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The Mendelssohn and Tchaikovsky violin concertos are such an established part of the repertoire that they hardly need an introduction, and although the young soloist on this exciting new release may be currently unfamiliar to many (he turns twenty this year), Guido Sant'Anna will surely and similarly soon become a household name, having already turned heads with his artistry. When the Brazilian violinist opened the Rheingau Music Festival in 2023, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung noted the “charisma, stage presence and an astonishing maturity and depth in his playing.” All those qualities and more are to be enjoyed on his new album.
Felix MENDELSSOHN (1809–1847)
Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64, MWV O14
Pyotr Il’yich TCHAIKOVSKY (1840–1893)
Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35
Guido Sant’Anna, Violin
São Paulo Symphony Orchestra
Thierry Fischer
Mendelssohn conceived the Violin Concerto in E minor for his childhood friend, Ferdinand David, concertmaster of the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, though it took the composer years to perfect it. The concerto remains one of the most significant works in the genre – serene, lyrical and luminous. Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto in D major is another of the 19th century’s greatest concertos, written for his favourite student, Iosif Kotek, and a work of great beauty bristling with virtuoso challenges. On this album they are performed by the brilliant Guido Sant’Anna, the first South American violinist to win the prestigious Fritz Kreisler International Competition.
III. Finale: Allegro vivacissimo
Guido Sant’Anna became the first South American violinist to win the prestigious Fritz Kreisler International Violin Competition in 2022. In 2018, he was the first Brazilian violinist to compete in the Yehudi Menuhin International Competition for Young Violinists in Geneva, where he won the Audience and Chamber Music Awards. He has performed as a recitalist and with major orchestras in the UK, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Cyprus, South Korea and Brazil. He plays with a violin made in 1874 by Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume.
Thierry Fischer has been music director and principal conductor of the São Paulo Symphony Orchestra since 2020, and of the Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León since 2022. From 2009 to 2023 he served as artistic director of the Utah Symphony, of which he is now artistic director emeritus. He was principal guest conductor of the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra from 2017 to 2020, principal conductor of the Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra from 2008 to 2011, and principal conductor of the BBC National Orchestra of Wales from 2006 to 2012.
The São Paulo Symphony Orchestra is one of the most significant symphonic groups in Latin America. Having undertaken 13 international tours and 4 national tours, recorded over 100 albums and performed an average of 120 performances per season, it continues to change the country’s musical landscape and carve an acclaimed path outside Brazil, gaining international recognition and awards such as the Latin GRAMMY for Best Classical Music Album (2007). In 2019 it became the first professional Latin American orchestra to tour China.
– BBC Music Magazine ★★★★★
– The Strad
Violin Concertos Nos. 5, 6 and 7
Keylin
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra • Mogrelia
Arnhem Philharmonic Orchestra • Yuasa
– ClassicsToday.com
Violin Concertos Nos. 7, 10 and 13
Eichhorn
South West German Radio Orchestra, Kaiserslautern
Pasquet
– Fanfare
– American Record Guide