Various Artists - Great Soloists

This release documents an amazing array of concerto soloists, caught at various stages of their careers in the four years 1953-1956. Among them are several with claims to be the finest exponents of their particular concertos- notably David Oistrakh playing the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto in a broadcast from the BBC Studios in 1954, and Dennis Brain in two Mozart Horn Concertos from 1953 and 1954 respectively along with Strauss's Horn Concerto No. 1, from 1956. For those collectors looking for rare artists who were less well known to the general public, the Italian violinist Gioconda de Vito and the French virtuoso pianist Monique de la Brouchollerie are represented; the former with a wonderfully spontaneous account of Viotti's Violin Concerto No. 22 from 1953, while Brouchollerie adds a scintillating performance of Rachmaninov's Paganini Variations from 1955. The remaining artists in the set are well known to collectors and the public alike. The great Polish violinist Ida Haendel recorded the Sibelius Concerto and her live performances including this 1955 Prom account were praised by the composer himself. The Italian violinist Alfredo Campoli became one of Britain's most beloved musicians and this broadcast of Lalo's Symphonie espagnole from 1954 captures his sweet tone perfectly.