Mozart: Sinfonia Concertante, K. 364 / Concertone in C Major, K. 190 / Rondo in C Major, K. 373 Julia Fischer & Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra

• Sinfonia concertante in E flat major, K. 364
• 1 I. Allegro maestoso 12:32
• 2 II. Andante 11:11
• 3 III. Presto 06:13
• Rondo in C major, K. 373
• 4 Rondo in C major, K. 373 (cadenza by J. Fischer) 05:58
• Concertone in C major, K. 190
• 5 I. Allegro spiritoso 08:23
• 6 II. Andantino grazioso 10:41
• 7 III. Tempo di menuetto: Vivace 08:23
• Total Runtime 01:03:21

Info for Mozart: Sinfonia Concertante, K. 364 / Concertone in C Major, K. 190 / Rondo in C Major, K. 373

Yakov Kreizberg launches the Sinfonia concertante in emphatic style: a no-nonsense tempo, lashing sforzando accents, a powerful forward impetus. Mozart's thrilling take on the slow-burn 'Mannheim crescendo' has an almost ferocious intensity, enhanced by the recording's wide dynamic range. Then, from their seraphic first entry, the octaves perfectly in tune, the two soloists balance fire and finesse in a true partnership of equals. So often in this work the violinist outguns the viola player in personality and technique. But not here. Gordan Nikolitch's rich, throaty viola beautifully complements Julia Fischer's silvery sweetness. Mozart would surely have relished their vital, gracefully finished phrasing and the way they respond creatively to each other. Rival performers, including Augustin Dtunay and Veronika Hagen (DG, 12/00), Gidon Kremer and Kim Kashkashian (DG, 12/84k) and Iona Brown and Nobuko 'mai (Philips), are more responsive to Mozart's maestoso marking and more flexible in their shaping of the lyrical melodies. Once or twice, as in the C minor theme at 252', Fischer and Nikolitch can slightly gloss over the music's pathos. But the sweep, elan and sheer technical aplomb of their playing are certainly compelling.

Again, Fischer and Nikolitch use rubato sparingly in the C minor Andante, a transfigured love duet triste. Abetted by Kreizberg, they focus on the longer line, phrasing in broad, eloquent paragraphs and catching more than most an underlying agitation. The finale mingles grace and athletic exuberance, with the players vying delightedly in their bouts of bravura. Though the recording, made in a large church, is a tad boomy, this ranks high among modern recordings of this inexhaustible masterpiece. As light relief, we also get Fischer's puckish reading of the Rondo, K373, and a sprightly, occasionally (in the finale) impetuous performance of the innocuously charming Concertone, K190, where oboist Hans Meyer fully matches his violinist accomplices in wit and flair. (Richard Wigmore, Gramophone)

“In the Sinfonia – one of Mozart’s first masterpieces, written in 1779, on the threshold of his entrance into the pantheon of genius – soloists, orchestra and conductor emphasise the majestic, symphonic dimensions of the opening movement, and they duet rapturously like operatic lovers in the sublime Andante. If you have the solo concerto discs, you won’t want to miss this” (Sunday Times)

Gordan Nikolic, Violin
Julia Fischer, Violin
Hans Meyer, Oboe
Herre-Jan Stegenga, Cello
Netherlands Chamber Orchestra
Yakov Kreizberg, Conductor

Julia Fischer
Julia Fischer was born in Munich, Germany in 1983, and now ranks among the top violinists performing for audiences around the globe. Her stunning reviews include the following excerpts: “…not a talent, but a full-fledged phenomenal violinist”, “she takes your breath away”, “worthy of a hailstorm of superlatives”, “a winning blend of steely assurance and unabashed lyricism”. Julia Fischer has worked with such internationally acclaimed conductors as Lorin Maazel, Christoph Eschenbach, Yehudi Menuhin, Giuseppe Sinopoli, Bernhard Klee, Asher Fish, Marek Janowski, Jeffrey Tate, Simone Young, Herbert Blomstedt, Yakov Kreizberg, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Sir Neville Marriner, David Zinman, Michael Tilson Thomas, Mikhail Jurowski, as well as with a variety of top orchestras from Germany, Britain, the USA, Poland, France, Italy, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Norway, Russia, Japan, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. She has performed in most European countries, the United States, Brazil and Japan. Her concerts have been broadcast on television and radio in every major European country, as well as on many radio stations in the USA, Japan and Australia. In 2003, Julia Fischer – who has appeared in concert halls in the USA since 1997 – performed with the New York Philharmonic under Lorin Maazel, playing the Sibelius Violin Concerto in New York’s Lincoln Center as well as the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto in Vail, CO. Her 2003 Carnegie Hall début received standing ovations for her performance of Brahms’ Double Concerto with Lorin Maazel, Ha-Na Chang and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. Julia Fischer has toured with Sir Neville Marriner and the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, Herbert Blomstedt and the Gewandhaus Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra. Her chamber-music partners include Christoph Eschenbach, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Daniel Müller-Schott, Tabea Zimmermann, Gustav Rivinius, Lars Vogt, Oliver Schnyder and Milana Chernyavska. In autumn 2004, the PentaTone label released Julia Fischer’s first CD, an album of Russian violin concertos, with the Russian National Orchestra under Yakov Kreizberg. It received ravishing reviews, and within a few days was included among the top five best-selling classical recordings in Germany. In January 2005, the CD was nominated “Editor’s Choice” by Gramophone. Julia Fischer began playing the violin before the age of four, receiving her first lesson from Helge Thelen; and a few months later, she started studying the piano with her mother Viera Fischer. Her formal violin education commenced at the Leopold Mozart Conservatory in Augsburg, under the tutelage of Lydia Dubrowskaya. At the age of nine, she was admitted to the Munich Academy of Music, where she continues to work with Ana Chumachenco. Julia Fischer has won many competitions, the most prestigious of which include the International Yehudi Menuhin Violin Competition under Yehudi Menuhin’s supervision (where she won both the first prize and the special prize for best performance of a solo work by Bach in 1995); and the Eighth Eurovision Competition for Young Instrumentalists in 1996, which was broadcast in 22 countries from Lisbon. In 1997, she was awarded the “Prix d’Espoir” by the Foundation of European Industry. Julia Fischer’s active repertoire ranges from Bach to Penderecki, from Vivaldi to Shostakovitch, and includes over 40 works with orchestra as well as some 60 chamber-music works. She currently performs on an instrument of Italian origin, made by Giovanni Battista Guadagnini in 1750.


Daniel Müller-Schott
'A great cellist, like a great tenor, should sound like no-one else. I bring Pablo Casals and Mstislav Rostropovich up in order to suggest that young Daniel Müller-Schott may soon be in their league.' Octavio Roca, The Miami Herald In only a few years, Daniel Müller-Schott has succeeded in establishing himself throughout the world as one of the supreme cellists. With his sure sense of style and enormous musical maturity, he opens up new paths for his audiences, including ones leading to works already thought to be well-known. He is constantly searching for both new and rare old works with which he can extend his repertoire on the cello, including with his own adaptations, and in particular performances of the music of the 20th and 21st centuries. As a soloist, Daniel Müller-Schott works with such renowned conductors as Vladimir Ashkenazy, Charles Dutoit, Christoph Eschenbach, Michael Gielen, Alan Gilbert, Hartmut Haenchen, Marek Janowski, Armin Jordan, James Judd, Dmitrij Kitajenko, Yakov Kreizberg, Kurt Masur, Sakari Oramo and Sir André Previn. His concerts are with orchestras such as the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Hamburg NDR Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestre National de France, the Israel Symphony Orchestra, the Nederlands Philharmonisch Orkest, the Warsaw National Philharmonia, the Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra Moscow, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and the Philharmonia Orchestra London. In 2006 Daniel Müller-Schott will be making guest appearances as a soloist in many European countries as well as in the United States, Canada and South-East Asia. Special highlights in this year will be premieres which are devoted to Daniel Müller-Schott: the Matthias Pintscher Trio (with Julia Fischer and Jean-Yves Thibaudet in Frankfurt), Olli Mustonen's Sonata for cello and piano (with Olli Mustonen in Hamburg), Sebastian Currier Sonata for cello and piano (with Robert Kulek) as well as concerts with the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra under Mario Venzago and also with the Orchestre de Paris under Christoph Eschenbach. In addition, Daniel Müller-Schott will be touring with the Staatsorchester Rheinische Philharmonie under Daniel Raiskin and with the BBC Philharmonic under Gianandrea Noseda and Vassily Sinaisky. At the start of 2006, the main event in the course of the “Mozart Year” for Daniel Müller-Schott will be the CD release of the Mozart Trios together with Anne-Sophie Mutter and Sir André Previn for Deutsche Grammophon. In August 2006, Daniel Müller-Schott will be making his first appearance at the Salzburger Festspiele with an evening of chamber music. Recitals, solo evenings and trio concerts will also be taking him to the Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, the Musikhalle Hamburg, the Philharmonie München, the Concertgebouw Amsterdam and the Tonhalle Zürich. In addition to Anne-Sophie Mutter und Sir André Previn, his chamber music partners include Vadim Repin, Lars Vogt, Steven Isserlis, Robert Kulek, Julia Fischer, Olli Mustonen, Christian Tetzlaff and Jean-Yves Thibaudet. Daniel Müller-Schott appears regularly at international music festivals, including those in Schleswig-Holstein, Rheingau, Schwetzingen and Mecklenburg-Vorpom¬mern, the Festival Lucerne, the Ravinia Festival Chicago, the Saratoga Festival, Vancouver Chamber Music Festival and the City of London Festival. Daniel Müller-Schott studied under Walter Nothas, Heinrich Schiff and Steven Isserlis. He benefited from the personal sponsorship and support of Anne-Sophie Mutter as the holder of a scholarship from her Foundation. At the age of 15 he won international acclaiming by taking first prize at Moscow's International Tchaikovsky Competition for Young Musicians. Since his childhood, Daniel Müller-Schott has felt a great love for the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. Consequently, it is hardly surprising that when he came to record his first CD, he chose the Six Suites for Cello Solo (Glissando Records). It was his interpretation of these masterpieces which had delighted audiences in the Louvre, the Sibelius Academy Helsinki, the Louisiana Museum Copenhagen and the Kennedy Center in Washington. His recording attracted a great amount of attention in the international music press.


Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra Amsterdam
It could have been a slogan from a tv-commercial: “the most versatile orchestra in the country”, but in the case of the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra Amsterdam this title is entirely justified. No other orchestra in the Netherlands covers such a broad range of repertoire like the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra Amsterdam does. With 130 musicians the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra is the largest orchestral organization in the Netherlands. Founded in 1986 as a merger of the Amsterdam Philharmonic, the Utrecht Symphony and the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra continues the tradition of its predecessors in offering an attractive combination of accessible concert programs, in which works from the core repertoire are combined with contemporary music. The orchestra has a tradition in performing the music of Dutch composers and has commissioned and premiered works by Louis Andriessen, Theo Loevendie, Willem Jeths, Jeff Hamburg, Hans Kox, Hans Koolmees and Otto Ketting. Next to these concerts, the majority of which take place in the world-famous acoustics of the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra Amsterdam accompanies most of the performances of Netherlands Opera in the Amsterdam Muziektheater. From the start Hartmut Haenchen has been chief conductor with the orchestra. His performances of Wagner’s Ring des Nibelungen and of the complete Mahler symphonies met with high critical acclaim, both nationally and internationally.


Yakov Kreizberg
During the last decade Russian-born American conductor Yakov Kreizberg has established a superb international reputation in the opera house and on the concert podium. Appointed Chief Conductor & Artistic Advisor of the Netherlands Philharmonic and Netherlands Chamber Orchestras as from September 2003, he is also Principal Guest Conductor to the Vienna Symphony Orchestra. From 1995 to 2000 he was Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and he relinquished the post of Generalmusikdirector of the Komische Oper Berlin at the end of the 2000/01 season. Yakov Kreizberg's guest conducting engagements include the following world-class orchestras: Berlin and Munich Philharmonics, Philharmonia, LSO, BBC Symphony, Concertgebouw, Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Orchestre de Paris, Czech Philharmonic, Santa Cecilia, Philadelphia, New York Philharmonic, Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Pittsburgh, Detroit and the Minnesota Orchestras. His highly successful work in the opera house has included three critically acclaimed productions at Glyndebourne as well as productions for Royal Opera House Covent Garden, English National Opera, Lyric Opera Chicago and Canadian Opera.

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