Benjamin Schmid is featured as one of the most important violinists in the book 'Die großen Geiger des 20. Jahrhunderts' (The Great Violinists of the 20th Century) by Jean-Michel Molkou.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Benjamin Schmid views Bach as a master of improvisation, an inventor of 'walking bass', and sees connections between Bach's music and jazz concepts like figured bass, modal jazz, and gospel.
Performer Biography
Benjamin Schmid's discography of over 50 CDs has earned him multiple German Recording Prizes (as the only violinist in both classical and jazz categories), the Echo Classic Prize, Gramophone Editor's Choice, and Strad Selection.
Performer Biography
Benjamin Schmid, a violinist from Vienna, won the 1992 Carl Flesch Competition in London, where he also received the Mozart, Beethoven, and audience prizes.
Recording & Production
This album includes live recordings of tracks 9 and 12, which were captured at the International Bach Festival Salzburg in 2008.
Instruments
Benjamin Schmid performs on the 'ex Viotti, ex Rosé 1718' Stradivari violin, which is provided to him by the Austrian National Bank.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Benjamin Schmid, the violinist on this album, decided to improvise on Bach's works after more than 30 years of intensely engaging with the master's original compositions.
