Listen to the White Hot Violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja Here on Classical Archives

This Medici.TV video is available on YouTube

By Barry Lenson

Question: Who was born in Moldava in 1977, studied in Austria and Germany, and plays the violin completely differently from anyone else on Earth?

Answer: Patricia Kopatchinskaja

When I attended an open rehearsal of the New York Philharmonic a few days ago, one of the pieces to be rehearsed was Stravinsky’s Violin Concerto. The violin soloist was to be Patricia Kopatchinskaja, a performer I did not know. I also did not know that she was a magical phenomenon.

She and the conductor Jakub Hröša walked out onto the stage before the piece began, side by side. She was wearing a loose-fitting, comfy-looking, pajama-like outfit. I noticed at once that she was diminutive and appealing. She also had bare feet sticking out beneath her pajamas and with her mop of unruly brown hair, she had a somewhat elf-like appearance. Or maybe a very pretty Hobbit.

I was completely unprepared for her playing. She is energetic, in the extreme. At times, it looked like she would levitate right up off the stage. At times during the music or during a pause, she made funny or angry faces – sometimes at the audience, sometimes into the wings, sometimes at players in the orchestra. At times she would lean in very close to the concertmaster or another member of the orchestra and they would both kind of riff off each other, tossing phrases back and forth like jazz performers.

You are probably thinking that with all that going on, her performance was affected or overly mannered. But it wasn’t like that. It was completely genuine, as though she were completely anchored in the music, maybe through those bare feet of hers.

It was, in case you are wondering, an absolutely unique and astonishingly good performance of the Stravinsky.

I am in slight disbelief about what I am writing here. But every word of it is absolutely, astonishingly true. I love this performer.

Surprisingly, Patricia did not land on earth from a star. She was born in Moldava, grew up in Vienna, and studied in Germany. She is having a major career, playing with orchestras all over the world. I was lucky to see her rehearse with the Philharmonic. The Czech conductor Jakub Hröša was immensely appealing too. And following the Stravinsky, he conducted a performance of the Brahms Symphony No. 1 that was warm, expansive, huge, and exceptional.

Listen to Patricia Here on Classical Archives

After you have watched the video that I inserted at the beginning of this article, chances are you will want to hear more of Patricia’s playing right now. And luckily, we have a selection of her recordings for you to enjoy right here in Classical Archives.*

Stravinsky and Prokofiev Violin Concertos – Patricia and the London Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Vladimir Jurovsky.

Kopatchinskaja Plays Beethoven, Ravel, Bartók and Say – Patricia, accompanied by the pianist Fazil Say, positively blows the clothes off these compositions. Wait until you hear how she and Say play the Kreutzer Sonata.

Rapsodia: Patricia Kopatchinskaja  plays works by Enescu, Ligeti and others. In the company of other musicians.

Prepare to Be Amazed!

I know I was, and I am sure you will be too.

* Please note that to listen, you must be a member of Classical Archives. We invite you to join today. Free 14-day trial memberships are available.

 

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