Julia Fischer - MULTIPLE shivers down my spine...

Posted by: sjust on 12 July 2005

Dear friends,
this is one of the moments that rarely happen to me throughout a year: I've listened to Julia Fischer's interpretation of JS Bach's (very much loved) Partita #2, and was simply knocked down. Completely. For a very long time, it hadn't happened to me to have tears in my eyes - just because of the sheer beauty of somebody's playing. Today, that period has come to an end. (Adrian: This is the return of the hunger...)

Just comparing it to two other similar aged (and positioned) female performers that I like:

Hillary Hahn shocks you with her fabulous technique. She runs you through some of the very difficult parts with ease, that you forget to breathe sometimes (so does she, it seems). But... chances are that you are left cold - especially with the more emotional parts.

Baiba Skride - a great descendant of the ex-Soviet school. Excellent taking of the partita #2 ! She has everything you'd expect from an Eastern educated artist: Feeling, technique, tone, bringig-it-all-together, knowing "her" Bach. I just can't listen to her interpretation wíthout being glued to the chair.

Now, Julia Fischer: She adds to the game an almost lifetime - and daily - dealing with JSB, a deep understanding of the motivation to compose the partita in the way it was done, the courage to add personal statements where appropriate, withstanding the danger of "over-playing" it (like HH ?), and:
So, all you guys out there with a much more profound classical background than I have: Tam, Pe-Zulu, Fredrick, Huw, others: What do you think of Julia Fischer doing the complete violin solo sonatas and partitas ? Would you agree that we have a new reference point or is it just another young lady being thrown on the market playing rather popular material to be burnt pretty soon when even younger artists will stun the gentle audience ?

I'm glad that I bought this double SACD (signed by JF, ordered through JPC)

Hoping that this thread won't die a slow and lonely death,

Stefan
Posted on: 12 July 2005 by u5227470736789439
Dear Stefan,

I guess Hilary H did not really draw you into the Elgar Concerto some time back, by your assessment of her playing. Actually of the younger generation I adore Tasmin Little's reading of it, and constantly go back to Albert Sammons (from 1929 Columbias) with the Queen's Hall Orchestra under Sir Henry Wood, but then I am a bit mad! [Did you ever get any pleasure from Robert Kajanus' Sibelius records, by the way?]

I have not yet heard Julia F's way with Bach, as I don't get much time with the radio at the moment, but the way you put it we may well have a real artist coming up again. You know my favourite by a long way on the modern set up Violin is Arthur Grumiaux on Philips, but a recent enthusiasm of mine is Rachel Podger (who records on Channel Classics). I heard her in all JSB recital at Malvern last year (and posted about it at the time), and I think she may well bloom into a great violinist, who just happens to play on a baroque set up. I used to use gut strings myself, and there is so much subtlety that CAN be achieved with them. Technically they enable certain multi-stopped passages to be played without roughness, or a sort of stabbing attack, which becomes inevitable with a modern bow on steel strings, and this does somewhat transform the music, making it quite agressive and obviously virtuoso rather than serene (or even smooth, and the singing line is brought out) in the sense that there can be a more even dynamic between single stopped notes and the double, triple or (and this is more or less impossible anyhow) quadruple stopping. This last requires an arpeggiated approach which neverless is more gently achieved. Interestingly if you go back to some of the older artists, like Adolf Busch you again find yourself in the would of lighter bows and gut strings, so one may hope the fashion will eventually run full circle.

Frdrik
Posted on: 12 July 2005 by sjust
Dear Fredrik,
can't agree more on your discussion on the combination of gut strings and baroque bow. The "real" tone of the violin can (IMHO) only be produced with this combination. Unfortunately "modern" orchestral practice almost forbids their use - simply because they're not loud enough. Not funny...

Thanks for you recommending other sources of JSB's solo violin pieces, too. I might look into for example Rachel Podger. Haven't heard of her (but so haven't I of JF, months ago...)

To be honest, neither HH's interpretation of the Elgar didn't fascinate me much, nor did I get along much with the Kajanus. Although I always "preach" that a good system teaches you to appreciate also the "bad" recordings, the Kajanus recordings are too much for me to bare on the reception side. I just don't "hear enough". Plain honesty. Maybe, I still need a long way to go, until I'll be able to appreciate this piece of art. Anyway. I keep remembering your "service" as a VERY nice gesture, Fredrik !

cheers
Stefan
Posted on: 12 July 2005 by u5227470736789439
Forgive being a bit off topic, dear Stefan, but I got Sir John Barbiroli's HMV Halle Orchestra recording of Sibelius' Symphonies 1 to 7. They really are marvelous, but I believe sadly deleted again. What are EMI on? The Walch recording of the 48 Preludes and Fugue of old JSB on EMI France went the same way earlier this year! [Accountants! Not quality but profit. Oh dear!] Got these on 40 year old LPs though, and in beautiful condition, so I am happy enough.

Fredrik
Posted on: 12 July 2005 by sjust
No problem with going off topic, Fredrik - we'll be alone in this thread, anyway Winker Yeah, the Walcha recording. THAT is something we could meet with. I had an eye on it, end of last year, but couldn't make the plunge. Let's all wait, until Brilliant (or some other "budget" label discovers them, and issues for a good price through 2001, for example...)

cheers
Stefan
Posted on: 13 July 2005 by Huwge
Stefan,

Have really been too busy to comment, but to keep the thread on track here goes:

Fischer's version is good, but spine tingling I'm not sure. I think this is where you begin to understand why people can own multiple versions of the same piece of music, often by the same artist at different stages in their career.

I am not sure whether my benchmark for this piece is correct but I do tend to prefer older recordings. I liked the Hilary Hahn approach as it seemed fresh, but after a while I found it perhaps a tad too analytical. Bach seems to be very easy to play mediocrely but rarely is his music communicated well.

The versions that I tend to default to are by Heifitz, Menhuin, Oistrakh and particularly (for the Partitas rather than sonatas) Perlman. I also like Nigel Kennedy's approach and have seem him play this music - it was quite sublime (especially if you shut your eyes and were not distracted by his moving about).

I guess that if I did not have these benchmarks, I would also have found Fischer's rendering much better as, as a standalone piece, she presents it very well. I can't help but feel that some of my love for the older pieces is that they are on the "warmer" vinyl medium. It could be that a CDS3 might cause a slight revision in my opinion, but that is a very long way off.

Cheers
Huw
Posted on: 13 July 2005 by sjust
Your comments much appreciated, Huw !

quote:
Originally posted by Huwge:
The versions that I tend to default to are by Heifitz, Menhuin, Oistrakh and particularly (for the Partitas rather than sonatas) Perlman.

Can you point me to specific recordings (on CD) that you speak of ? I'd like to start building a library of the JSB solo partitas worth having and really think I should include the classics.
quote:
I also like Nigel Kennedy's approach and have seem him play this music - it was quite sublime (especially if you shut your eyes and were not distracted by his moving about).

We've already ran into each other on Kennedy, and I feel that I'm not very keen on hearing his interpretation. I might be wrong, though...
quote:

I can't help but feel that some of my love for the older pieces is that they are on the "warmer" vinyl medium. It could be that a CDS3 might cause a slight revision in my opinion, but that is a very long way off.

Cheers
Huw

Funny that you mention this, because I'm afraid part of my enthusiasm is due to the fact that the JF recording is one of the most "analog things" I've ever heard through my system: Gut strings, bow, wood, church reverb - it's all there. In spades !

cheers
Stefan
Posted on: 13 July 2005 by Huwge
The Perlman is definitely CD, EMI Eminence iirc - I will need to check on the others.

I will also re-listen to Fischer as I have moved some boxes (definite aural improvement) since the last listening
Posted on: 13 July 2005 by sjust
amazon.de and jpc.de - not very successfull, will look in the shops...

Thanks, Huw !

cheers
Stefan
Posted on: 14 July 2005 by pe-zulu
Stefan,

I don´t know the rather new recording by Julia Fischer, but I shall try to find it somewhere. I can´t find it at JPC or Amazon.de.

Does she play an original restored violin, or just one of these modernized old instruments?
I suppose, she is not a HIP performer in the strictest sense, and then she has to stand up to
the greatest virtuosi like Grumiaux, Milstein, Suk and many more.

My preferred not-HIP version is just Grumiaux, IMO he strikes the right balance between the intellectual and the emotional aspects of the music, besides being a formidable musician with a clean and agile tecnique.
Suk is very good too, grand style - like Pierre Fournier or Klemperer.
And Menuhin, not entirely stylish, but so natural and unaffected, that you can´t help to like him.

As to HIP-performances the choice is more difficult. There is not (yet?), I think a similar gifted HIP-violin virtuoso in the league of e.g. Grumiaux. Baroque music is more collective, social music, and perhaps this makes the emergence of "great" soloists more difficult. But we have reports of exceptionally gifted virtuosi from the baroque ages. Think of Corelli, Vivaldi, Tartini and Pisendel. But perhaps they would have had to give up too, faced with Bachs almost unsurmountable violinsolo pieces. IMO there is to date none really convincing recording by a HIP-violinist of the pieces. All seem to have serious tecnical problems. The two best are IMO Lucy van Dael on Naxos and Rachel Podger on Channel Classics. Both seem to have at least some tecnical reserves to shape the music. Often I think that Nigel Norths adaption for lute (Linn) or Gustav Leonhardts adaption for harpsichord (released by Sony) are more musically satisfying than the HIP performance of e.g. Sigiswald Kuijken or Monica Huguett.

An interesting experiment (on modern violin) has been made by Rudolf Gaehler (Arte Nova Classics) playing the pieces with a round bow (first tried in the 1950es by Emil Telmanyi and rereleased by Testament - but his tecnique was to fallible) permitting the player to bow all four strings at the same time, adding some more perspectives to the polyphonic aspect of the music. The musicologists still discuss, if this is authentic, I don´t know, I haven´t researched the topic.

Regards,
Posted on: 14 July 2005 by Cosmoliu
quote:
Originally posted by sjust:
I'd like to start building a library of the JSB solo partitas worth having and really think I should include the classics.

Stefan


Hi Stefan,

I also find myself with multiple copies of the solo partitas, playing the Chaconne most frequently, of course. My personal favorite is the recording of the partitas (1 CD) by Viktoria Mullova. Her measured, almost serene interpretation of the Chaconne is the antithesis to Heifetz'. A review contributor to Amazon.com commented that when you listen to Heifetz play Bach, it is about Heifetz, not Bach. I agree with that sentiment.

Mullova's recording on Philips went out of print in the 90s, but a comment in this Amazon.com link seems to indicate that it was re-issued, though may be out of print again as Amazon does not have it available at this time. This particular CD is one of my top most treasured posessions. If it can be found in Europe, it is well worth your while to try to track it down.

I also count myself among the lucky JSB lovers to own Nathan Milstein's monumental recording of the sonatas and partitas on vinyl, DGG from the 70s. It has been re-issued on CD , but I have not heard that version.

I agree that while Hilary Hahn's technique is prodigious, her CD of the sonata #3 and partitas #2 and #3 does not move me like Mullova's interpretation of the partitas. I will definitely have to check out Julia Fischer's CD; I seem to remember Stereophile doing a favorable review in the last couple of months.

Norman
Posted on: 14 July 2005 by alanbeeb
Anyone heard her disc of Russian Violin Concerti? Been told the Prokofiev 1st is really good, and its one of my favourites.
Posted on: 15 July 2005 by sjust
pe-zulu, thanks for your comments.

What's HIP ?

She uses an original violin.

Haben't heard Mullova's partitas, but liek her recent Vivaldi takes.

cheers
Stefan
Posted on: 15 July 2005 by graham55
"historically informed practice", I believe.

G
Posted on: 15 July 2005 by pe-zulu
quote:
Originally posted by graham55:
"historically informed practice", I believe.
G


Yes, you are right.
HIP = historically informed performance
as opposed to
HOP = (as I saw someone write somewhere)
hopeless oldfashioned performance.

Regards,
Posted on: 15 July 2005 by sjust
Oh, I see. Hogwood and alike...

Thanks,
Stefan
Posted on: 17 July 2005 by sjust
Have also the "Russian Violin Concertos" (Khachaturian, Prokofiev, Glazunov) with JF, now.

Since I don't know the pieces, yet, I have no comparison, and it's rather difficult for me to judge JF, here. The Russian National Orchestra under Yakov Kreizberg support the solo player in a great way, neither do they over-peform to compensate for possible weaknesses, nor do they stand back too far to let the soloist shine in adequately. From that point (and again from the audio / recording viewpoint), the recording is likeable.

Doesn't by far touch me as much as the Bach partitas and sonatas did. But then, I'm such a hopeless non-analytical (but: emotional) listener...

cheers
Stefan

PS: Had SUCH a hard time to spin this SACD. Normally, when this happens (quite often, actually), I skip through the tracks. ONE of them will start eventually, and as long as the CD is "running", I can listen w/o trouble. Didn't work, this time. I accidently "selected" track 99 (which doesn't exist), and "skipped" to track 1, and - voila ! - I could listen to the whole SACD !
Sometimes I wish I had a Sony...