Bach: Violin Concertos BWV 1041 - 1043

Ravishing stuff!

     

Unless you are absolutely sold on "authentic instruments" only, you cannot end your life without having heard these performances. As it happens, both Oistrakhs play on "authentic" instruments anyway; only they are strings with metal, not catgut. So there. And you might find that they are incognisant of research which has shown that composers of Bach's era tended to expect the players to improvise every now and then. This diminishes (ever slightly) your enjoyment of the Vivaldi, but hardly the Bach. Because Bach never relied on his performers, but wrote every trill and arpeggio exactly as he wanted it. So there. In my estimation, having heard maybe 50 or 100 performances both live and recorded, these readings are as close as any musician could ever hope to come to the SPIRIT which animates the works they play. The execution is flawless, the orchestral contributions just right and the sound as good as you have a right to expect from the best technology - even though they are 50 years old. I think the "Old Sock" himself might nod approval from his seat in Heaven, something I wouldn't say lightly about mere recordings!