Violinist
Janine Jansen and conductor
Daniel Harding offer listeners
Tchaikovsky's two most popular works in the violin repertoire. The Violin Concerto is often used by violinists for important debuts.
Jansen performed it for her London debut, with conductor
Vladimir Ashkenazy. This 2008 release on Decca features the concerto and of
Tchaikovsky's Souvenir d'un lieu cher, in the violin and orchestra version. The concerto differs from other recordings in that
Jansen is accompanied by the
Mahler Chamber Orchestra, a smaller ensemble than typical. It should feel more intimate, yet
Jansen is known for her fiery, passionate, and intense interpretations, and given the drama inherent in
Tchaikovsky's music, it may not be as intimate as the listener expects. The setting, however, is more appropriate to the more modest and sentimental Souvenir, with its familiar, warm, lyrical final movement, "Mélodie."