Anne-Sophie Mutter - Jean Sibelius - Violin Concerto in D minor, Two Serenades (1995)

The power and intensity of Mutter’s performance of the concerto emerges immediately in the opening phrases. Where most violinists treat them as a deep meditation, Mutter with comparable intensity makes them tougher than usual, using momentarily a vibratoless tone, slightly steely, establishing this more clearly as an llegro moderato first movement rather than a lyrical slow one. Even if one misses some of the raptness of Mullova or Chung, it is a very valid view, and the power of the reading is reinforced by the relatively close balance of the solo instrument, relating this version more to Perlman’s than to any of the others I have listed. She is perhaps closer to Perlman too in relating this more clearly to the Tchaikovsky Concerto, giving a performance of extremes, launching into the cadenza for example with a fierceness unsurpassed by any of the others.

Not that her reading lacks inner qualities, for despite the close balance the opening of the slow movement finds Mutter playing in rapt meditation on a half-tone. In the middle of the movement she expands in romantic warmth before returning finally to the most intense pianissimo. Her timing for the finale is even faster than Perlman’s, with power again the keynote, and as in the earlier movements Previn proves a most sympathetic, bitingly effective partner. Note that two of the other versions listed also feature him as conductor, and here he manages to draw a felt, strong and generally idiomatic performance from an orchestra not noted for playing Sibelius.

The all-Sibelius coupling is apt if (at 49 minutes) hardly generous. The nearest rival as regards repertoire is the Rachlin Sony version, which has only the second of the two Serenades but adds En Saga as a non-concertante makeweight. There is little direct rivalry between Mutter and Rachlin in the concerto, for unlike her he takes a broad, expansive view of the outer movements, and in the Second Serenade too he is broader, less spontaneous-sounding, where Mutter at her most inspired beautifully captures the wayward, improvisatory quality not just of that Serenade but of the first one as well. She also brings out the quirky element in the rather later Humoresque with its unpredictable resolution into a sort of wild waltz leading to a final cut-off ending. On any count Mutter clearly establishes all three pieces as far more than just salon Sibelius, with Previn and the orchestra, beautifully recorded, relishing the atmospheric and original colourings. Altogether an excellent choice for anyone wanting an all-Sibelius disc.