FreeFreight Is Available. Click for Details
Audio Samples
no 1 in E major no 5 in A minorAlbum Summary
Performers- Charlie Siem (Violin)
- Caroline Jaya-Ratnam (Piano)
Notes & Reviews:
Stunning debut disc on Warner Classics & Jazz by young English violinist Charlie Siem.
Notes & Reviews:Recording information: Wyastone Concert Hall, Monmouth (07/26/2010-07/27/2010).
Reviews
Charlie Siem plays Max Bruch, Ole Bull, and Henryk Wieniawski
Charlie Siem (born 1986), who claims Norwegian ancestry and to be distantly related to the 19th-century Norwegian composer Ole Bull, seems to be taking the world by storm. A male model, he has modeled for Vogue magazine; he has performed with the Canadian rock artist Bryan Adams, and he has also performed Vittorio Monti's "Csardas" for Lady Gaga. His passion, however, is for classical music. At age 3, he heard the late Sir Yehudi Menuhin perform Beethoven's Violin Concerto, and was instantly captivated. His impressive education includes Eton and Cambridge University, and his violin tutors have included Shlomo Mintz and Ithzak Rashkovsky. He played his first concerto with an orchestra at age 15, and performed with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at age 18. He currently plays a priceless Guarneri del Gesu, made in 1735, that was formerly owned by the Prince of Prussia and played by Sir Yehudi Menuhin.
Siem's new CD contains Max Bruch's First Violin Concerto, Henryk Wieniawski's First Violin Concerto, and a work for violin and orchestra by Ole Bull. Nowadays, Bull's music is unjustly neglected, but he had an stellar international career and his reputation during his lifetime rivaled that of the great Italian violin virtuoso Niccolo Paganini.
The orchestra plays splendidly, and the recorded sound is excellent, but this alone won’t sway prospective buyers. The key question is how do Siem's performances of these works compare with those on other CDs? In the Bull he is probably unchallenged (I know of no other CD offering this work), but to my ear he performs virtually flawlessly. Measured against other recordings of Wieniawski's First Violin Concerto, which is fiendishly difficult to play and much less well known than his Second, Siem gives a sympathetic perfomance, for he clearly loves the work. Since there are many other excellent recordings of the extremely popular Bruch First Violin Concerto, the competition is fierce. Siem offers both brilliance and passion, and his interpretation of the beautiful Adagio is a loving as any.
Recommended!
Ted Wilks
Submitted on 11/20/11 by Ted Wilks
Siem's new CD contains Max Bruch's First Violin Concerto, Henryk Wieniawski's First Violin Concerto, and a work for violin and orchestra by Ole Bull. Nowadays, Bull's music is unjustly neglected, but he had an stellar international career and his reputation during his lifetime rivaled that of the great Italian violin virtuoso Niccolo Paganini.
The orchestra plays splendidly, and the recorded sound is excellent, but this alone won’t sway prospective buyers. The key question is how do Siem's performances of these works compare with those on other CDs? In the Bull he is probably unchallenged (I know of no other CD offering this work), but to my ear he performs virtually flawlessly. Measured against other recordings of Wieniawski's First Violin Concerto, which is fiendishly difficult to play and much less well known than his Second, Siem gives a sympathetic perfomance, for he clearly loves the work. Since there are many other excellent recordings of the extremely popular Bruch First Violin Concerto, the competition is fierce. Siem offers both brilliance and passion, and his interpretation of the beautiful Adagio is a loving as any.
Recommended!
Ted Wilks
Submitted on 11/20/11 by Ted Wilks
Login or Create an Account to write a review
Also Purchased
 |
 |
Works Details
Kreisler, Fritz : Caprice for violin & piano in A minor (transcription of work by Wieniawski) - Performers: Charlie Siem (Violin); Caroline Jaya-Ratnam (Piano)
- Notes: Wyastone Concert Hall, Monmouth (07/26/2010-07/27/2010)
- Running Time: 1 min. 26 sec.
- Period Time: Post Romantic
Kreisler, Fritz : Viennese Rhapsodic Fantasietta, for violin & orchestra - Performers: Charlie Siem (Violin); Caroline Jaya-Ratnam (Piano)
- Notes: Wyastone Concert Hall, Monmouth (07/26/2010-07/27/2010)
- Running Time: 8 min. 18 sec.
- Period Time: Post Romantic
- Form: Concerto
Bazzini, Antonio : La ronde des lutins, Op. 25 - Performers: Caroline Jaya-Ratnam (Piano); Charlie Siem (Violin)
- Notes: Wyastone Concert Hall, Monmouth (07/26/2010-07/27/2010)
- Running Time: 5 min. 9 sec.
- Period Time: Romantic
- Written: 1852
Niccolò Paganini (1782 - 1840) : Nel cor più non mi sento, Op. 38, MS 44 - Performers: Caroline Jaya-Ratnam (Piano); Charlie Siem (Violin)
- Notes: Wyastone Concert Hall, Monmouth (07/26/2010-07/27/2010)
- Running Time: 7 min. 38 sec.
- Period Time: Romantic
- Written: 1821
Niccolò Paganini (1782 - 1840) : 24 Caprices for solo violin, Op. 1 :: no 1 in E major - Performers: Charlie Siem (Violin); Caroline Jaya-Ratnam (Piano)
- Notes: Wyastone Concert Hall, Monmouth (07/26/2010-07/27/2010)
- Running Time: 1 min. 47 sec.
- Period Time: Romantic
- Written: circa 1817
Niccolò Paganini (1782 - 1840) : 24 Caprices for solo violin, Op. 1 :: no 5 in A minor - Performers: Caroline Jaya-Ratnam (Piano); Charlie Siem (Violin)
- Notes: Wyastone Concert Hall, Monmouth (07/26/2010-07/27/2010)
- Running Time: 2 min. 25 sec.
- Period Time: Romantic
- Written: circa 1817
Waxman, Franz : Carmen Fantasy, for violin & orchestra - Performers: Caroline Jaya-Ratnam (Piano); Charlie Siem (Violin)
- Notes: Wyastone Concert Hall, Monmouth (07/26/2010-07/27/2010)
- Running Time: 10 min. 46 sec.
- Period Time: Modern
- Written: 1947
Sarasate, Pablo de : Ziegeunerweisen - Performers: Caroline Jaya-Ratnam (Piano); Charlie Siem (Violin)
- Notes: Wyastone Concert Hall, Monmouth (07/26/2010-07/27/2010)
- Running Time: 7 min. 14 sec.
- Period Time: Romantic
- Written: 1878
Ponce, Manuel [Composer] : Estrellita for voice & piano (or orchestra) - Performers: Charlie Siem (Violin); Caroline Jaya-Ratnam (Piano)
- Notes: Wyastone Concert Hall, Monmouth (07/26/2010-07/27/2010)
- Running Time: 3 min. 8 sec.
- Period Time: Romantic
- Form: Vocal
- Written: 1913
