RECORDING OF THE MONTH RECORDING OF THE MONTH BARGAIN OF THE MONTH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS A London Symphony Oboe Concerto £11 post free World-wide RACHMANINOV Elegy, Preludes, Piano concerto 3 £12 post free World-wide CHAUSSON, DEBUSSY RACHMANINOV TRios 2CDs £16 post free World-wide

BUY NOW  Crotchet   AmazonUK   AmazonUS

Yehudi Menuhin – Great Violinists Ludwig van BEETHOVEN (1770-1827) Violin Sonata No.7 in C minor Op.30 No.2 Violin Sonata No.9 in A Kreutzer Op.47 Rondo in G WoO 41 Franz SCHUBERT (1798-1828) Rondo in B minor Yehudi Menuhin (violin) Hephzibah Menuhin (piano) Recorded in London, 1934-38 NAXOS 8.110775 [78.14]

Recordings of the Menuhin siblings are coming thick and fast, so fast that not even this reviewer can quite keep up with them. This is my second encounter with Ward Marston’s transfers of the C minor and Kreutzer sonatas on this site. He’s previously produced a double CD set for Biddulph which includes them, as well as a Bach Sonata and two Brahms – the first and third. For a précis of my reactions to these youthful, if decidedly robust and occasionally superficial Beethoven traversals, you should read my comments there. The Schubert sports some ripely expressive and succulent tone from Yehudi – his portamenti are daringly constant and the prayerful colours he conjures are warmed by a rapid vibrato with a bewitching palette. Hephzibah proves once again a young musician of imagination and temperament – as well as firm technical address. Now to the question of transfers. An A/B comparison shows that Marston seems to have employed the same master he used for the Biddulph. There was a fractional dropout in the Biddulph Kreutzer that is not reproduced in this Naxos. The ticks and pops there are minimalised here. The main difference however is that there is a greater forward presence in the Naxos and that the surface crackle has been better managed here. There is still a relatively high level of shellac noise but it’s well integrated and not obtrusive and the violin emerges with commendable clarity. Of course one needs to be guided by the repertoire but point-by-point comparison of the two Beethovens favours the Naxos. Jonathan Woolf   Advertising Rates Visitor stats MusicWeb International has over 40,000 Classical CD reviews on offer Discs received Having a problem Donating? Gerard Hoffnung Concerts & The Bricklayer Story MusicWeb can now offer you discs from the following catalogues: Prices include postage There will be NO VAT Rises [Acte Préalable £13.50] [Arcodiva £12.00] [Avie from £6.25] [British Music Society £12.00] [CDACCORD from £13.50 ] [ClassicO £12.50] [Hallé from £11] [Heritage £10] [Hortus £14.99 ] [Lyrita ONLY £11.75 ] [Nimbus Special prices] [Northern Flowers £13.50] [REDCLIFFE £11 ] [Sheva £11] [Tactus £11.50 ] [Talent from £12.00 ] [Toccata Classics £10.50 ] Musicweb Special Offers Monthly Best Buys   New Releases New Releases   MusicWeb sells the Polish catalogue CDAccord £10.50 post free W-W MusicWeb sells the Arcodiva catalogue £12.00 post free W-W £11.75 post-free world- wide     Google Ads - for information about privacy matters, click here.  Amazon Musicweb International is a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com

Return to Index

Reviews from previous months Join the mailing list and receive a hyperlinked weekly update on the discs reviewed. details We welcome feedback on our reviews. Please use the Bulletin Board Please paste in the first line of your comments the URL of the review to which you refer.