Edgar Meyer/Samuel Barber/ violin concerti played by Hilary Hahn

thedailychannel.com — music

Hilary Hahn plays two great violin concertos.

Hilary Hahn is a true phenomenon: a brilliant violinist with the sweetest tone and purest intonation ever, blessed at her young age (20-ish) with great musicianship and sensitivity as well as technical wizardry.

I've played this recording again and again since I bought it and love it as much on the 15th hearing as I did on the first.

Samuel Barber / Violin Concerto / Hilary Hahn, violin; Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Hugh Wolff, conductor

Edgar Meyer / Violin Concerto / Hilary Hahn, violin; Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Hugh Wolff, conductor

Hahn's playing of the Barber, an American masterpiece composed in 1939, is mesmerizing. My particular favorite is the second movement: a lyrical beauty with a theme that rocks back and forth between C# minor and E major. The third movement is a fiendish perpetuum mobile less than 4 minutes long.

The concerto by Edgar Meyer was written especially for Hilary Hahn. Meyer, a virtuoso bassist who has collaborated with cellist Yo-Yo Ma and violinist Mark O�Connor on the Appalachia WaltzAppalachian Journey project, has a unique compositional voice � a mixture of American fiddling riffs and more "classical" gestures. For my taste, the second movement drags at the beginning with a big dose of minimalist noodling.

Once it gets underway, though, it�s a thrilling ride, with Hahn demonstrating perfect mastery of both her instrument and this perfectly American idiom. Buy this recording! You�ll love it.

reviewed may 28 2000 by [email protected]

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