Brahms Violin Concerto, Joachim Violin Concerto No.2 : Tetzlaff(Vn)Dausgaard / Danish National Symphony Orchestra

Brahms & Joachim: Violin Concertos
Christian Tetzlaff

For his second recording with the Danish National Symphony Orchestra under its principal guest conductor Thomas Dausgaard, Christian Tetzlaff juxtaposes two violin concertos with a shared history: the great Brahms concerto, and the ‘Hungarian’ concerto by Brahms’ friend, the Hungarian virtuoso Joseph Joachim.

Brahms composed his magnificent concerto for Joachim in 1878. Joachim considered the first draft virtually unplayable, but the following year he gave the premiere of a revised version with Brahms himself conducting. While its first movement is often rhapsodic and its slow second movement rapturous, the finale is a fiery, extrovert dance inspired by gypsy music.

Joachim’s own second concerto dates from an earlier stage in his friendship with Brahms: premiered in 1861, it is dedicated to the German composer, and as its subtitle suggests, it too has gypsy in its soul. Like Brahms’ concerto it is a large-scale work with a rhapsodic first movement. Its central movement is slow and melancholy, while the exuberant Finale evokes the verbunkos, the distinctive dance performed by Hungarian recruiting sergeants.

Brahms – Violin Concerto in D major, Op.77
1 Allegro non troppo 21:27
2 Adagio 8:59
3 Allegro giocoso, ma non troppo vivace 7:45

Joachim – Violin Concerto No.2 in D minor, Op.11 'A la Hongroise'
4 Allegro un poco maestoso 22:30
5 Romanze: Andante 7:33
6 Finale alla Zingara: Allegro con spirito 10:38

Christian Tetzlaff, violin
Danish National Symphony Orchestra/DR
Thomas Dausgaard