Anne-Sophie Mutter & Mutter’s Virtuosi
Vivaldi: Concerto, RV551 etc; JS Bach: Concerto, BWV 1051 etc; plus works by Boulogne, Previn and John Williams
Anne-Sophie Mutter (violin); Mutter’s Virtuosi
DG 486 5256 79:03 mins
Mutter’s Virtuosi is a string orchestra made up of alumni from Anne-Sophie Mutter’s Foundation for young musicians, and this live recording of a concert given in the Vienna Musikverein in June last year shows off their talents. Virtuosity is certainly the order of the day in Vivaldi’s F major Triple Concerto, which sets off at a furious lick, with Mutter and two of her protégés attacking the music with unanimity and vigour. But the tempo is on the fast side, and some of the detail becomes blurred, especially in the orchestra. The Bach A minor Concerto is less breathless in the first movement, and Mutter brings a variety of tonal sophistication to the solo part, although in the Andante she sometimes becomes cloying and sentimental, and the performance seems to come from another world.
It’s a world she and the group as a whole inhabit more successfully in Previn’s Nonet, especially in the lush tone in the more romantic passages, and in the wide range of dynamics and colour. The many tricky rhythmic sections come across with confidence and flair, and special praise goes to double bass Dominik Wagner for his cadenza.Back to Bach for the Third Brandenburg Concerto, so fast as to be perfunctory, especially in the first movement. I really couldn’t enjoy this, but there’s greater poise in the A major Concerto by Joseph Boulogne, the contemporary of Mozart better known as Chevalier de Saint-Georges, even if Mutter’s playing style is coming from the Romantic end of the spectrum in its smooth phrasing and use of vibrato. All of which suit her two John Williams encores (including ‘Nice to Be Around’ adapted from the film score for Cinderella Liberty) to a T. Martin Cotton