Hilary Hahn's "Violinistical Universe" has been expanding so continuedly, e. g. from her recordings made in 2005 as well as from her latest ones made last year, in "Mozart Year" 2006. With these recordings made by Hilary Hahn of the Mozart violin sonatas (2005) as well as of the Paganini & Spohr violin concerti (2006) Hilary Hahn once again succeeded in making her fans and audiences enthusiastic about the magic and spirit that come from her violin play and which inspire us, her fans and audiences, and bring us to great excitement! Like in her latest recordings of the both extremely difficult Paganini and Spohr violin concerti, even in her Bach solo recordings there is not the slightest touch of difficulty to be heard or recognised in her violin play, but which are without doubt included in a great amount in the pieces for solo violin chosen by her. Hilary Hahn's violin play was in this early recording (Bach) the same light, easy and lively and mature one that she has kept until today (Paganini & Spohr), Hilary's recordings always sound completely effortless/unforced and she somehow manages to cover all difficulties contained in these pieces and to "hide" these with her gentle and smooth as well as very serious violin play.



So, there remains hope that Hilary Hahn will soon also record the remaining two sonatas as well as the remaining partita! At least the Presto from sonata No. 1 by Johann Sebastian Bach can be heard and seen on Hilary Hahn's DVD "The Last Night of the Proms" - at least we have that one from her, which will, as I hope, be completed sometime in the future! Hopefully, we don't have to wait for too long for Hilary Hahn's recordings of these remaining Bach pieces for solo violin, so that we will be able to listen to and enjoy the interpretation of these Bach works for solo violin by Hilary Hahn!



My VERY BEST RECOMMENDATIONS for this tremendous and wonderful Bach CD by Hilary Hahn!"