The 2010-2011 season was richly covered with recordings of Bartók's Second Violin Concerto. No less than four new - now acclaimed - releases saw the light, of which this one with James Ehnes and the BBC Philharmonia under Gianandreo Noseda is the last. You can say without a doubt that the competition in the field of Bartók's 'Second' is fierce. And yet each recording has its own charms: the
… warm-bloodedness of Arabella Steinbacher, the direct tone of Barnabas Kelemen and the youthful élan of Valeriy Sokolov. Well, what else does James Ehnes have to add to this? A lot, given the positive reviews in Gramophone (recording of the month) and BBC Music Magazine (five stars for both performance and recording). In addition to exceptionally good solo work, the greatest strength lies in beautiful interplay between Ehnes and Noseda's expertly crafted BBC Philharmonia. Note, for example, the suggestively constructed climaxes in both corner movements or the balanced sound in the Andante tranquillo. And then we haven't even mentioned the nice extra that, together with Bartók's First Violin Concerto and the Viola Concerto, all his concertos for string instruments are represented on this album. (JWvR)more