Mendelssohn
A grandson of the philosopher Moses Mendelssohn, Felix Mendelssohn was born into a prominent Jewish family. He was brought up without religion until the age of seven, when he was baptised as a Reformed Christian. Mendelssohn was recognised early as a musical prodigy, but his parents were cautious and did not seek to capitalise on his talent.
Mendelssohn enjoyed early success in Germany, where he also revived interest in the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, and in his travels throughout Europe. He was particularly well received in Britain as a composer, conductor and soloist, and his ten visits there – during which many of his major works were premiered – form an important part of his adult career. His essentially conservative musical tastes, however, set him apart from many of his more adventurous musical contemporaries such as Franz Liszt, Richard Wagner, Charles-Valentin Alkan and Hector Berlioz. The Leipzig Conservatoire (now the University of Music and Theatre Leipzig), which he founded, became a bastion of this anti-radical outlook.
Mendelssohn wrote symphonies, concerti, oratorios, piano music and chamber music. His best-known works include his Overture and incidental music for A Midsummer Night's Dream, the Italian Symphony, the Scottish Symphony, the overture The Hebrides, his mature Violin Concerto, and his String Octet. His Songs Without Words are his most famous solo piano compositions. After a long period of relative denigration due to changing musical tastes and antisemitism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, his creative originality has now been recognised and re-evaluated. He is now among the most popular composers of the Romantic era.
Mendelssohn
A grandson of the philosopher Moses Mendelssohn, Felix Mendelssohn was born into a prominent Jewish family. He was brought up without religion until the age of seven, when he was baptised as a Reformed Christian. Mendelssohn was...
HAYDN Violin Concerto No. 1
MENDELSSOHN Violin Concerto
TCHAIKOVSKY Violin Concerto
Live recordings, 1945-50
Total duration: 79:51
Isaac Stern, violin
Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra of New York
conducted by Leopold Stokowski
The Philadelphia Orchestra
conducted by Pierre Monteux
Hollywood Bowl Orchestra
conducted by Serge Koussevitzky
RACHMANINOV Piano Concerto No. 2
VARIOUS Symphonic movements and short pieces
Acoustic studio recordings, 1917-1924
Total duration: 79:41
Sergei Rachmaninov, piano
The Philadelphia Orchestra
BACH Violin Sonatas 1 & 2
BACH Concerto for Two Violins
HANDEL Violin Sonata No. 4
TARTINI Violin Sonata in G
TARTINI Violin Concerto in D minor
MOZART Violin Sonata No. 21
MOZART Violin Concerto No. 4
short works by BACH, EXAUDET, TARTINI, VERACINI
BEETHOVEN Violin Concerto
WEBER Violin Sonata No. 3
PAGANINI Caprices
SCHUBERT Rondo
MENDELSSOHN Violin Concerto
BRAHMS Violin Concerto
BRAHMS Violin Sonata No. 3
Music by Berlioz, Hubay, Elgar, Kreisler, Dvořák, Chabrier, Rimsky-Korsakov, Falla
WARLOCK Capriol Suite
PROKOFIEV Violin Concerto
BARTÓK Hungarian Folk Tunes
BARTÓK Romanian Folk Dances
IVES Violin Sonata No. 4
BLOCH Violin Concerto
music by Debussy, Ravel, Milhaud, Lie, Szymanowski, Scriabin, Stravinsky
MENDELSSOHN Violin Concerto
BRAHMS Violin Concerto
BRAHMS Violin Sonata No. 3
Music by Berlioz, Hubay, Elgar, Kreisler, Dvořák, Chabrier, Rimsky-Korsakov, Falla
Studio recordings, 1926-1946
Total duration: 2hr 27:05
Joseph Szigeti, violin
Egon Petri, piano
Kurt Ruhrseitz, piano
Nikita Magaloff, piano
Constant Lambert ∙ Philharmonia Orchestra
Sir Thomas Beecham ∙ London Philharmonic Orchestra
Sir Hamilton Harty ∙ Hallé Orchestra
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 5
DUKAS L’apprenti sorcier
Overtures and excerpts:
GLUCK Orfeo ed Eurydice
MENDELSSOHN A Midsummer Night’s Dream
ROSSINI Il barbiere di Siviglia
ROSSINI L’Italiana in Algeri
ROSSINI Semiramide
VERDI La traviata
Studio and Live recordings, 1926-36
Total duration: 2hr 24:19
Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra of New York
New York Philharmonic Orchestra
conducted by Arturo Toscanini
CHERUBINI Overture to Anacréon
SMETANA The Moldau
MENDELSSOHN Symphony No. 5, 'Reformation'
Recorded live in 1945
Total duration 53:24
NBC Symphony Orchestra
conducted by Arturo Toscanini