André Previn is a talented composer, so it’s no surprise that his new violin concerto, a musical love letter written with obvious affection specifically for Mrs. Previn (d.b.a. Anne-Sophie Mutter), should sound so consistently lovely. The first movement tells the tale: it’s a sort of mixture of Korngold and Prokofiev, in that order, and anyone who enjoys the violin concertos by those two composers (and what sane person doesn’t?) is going to like this one very much. That said, this 39-minute work is oddly structured, each movement growing progressively longer, with the finale a very inventive but also very extended (16 minutes or so) theme and variations. There’s no lack of opportunity for virtuosity, of course, and it goes without saying that Mutter plays the piece with total commitment–but there’s a lot of slowish music here. I personally find Mutter’s tone a bit heavy on the vibrato and her tendency to swoon and scoop in lyrical passages sometimes verges on mannerism, but technically she’s solid as a rock and the work itself is, as you may have guessed, immediately accessible and well worth hearing. Besides, who can blame her for gushing a bit in a work actually named after her? We should all be so lucky.
Bernstein’s Serenade, a genuine masterpiece, makes the perfect coupling and the Previns do a terrific job with it. Previn knows this music cold: its style is second nature to him, and he conducts it as persuasively as Bernstein himself (his timings are almost identical). The LSO sounds to be in top form throughout, and Mutter’s response shows perhaps a touch less self-indulgence (which is all to the good) and every bit as much virtuosity. In both works the sonics are quite fine. Previn’s concerto was recorded live in Boston, and the recording manages to be both clear and sensibly balanced. Mutter sounds closer than she would live, of course (as she also does in the Bernstein), but never to the point of distraction and never to the serious detriment of the orchestra. Previn reportedly only writes music on commission, and here’s hoping that he’s got a full schedule of orders for new works. His music makes for very attractive listening, and it grows on you from there.
