MENDELSSOHN, EARLY AND OFTEN

posted by James Reel

This morning I played something from Itzhak Perlman’s Concertos from My Childhood CD, a collection of pieces that many violin students learn and present in recital, then abandon as they turn professional. The first “real” violin concerto that advanced students take up is usually Mendelssohn’s. I just turned in an article for Strings magazine about that work, in which Daniel Hope and Nicola Benedetti talk about their love of it, despite learning it young, recording it and performing it everywhere. Here’s an excerpt:

Is it truly so great? The standard version of the work is so overexposed that one can actually come to dread the next performance of the thing. But both Hope and Benedetti agree that the E-minor concerto is worth playing early and often. “It’s a great thing for students to play great music, even if they’re not at a stage to cope with all the music’s demands,” Benedetti declares. Says Hope, “I think the Mendelssohn has absolutely everything that you could possibly want as a technical study and as an audience-winning piece. It has phenomenal melody, virtuosity, lightness and brilliance, and a big ending that’s pure sunshine. His ability to sing makes it so infectious. It’s perfection in every sense. I would encourage people to start learning it as soon as they can, for its combination of technical prowess and real music-making a its finest.” All well and good, but what about performing it again and again, season after season? “Perhaps it’s a shame that it is played through all the different stages of the learning process and the violinist’s career,” Benedetti admits. “People say, ‘There are only so many times you can play this piece, and it’s wonderful but … .’ If it weren’t played so much, it would remain a beautiful and incredible concerto in all aspects. I went through a period of my life when I was performing it all the time, and I’m actually not performing it at the moment, because it’s important to take a break from certain pieces. A fresh ear and fresh understanding encourage you to hear the music as it was heard in the era in which it was written; things that were shocking and genius, and things only that composer could come up with, should never feel predictable. To be playing the Mendelssohn and only focusing on your sound and just delivering a good job is professional and important, but in addition, the creative aspect of being a soloist is what this piece needs. It deserves something fresh with every performance.”