Britten's Violin Concerto is for me a secret passion (less secret now!), there aren't too many recordings around let alone decent recordings on any form of media be it vinyl, CD or SACD. Following the recent Britten anniversary his music has enjoyed somewhat of a renaissance and jagged edged modernist pieces like Four Sea Interludes and the Violin Concerto have become almost fashionable and found considerable space in concert programmes and on disc.
For me two recordings have been stand-outs;
James Ehnes with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra under Kirill Karabits on Onyx 4113 [0880040411321] which in my opinion is an outstanding performance by any measure but alas only on a CD,
Linus Roth with the Deutsches Symphonie Orchester, Berlin under Mihkel Kutson on Challenge Classics CC72627 almost matches Ehnes in emotional expression and tension. Indeed, so closely matched are these versions of the Violin Concerto that it really will come down to a matter of taste and for most on here that will be swayed by the latter being a hybrid SACD.
Measured against these illustrious performances, sadly, Phillipe Graffin's interpretation is disappointing in the extreme for me, lacking in gravitas, incisiveness and articulation.
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