Alfredo Campoli and LSO/Eduard Van Beinum – Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 63 (Mendelssohn) (1949)

Alfredo Campoli, with the London Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Eduard van Beinum, plays Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor, recorded in Kingsway Hall on 2-3 May 1949.

The movements are:

00:00 1st movement – Allegro molto appassionato
04:15 2nd movement – Andante
06:42 3rd movement – Allegro molto vivace
09:05 4th movement – Allegro

From Wikipedia: Alfredo Campoli (20 October 1906 – 27 March 1991) was an Italian-born British violinist, often known simply as Campoli. He was noted for the beauty of the tone he produced from the violin. Campoli spent his childhood and much of his career in England.

Campoli was born in Rome in 1906 where his father was leader of the orchestra at the Accademia di Santa Cecilia, taught the violin and was Alfredo’s first teacher. His mother was a dramatic soprano who had toured with Scotti and Caruso, but a retired performer at the time of Campoli’s birth. His family moved to England in 1911, and 5 years later Campoli was already giving public concerts. In 1919 he entered the London Music Festival and won the gold medal for his performance of the Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto. Campoli made his professional debut in a recital at the Wigmore Hall in 1923. He toured with such singers as Dame Nellie Melba and Dame Clara Butt.

Although he appeared in the standard repertoire with symphony orchestras, during the depression there was little demand for a soloist and Campoli formed his Salon Orchestra and the Welbeck Light Quartet playing at restaurants in London, and other such venues. He appeared at a Prom concert in 1938. During World War II he gave numerous concerts for Allied troops. After the war, he had extended tours of Europe, Southeast Asia, New Zealand, and Australia, and continued his work with the BBC, eventually achieving over 1,000 radio broadcasts. He made his American debut in 1953, playing Lalo’s Symphonie espagnole with the New York Philharmonic under George Szell. In 1955 he gave the first performance of Sir Arthur Bliss’s Violin Concerto, which was written for him. In 1956 he twice toured the Soviet Union.

Campoli owned two Stradivarius violins, the Baillot-Pommerau of 1694 and the Dragonetti of 1700 (see also List of Stradivarius instruments). However, it was his 1843 Rocca that he used predominantly, the Dragonetti being housed in the bank for security.

He considered the phrasing of each passage he played and if he could achieve ‘bel canto’ by shortening or lengthening a note then he would do so. He was not afraid to lift the bow from the strings, an act that seems to be completely avoided today. Brief breaks of sound can add tremendous drama and power to a performance, even when not indicated by the composer.

Campoli’s recorded legacy was enormous, including a renowned recording of Elgar’s Violin Concerto in B minor…

I transferred this work from English Decca 78 rpm presings issued as AK 290/2. The discs are in pristine condition, but as usual with Deccas of this period the surfaces are quite noisy. I have tried to tame them without unduly interfering with the sound quality.

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