Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky; Jean Sibelius - Violin Concertos (David Oistrakh)

Information

Composer: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky; Jean Sibelius

• Tchaikovsky - Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35
• Sibelius - Violin Concerto in D minor, Op. 47

David Oistrakh, violin

Philadelphia Orchestra

Eugene Ormandy, conductor

Date: 1959

Label: Columbia

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Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Romantic Russian composer. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popular concert and theatrical music in the current classical repertoire, including the ballets Swan Lake and The Nutcracker, the 1812 Overture, his First Piano Concerto, Violin Concerto, the Romeo and Juliet Overture-Fantasy, several symphonies, and the opera Eugene Onegin. Despite his many popular successes, Tchaikovsky's life was punctuated by personal crises and depression.

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Jean Sibelius (8 December 1865 – 20 September 1957) was a Finnish composer who is widely regarded as his country's greatest composer. His teachers included Martin Wegelius, Robert Fuchs and Karl Goldmark. The core of Sibelius' oeuvre is his set of seven symphonies, which are regularly performed and recorded in Finland and around the world. His other best-known compositions include Finlandia, the Karelia Suite, Valse triste, the Violin Concerto, the choral symphony Kullervo, and The Swan of Tuonela. Sibelius composed prolifically until the mid-1920s, then stopped producing major works in his last 30 years.

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David Oistrakh (30 September 1908 – 24 October 1974) was a Soviet Russian violinist, violist, and conductor, who is acclaimed for his exceptional technique and tone production. He graduated from the Odessa Conservatory in 1926 and made his Moscow debut in 1929. Oistrakh gave recitals throughout the Soviet Union and eastern Europe and in 1937 won first prize in the Eugène Ysaÿe violin competition. From 1934 he taught violin at the Moscow Conservatory. Oistrakh was first heard in western Europe and the United States through his recordings for Melodiya. From 1951 he toured extensively in Europe and the United States.

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