Your Top Violin Concertos!

[Greta]

Following from the concerto list, name your top 5-10 violin concertos! 

I'm trying to expand my violin listening and there is such a deep goldmine of amazing violin concertos, I know there will be a lot of great new ones to me listed here.

In my listening so far, and I'm forgetting some:

Edward Elgar - Violin Concerto
Igor Stravinsky - Violin Concerto
Ludwig van Beethoven - Violin Concerto
J.S. Bach - Concerto for Two Violins
Felix Mendelssohn - Violin Concerto
Henryk Wienawski - Violin Concerto No. 2
Erich Wolfgang Korngold - Violin Concerto
Phillip Glass - Violin Concerto 
(I just recently came to this one and it really got me!)

There are some egregious omissions in my list I know. The Sibelius should be here as much as I love his other works, but I haven't really connected with it yet. I did see video of Christian Ferras playing it on YouTube though and it was really astonishing.

Also, who do you like for some these ultra-famous violin extravaganzas? The violinists are a veritable sea of goodness. (Historical performances welcomed for recs!)

[Steve]

You are missing quite a few... 

Shostakovich, Violin Concerto
Brahms, Violin Concerto in D
Beethoven Violin Concerto in D
Spohr, Violin Concertos
Bruch, Violin Concerto
Paganini, Violin Concertos

btw, Isn't it rather early in Texas? 

[Wendell_E]

Berg

[Harry]

O, dear I am a Violin nut, so that is very difficult for me, llets say 95% of all written Violin Concertos, is my top.

But if forced to choose  a top concerto it would be this one.

[val]

My ten favorites


Beethoven VC

Brahms VC

Bartok VC 2

Mozart VC 3 K 216

Mendelssohn VC

Dvorak VC

Bach VC BWV 1041 and 1042

Alban Berg VC

Tchaikovsky VC

[BachQ]

This is shocking, unpredictable list:

Brahms
Beethoven
Mendelssohn
Bruch
Dvorak
Sibelius
Wieniawski 2
Tchaikovsky
Proko 2
Berg
Korngold
Goldmark
Bartok
Shosty
Vioti
Spohr
Bach d minor

[springrite]

some faves...

all the bach (great pieces)
berg
bartok's 2nd
ligeti
tchaikovsky
sibelius
shostakovich's 1st (havent heard the 2nd yet)
prokofiev (i have both, prefer the 1st)

I am almost in toal agreement with James, with Brahms added.

[BachQ]

add Barber & Schoenberg VCs

[Harry]

Add Havergail Brian's violin Concerto!

[hornteacher]

1 - Mendelssohn
2 - Beethoven
3 - Brahms
4 - Mozart #5
5 - Bach in E

Closely followed by Dvorak, Mozart #3 and #4, Tchaikovsky, Bach in A and D, Shostakovich, Berg, and Elgar

[71 dB]

Edward Elgar - Violin Concerto
Carl Nielsen - Violin Concerto
Max Bruch - Violin Concerto No. 1
Phillip Glass - Violin Concerto

Also Concertos by Bach, Haydn, Mozart, Hofmann and Saint-Saëns.

[Steve]

This is shocking, unpredictable list:

Brahms
Beethoven
Mendelssohn
Bruch
Dvorak
Sibelius
Wieniawski 2
Tchaikovsky
Proko 2
Berg
Korngold
Goldmark
Bartok
Shosty
Vioti
Spohr
Bach d minor

I'm surprised to see that Paganini is not featured on your list.

Edward Elgar - Violin Concerto
Carl Nielsen - Violin Concerto
Max Bruch - Violin Concerto No. 1
Phillip Glass - Violin Concerto

Also Concertos by Bach, Haydn, Mozart, Hofmann and Saint-Saëns.

Nielson, and no Brahms!

[71 dB]

Nielson, and no Brahms!

Who knows, perhaps Brahms is the best concerto ever. I haven't heard it so I can't include it.

[Bogey]

Bach Violin Concerto BWV 1042 (Wallfisch/Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment)

Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto Op. 35 (Kremer/Maazel/BPO)

oh, and probably one of Vivaldi's, but I have not heard them all to make an informed/specific opinion.

[Gurn Blanston]

Bach Violin Concerto BWV 1042 (Wallfisch/Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment)

Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto Op. 35 (Kremer/Maazel/BPO)

oh, and probably one of Vivaldi's, but I have not heard them all to make an informed/specific opinion.

Of course, all the usual suspects are here, certainly "must-hear" for anyone exploring the genre. Glad you mentioned Vivaldi, Bogey. As the virtual inventor of the solo violin concerto as well as one of the most virtuosic fiddlers of his and later times, he certainly deserves inclusion.

So, which of his <> 220 extant violin concerti shall it be?  I only have 94 of them so I can't even tell if any of them is "the best", but certainly there is a range of interesting ones or not. If you want to try one of the opus numbered sets, I think Op 9, "La Cetra" has some nicely developed, later works in it. But there is a lot more interest in ones he wrote on private commission rather than for public sale. The 6 on "Concertos for the Emperor" by Manze, for example, are more intricate, darker and generally more commendable than any of the opus numbered ones. But for availability, musical quality, great playing and representation of Vivaldi as an artist, I would recommend one of the 2 disks by Carmignola that are all called "Late Vivaldi Violin Concertos".  At least it is a good chance to see where the genre that produced so many great works in the following 250 years got its start.

[Bogey]

Thanks Gurn.

[not edward]

My own personal favourites, in a sort of rough order of how much I like 'em:

Brahms
Berg
Ligeti
Beethoven
Gerhard
Stravinsky
Prokofiev (both)
Shostakovich (both)
Martin
Bach (double concerto--is that cheating?)
Szymanowski (both)

The Dvorak and Tchaikovsky I've been burnt out on for a long time (played them in violin/piano reductions when I was younger and that probably didn't help), the Sibelius and Nielsen pall beside the later symphonies, and for whatever reason I never much liked the Mozart, Bruch and Mendelssohn concerti.

Elgar and Schoenberg are on my "to revisit with a different recording" list.

[Christo]

Add Havergail Brian's violin Concerto!

At your service. My personal favourites stem mostly from the mid-20th century (1920-1960):

Ottorino Respighi, Concerto Gregoriano
Leos Janacek, Putováni dusicky
Gustav Holst, Double Concerto
Alban Berg, Dem Andenken eines Engels
Samuel Barber, Violin Concerto
Aram Khatsaturian, Violin Concerto
Dag Wirén, Violin Concerto
Havergal Brian, Violin Concerto no. 2 (the first one was lost during a train journey)
Ralph Vaughan Williams, Concerto Academico
Karl Amadeus Hartmann, Concerto funebre
Eduard Tubin, Violin Concerto no. 1
Dmitri Shostakovich, both
Otar Taktakishvilli, Violin Concerto no. 2
Peteris Vasks, Tala Gaisma

[Bonehelm]

Beethoven
Tchaikovsky
Mendelssohn
Bruch
Brahms

[Bogey]

At your service. My personal favourites stem mostly from the mid-20th century (1920-1960):

Ottorino Respighi, Concerto Gregoriano

A bit more on this one would be appreciated when you get the opportunity Christo.