Oscar Shumsky, the violinist on this recording, played in Toscanini's NBC Symphony and led the Primrose Quartet, one of the 'golden age' string quartets.
Compositional Technique
In the Sinfonia Concertante, K.364, Mozart used scordatura, instructing violists to tune their instrument up a semitone to achieve a brighter sound.
Composition History
Mozart composed five violin concertos in 1775, intending them for his own use as leader of the Prince Archbishop of Salzburg's orchestra.
Recording & Production
This recording, made in Edinburgh's Queen's Hall, used a resonating echo plate in a stairwell at London's Abbey Road Studios to add reverberation.
Performer Biography
Eric Shumsky, the violist on this recording, is the son of Oscar Shumsky, the violinist, and studied violin and viola with his father and Lillian Fuchs at Juilliard.
Performer Biography
Oscar Shumsky, the violinist on this recording, began studying violin at age three and at seven appeared as soloist with Leopold Stokowski and the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Performer Biography
Yan Pascal Tortelier, the conductor, comes from a distinguished musical family; he is the son of cellist Paul Tortelier and brother of Maria de la Pau.
