New Classical Tracks: For the Mozart Concerto Completist

Rachel Barton Pine - Complete Violin Concertos, Sinfonia Concertante K364 (Sir Neville Marriner and the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields) - Avie Records (AV2317)

Rachel Barton Pine has been playing Mozart's violin concertos since she was 10 years old. She's performed each of these five concertos many times since then. In 2011, she did something really extraordinary with the New York Chamber Soloists: She performed all five violin concertos in a single evening!

"That was really exciting, a wonderful opportunity," Rachel says. "Quite a marathon, and an exhausting undertaking, but really worth it because experiencing each concerto in the context of its fellows gave me so many new insights that I'd never had before. And an incredible journey for the audience as well. I first did that cycle three weeks after the birth of my daughter. Of course, what better way to introduce your child to the world than to practice tons of Mozart while she's listening?"

After having toured the country with these five works, Rachel finally decided to record them. Her 24th release is a two-CD set featuring Mozart's violin concertos as well as his Sinfonia Concertante in E Flat major for violin and viola. You're probably wondering why Rachel loves these concertos enough to perform all of them in one sitting. "I actually feel like Mozart's concertos are so operatic," Rachel explains. "I grew up listening to Live from the Met - one of the few times my mom would let me stay up past bedtime as a little kid, seeing Don Giovanni and Marriage of Figaro, and of course the Amadeus movie, which came out when I was 10. It might not be factually accurate, but it really is true in the broader sense, capturing Mozart's spirit and especially as how his personality relates to his operatic composing. I just feel like there's almost a plot going on in each of them. It's really fun to bring that to life."

Speaking of the movie Amadeus, the orchestra featured in that movie also perform with Rachel on this new recording — Sir Neville Marriner and The Academy of St. Martin-in-the Fields. "Those guys were heroes of mine from way back, and to get to record with them was a dream come true," Rachel enthuses. "First of all — Sir Neville Marriner's energy. He was 89 years old at the time of our sessions last year, and he had more energy than any of us. I'd go home each day and collapse and he was like, 'I'm off to give a speech, I'll be back tomorrow morning!' And then the commitment and dedication from all the musicians. They'd do a phrase gorgeously … and I'd think that's as perfect as it can get. Then they'd do it better, and of course their knowledge and experience with music of Mozart. They were very supportive in terms of allowing me to realize my vision about these concertos, but not only Sir Neville Marriner but also the concertmaster brought ideas to the table to enhance things even further. It was just such an inspiring experience and I'm so honored and grateful."

While performing all five works back-to-back, Rachel discovered she needed to take her interpretation of each concerto to the next level. She really had to define what was special about each piece, and she fell in love with one in particular, "Well, No. 3 is my favorite concerto," she admits. "Now, if you took a poll, I guarantee you that the great majority would claim Concerto No. 5. And indeed, 5 is the one I most admire. It is the greatest of the violin concertos he wrote — no argument. But Number 3, it's just his most friendly and warm and personal. And I just feel like it's my good friend somehow or another. Mozart left the concerto itself a little simpler. This gave me the opportunity to do something more adventurous with the cadenza.

"You know, it's so cool because it's my husband's favorite, too. And he'll constantly go around humming the secondary melody from the last movement which was a tune in the movie Master and Commander. I don't know if it's an authentic folk song, or if it sounds like it could be a folk song. It sounds like the kind of tune that Mozart would have gone to a pub and fiddled. That's exactly what it feels like — hey, we're hanging out and lifting a mug and having a great time."

After completing his five violin concertos, Mozart wrote one just one more work highlighting the instrument. "His last concerted work for violin is the Sinfonia Concertante for violin and viola, and it's thought that Mozart himself would have played the viola part," Rachel explains. "And the young violist on my album — I'm so proud of him, Matthew Lipman. A young artist that my foundation has been supporting for many years. He's playing a beautiful instrument, on loan through one of our patrons from my Rachel Barton Pine Foundation. That was really cool to bring the generations together — Sir Neville Marriner, one of my heroes — and a young artist who I've had the chance to mentor. This is his recording debut."

Whether it's performing with her idol, mentoring a young performer, or introducing the next generation to music she's played since her own childhood, Rachel Barton Pine is a musical ambassador who knows how to bridge the generation gap.

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