This latest entrant
in the ‘Great Violinists’ series from
Naxos comes into competition with Biddulph’s
tribute to Yehudi and Hephzibah Menuhin,
which
I reviewed on this site not so long
ago. That was a double set which in
addition to the two Brahms sonatas on
this disc, added three Beethoven sonatas
(Op. 30/2, Op. 47 the Kreutzer and
Op.96), some single movements and the
Bach Violin Sonata No. 3 BWV 1016. This
one includes Schumann’s Op. 121. There’s
another kind of competition as well
since both the Naxos and the Biddulph
are the work of Ward Marston.
I’d refer readers to
that earlier review for some specifics
of the Brahms; tonally seductive performances
with excellent ensemble work and showing
some signs of technical frailties (Op.
78) - but see below for a caveat. At
the time of the earliest of these recordings,
the Schumann in 1934, Yehudi was eighteen
and his sister fourteen. His teacher
Enescu and others feared the whole thing
might be considered a stunt and in Menuhin’s
autobiography he relates how they made
their debut proper in the recording
studios. They only emerged on stage
in Paris in October 1934 (this Schumann
set was recorded in Paris in May and
July of that year a few scant months
after their sonata duo was established).
Even so Menuhin’s bewitching, sometimes
meaty vibrato is fully in evidence as
are his abundant portamenti and charismatic
phraseology. Compared with one of Menuhin’s
mentors, Adolf Busch, whose live performance
has been collated on a Music and Arts
set we can sense the younger violinist’s
occasional shortcomings in terms of
thematic understanding but his impetuousness
– he shaves getting on for a minute
off Busch’s timings for the first movement
– is undeniable. No less is the fine
tempo for the finale, which drives ahead
with real excitement.
The choice between
Biddulph (a twofer) and Naxos will depend
on one’s wallet and one’s interest in
repertoire. I would add that Ward Marston
has clearly worked on the transfers
again. That said I’m confused about
Op. 108. It’s claimed as the 1936 recording
(HMV DB2832/4) and sounds broadly similar
to it but I think it’s actually the
1947 remake that the Menuhins made;
Naxos cite DB6441/43 as the source of
the material but claim that as the July
1936 recording; it’s not, it’s the 1947.
And this might account for the slightly
different tempi the Menuhins adopt,
most marked in the outer movements.
The Naxos performance doesn’t have quite
the tonal bloom of the Biddulph but
it does have a slightly greater degree
of phrasal sophistication and is not
quite so italicised and occasionally
rigid and I’m convinced they’ve included
the "wrong" performance.
Jonathan Woolf
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Yehudi Menuhin (violin) 
