The Violin Concerto in G minor is unique for starting with a solo violin monologue, described as a 'prayer like litany' enhanced by a G-string drone, before the orchestra intervenes.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Ysaÿe was an avant-garde composer whose works featured revolutionary modern violin technique, unique expressive devices, and harmonic originality, bridging the Romantic virtuoso era and contemporary music.
Composer Biography
Eugène Ysaÿe, a Belgian violinist, conductor, and composer, was recognized as one of the greatest violin virtuosos of the 19th and early 20th centuries, earning the title 'King of the Violin' from Nathan Milstein.
Performer Biography
Sherban Lupu, the violinist on this album, studied with Joseph Gingold, a pupil of Ysaÿe, and this album is a tribute to his teacher.
Composition History
The Violin Concerto in G minor, reconstructed by Sherban Lupu and orchestrated by Sabin Pautza, is an important discovery because Ysaÿe's son had written that six of his father's concertos had never seen the light of day.
Recording & Production
Sherban Lupu discovered many of Ysaÿe's unknown manuscripts in libraries in Brussels and Liège, including a stack of papers 'Twelve feet long and three feet [in] height' covered in dust, which he then edited for this album.
Composition History
Many of Ysaÿe's compositions remained unknown and unpublished, possibly because his talent in composition was overshadowed by his mastery of performance, and he himself was modest about his own creations.
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