Henryk Wieniawski; Julius Conus; Henri Vieuxtemps - Violin Concertos (Soo-Hyun Park)

Information

Composer: Henryk Wieniawski; Julius Conus; Henri Vieuxtemps

• Wieniawski - Violin Concerto No. 1 in F sharp minor, Op. 14
• Conus - Violin Concerto in E minor
• Vieuxtemps - Fantasia appassionata in G minor, Op. 35

Soo-Hyun Park, violin

Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz

Nicholas Milton, conductor

Date: 2012

Label: Onyx

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Review

Wieniawski’s notorious F sharp minor Concerto, with its perilous opening chain of consecutive tenths, was for a long time the preserve of the few brave enough to take it on, most notably Michael Rabin, Itzhak Perlman, Midori and Gil Shaham. Recent years have witnessed a resurgence of interest and this latest release from Soo-Hyun Park, whose various mentors include Dora Schwarzberg, is also extremely accomplished. If the aforementioned swash their virtuoso buckles imposingly, Park places the emphasis on velvet-toned lyricism rather than pyrotechnical histrionics. She also plays with an unusually wide dynamic range, drawing the listener in with her imaginative phrasing, preferring the elegant poise of a fencing champion to piratical cut and thrust.

The same holds true for the glorious Conus Concerto in which Park exchanges the molten intensity of Jascha Heifetz and Perlman for a more overtly poetic overview. In her gifted hands, the concerto’s more exuberant flourishes seem to emerge out of passages of lyrical introspection, rather than the other way around. Interestingly it is the Vieuxtemps Fantasia that finds Park at her most unabandoned and fiery, although once again it is when the music turns reflective that she is at her most inimitable. Expert accompaniments under Nicholas Milton and a naturally balanced recording round out a fine release.

— Julian Haylock

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Henryk Wieniawski (10 July 1835 – 31 March 1880) was a Polish violinist and composer. A prodigy, he entered the Paris Conservatory at 8 and graduated with the top violin prize by 11. He gained international recognition through extensive concert tours, served as violin soloist to the Russian tsar, and taught at the St. Petersburg and Brussels conservatories. Celebrated for his warm tone, expressive style, and exceptional technique, Wieniawski composed Romantic works that showcased his virtuosity, including two violin concertos, Légende, Scherzo-Tarantelle, Le Carnaval russe and numerous études, mazurkas and polonaises.

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Julius Conus (1 February 1869 – 3 January 1942) was a Russian violinist, composer and teacher. A graduate of the Moscow Conservatory, he studied under leading musicians and later refined his violin skills in Paris with the support of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Conus performed and taught in both Europe and Russia, working closely with notable figures such as Tchaikovsky and Sergei Rachmaninov. Following the Russian Revolution, he settled in Paris before returning to Moscow in 1939. His concerto, later championed by Jascha Heifetz, remains his most enduring work and continues to be widely performed.

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Henry Vieuxtemps (17 February 1820 – 6 June 1881) was a Belgian violinist and composer. A prodigy, he studied with Charles Auguste de Bériot in Brussels, Simon Sechter in Vienna and Anton Reicha in Paris before touring extensively across Europe and the United States. He held teaching positions in St. Petersburg and Brussels. Renowned for his exceptional technical precision and rich tone, Vieuxtemps became one of the leading virtuosos of the 19th century, and his style was widely emulated. As a composer, he was equally innovative, with his violin concertos making important contributions to the development of the form.

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Soo-Hyun Park (born 1989) is a South Korean violinist. She began studying the violin at age seven and later trained in Vienna under distinguished teachers, including Dora Schwarzberg. She gained international recognition through success in numerous violin competitions. Park has performed as a soloist across Europe, China and South Korea, including appearances at the Vienna Konzerthaus and with the Tianjin Symphony Orchestra. Her 2013 debut recording with the Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz received critical acclaim. She is also a frequent guest at prominent international chamber music festivals.

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