Elgar: Violin Concerto/Vaughan Williams: The Lark Ascending
In July 1997, after a five-year self-imposed exile from the world of classical music,Nigel Kennedy--now known simply as Kennedy--returned to the scene of one of his earlier triumphs with this incident-packed account of the Elgar concerto. It's a reading that, in the first two movements, at least, displays a bristling temperament, rapt ardor, and go-for-broke spontaneity rare in a studio recording. In the opening Allegro, Kennedy's superbly commanding first entry as well as his ravishing handling of the "Windflower" second subject movingly recall Albert Sammons'smiraculous 1929 recording with Sir Henry Wood(and there can be no higher praise than that). Oddly, the finale is not quite on the same level, being somewhat too brusque and calculated for comfort (Kennedy's playing in the exquisite cadenza was more moving in hisearlier recording with Vernon Handley). Overall, though, it's a thrilling display, brimming with charisma and imaginative insight. Kennedy and Rattle's incredibly leisurely, self-consciously luxuriant way withThe Lark Ascending(one of Vaughan Williams's most sublimely evocative nature poems) will probably not be everyone's cup of tea, but their performance of the Elgar simply must be experienced.--Andrew Achenbach