St. John, you may recall, is the young violinist whose recording of solo works by J.S. Bach precipitated something of a storm in the classical music world, a milieu whose climate is normally placid to the point of stagnancy. But to us in the United States, forever on the qui vive for the least suggestion of threatening sexuality, it should be fairly obvious. In St. John's hands, though, one begins to hear a connection. Her interpretation of Bach displays a vocal sensibility in tone and phrasing, imbuing the music with a sensuality that seems at once unexpected and wholly right. With Bach, if you don't give it everything you've got, you don't get that feeling at the end.
Gypsy music is similar.
They show off St. John's dazzling technique to the point of suggesting that she's a musical dervish and moving her hands at blinding speed over four strings is her route to rapture. These are people who live for the moment, as though tomorrow will never come. It is a testament to Lara St. John's intensity and skill that she can be equally convincing in both.