Medtner - Violin Sonata no. 1
Performed by the legendary Oleg Kagan and Sviatoslav Richter. It’s incredibly beautiful, and something about the old recording and these two performers make it feel nostalgic. It’s great, this could be my favorite Medtner after the Sonata Reminiscenza.
“In writing this symphony Beethoven had been thinking of Buonaparte, but Buonaparte while he was First Consul. At that time Beethoven had the highest esteem for him and compared him to the greatest consuls of ancient Rome. Not only I, but many of Beethoven’s closer friends, saw this symphony on his table, beautifully copied in manuscript, with the word “Buonaparte” inscribed at the very top of the title-page and “Ludwig van Beethoven” at the very bottom. …I was the first to tell him the news that Buonaparte had declared himself Emperor, whereupon he broke into a rage and exclaimed, “So he is no more than a common mortal! Now, too, he will tread under foot all the rights of man, indulge only his ambition; now he will think himself superior to all men, become a tyrant!” Beethoven went to the table, seized the top of the title-page, tore it in half and threw it on the floor. The page had to be re-copied and it was only now that the symphony received the title “Sinfonia eroica.”
Ferdinand Ries
MENUHIN TIPS:
Menuhin always practiced with a heavy metal mute. He only
heard the full voice of the violin when on stage! -This could
have been mostly due to his having to practice in hotel
rooms, but he writes that he actually preferred the
peacefulness of the sound.
Menuhin used alcohol to clean his fingerboard, but he used
fine steel wool to clean rosin off his strings and violin top.
( ! )
“Many people don’t realize that it takes considerably mort
art & skill to play the violin lightly than it does to play it
loudly. The best possible training for a young violinist is
learning to play pianissimo and without pressure.”
He considered rubato to be a form of improvisation, and
urged that this be practiced and accentuated as much as
possible.
BREATHING: (esp when lying on one’s back)
“Feel the air pushing against the spine.” -this is a
wonderfully simple way to describe a somewhat complex
physical act.
On the bow-hold: “It is absolutely vital to hold it as lightly as
possible - rather as one might pick up a newborn bird…” “One
should feel, in the right arm, the sensation of the bowhair on
the strings… The moment tension or hardness enters… the
vibrations will not be felt.”
