Prokofiev: Violin Concertos No.1 & 2, Solo Violin Sonata
Tianwa Yang (violin)
Jun Märkl / ORF Vienna Radio Symphony (Naxos)
(scroll down for English review)
普羅歌菲夫及蕭斯塔高維契之間，我沒有把握說誰較好，甚至我較喜歡誰，但談到兩人的小提琴協奏曲（都是寫了兩首），我會毫不猶豫選普羅歌菲夫，無論是作品整體而言、還是小提琴技巧的運用我都覺得是普氏佔優。不過在音樂會中，似乎更容易遇到蕭氏（其實也只是拉第一首），錄齊普氏兩首的小提琴家亦不多，所以楊天媧去錄，值得高興。
我原本以為這套曲目很適合她，因為炫技抒情俱備，但這個錄音令我有保留。《第一》（軌一至三）的技術要求稍高於《第二》（軌四至六），不過楊天媧在克服難關之時，保持不到發音的優美。雖然技術是棘手的、和聲有時也是不協和的，但我不認為楊天媧拉到這麼刺耳，會是普氏的原意。不過楊天媧的無畏，已勝過漢恩之前「巴黎」專輯那種畏首畏尾好多了。
《第二》比較抒情，沒《第一》這麼繃緊，我期望楊天媧可以在發音上做好一點，沒錯是順耳了，不過她又好像想追求一種醉意、不受約束，於是又沒有我想聽到的優美發音了。然而第三樂章狂野又流暢，倒是恰如其份。
《無伴奏小提琴奏鳴曲》（軌七至九）是普氏的晚年作品，楊天媧的演奏我就毫無保留，豪邁及抒情俱備，或者技術要求較兩首協奏曲為低，所以較游刄有餘？就算演奏未臻極致，這三首作品我覺得都是重要的20世紀小提琴作品，值得趁此機會認識。
I won’t say Prokofiev or Shostakovich is the better composer, but I definitely prefer the Prokofiev violin concertos to those by Shostakovich. Sadly, it’s the Shostakovich First that got played more often and violinists who recorded both Prokofiev concertos are hard to find. So I welcomed this new Tianwa Yang recording.
Before listening I expected these works to be perfect vehicles for her but the actual recording wasn’t as good as I assumed. While overcoming the technical hurdles of the First Concerto (tracks 1-3) Yang sacrificed too much of the tonal qualities. Although Prokofiev’s tonal language is anything but sweet, but I don’t think he intended it to be screechy. Nevertheless, Yang’s fearlessness is much preferable to Hahn’s safety-first reserve in her Paris album.
I supposed Yang would fare better in the more lyrical Second Concerto (tracks 4-6). I got to hear more pleasant phrases but Yang seemed to be after an intoxicated emotion, so I don’t get enough elegance out of it. Yang’s abandon in the third movement was a sight to behold, though.
I think she was truly in home turf with the Solo Violin Sonata (tracks 7-9), with its juxtaposition of honey and spice. Perhaps it’s due to its less strenuous technical demands? Although I have reservations, don’t let them deter you from appreciating these masterpieces of the 20th century violin repertoire.