Christoph Koncz: My Period Instrument Top Five
"The period performance movement was already very influential when I was growing up," explains the Austrian violinist and conductor Christoph Koncz (born 1987). "It had already reached a second generation: the musicians were becoming more and more secure in using historical instruments, and also with working with original sources. The experimental phase had passed already. And I'm perhaps really part of the first generation of musicians, for whom this sound world was a given while growing up, and I internalized it completely. And this way of performing influenced me already as a child. Together with my brother Stephan, I listened to a lot of recordings right from when I was little, and found historically informed performances especially interesting."
Read more…Bach: Brandenburg Concerto No. 5. Musica Antiqua Köln, Reinhard Goebel
I love this 1986 recording because the harpsichordist Andreas Staier in particular. This work is of course very important for the development of the harpsichord concerto as a genre, with its sweeping solo cadenza in the first movement, which Bach also changed over the course of the years – he revised and extended it further in several stages. Here Staier plays with so much imagination and so much agogic freedom, but at the same time so convincingly and impressively, meaning that this is my favourite recording in this repertoire, and one of the most important recordings for me overall.
Bach: Concerto for Two Violins in D minor, BWV 1043. Gottfried von der Goltz, Petra Müllejans
The Double Concerto is one of Bach's most popular pieces, and we violinists are particularly happy to have it in our repertoire! It's simply a wonderful masterpiece. Bach probably originally conceived it for just two violins and basso continuo, adding the orchestral parts only afterwards. The slow movement, "Largo ma non tanto", is particularly expressive, and it's impressive how beautifully this music is constructed, and how it could in fact just go on forever: it always goes from one player to the next, with both soloists taking turns in double counterpoint. The way it's composed is simply out of this world. And I find this Freiburger Barockorchster recording works especially well: how tastefully they ornament, how transparent it all sounds, how the two soloists melt into one another while also keeping their own character. Fantastic!
Vivaldi: The Four Seasons – Spring. Enrico Onofri, Il Giardino Armonico, Giovanni Antonini
The Four Seasons constitute one of the most popular pieces of music ever, and it was brought into particular focus in the 1990s when Nigel Kennedy introduced them to a public that was perhaps not so familiar with classical music. Il Giardino armonico recorded the work shortly afterwards, and their recording quickly achieved cult status. For me it's fantastic to hear how much playfulness and enthusiasm this group plays with, and how that feels so completely right in the Baroque. They love using the theorbo as a bass instrument and that also creates a unique sound filled with warmth and incredible energy. It's wonderful to hear this repertoire played with this overflowing joie de vivre.
Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 "Eroica". Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique, John Eliot Gardiner
In 2003 the BBC brought out a documentary about the "Eroica" Symphony, and for me the actual high point of the film is how John Eliot Gardiner's recording of the symphony is used when they recreate its premiere in the film. The musical meaning he creates in the slow movement – the famous funeral march – is shatteringly powerful. At the heart of the movement, after the hope-filled central section, comes a fugato in F minor, and the existentialism of this music is presented in such a gripping way. I find this performance especially successful – the sound picture and style of interpretation here really benefit from the historical instruments.
Bach: St Matthew Passion. Concentus Musicus Wien, Nikolaus Harnoncourt
Nikolaus Harnoncout recorded the St Matthew Passion several times with the Concentus Musicus Wien, and I find this later recording from the Bach anniversary year of 2000 especially moving. Through his own deep religious conviction, Harnoncourt manages to present Jesus not just as a divine figure, but as a compassionate, suffering human being, too. I'm a really big admirer of Harnoncourt and am very happy that I got to play with him as an orchestral musician on many different projects with the Vienna Philharmonic. In Harnoncourt's sound picture there's an unbelievable transparency, which hardly anyone else manages to create – with the extremely detailed articulation and phrasing that are typical for him. And in some ways the sound of the Vienna Philharmonic is the opposite: a warm, dark, homogenous sound, with grand musical arcs. For me, though, it was always wonderful to experience how Harnouncourt and the Vienna Philharmonic nevertheless suited each other, that it was possible to combine the wonderful qualities from both sides.
Bonus Choice – Mozart: Violin Concerto No. 5. Christoph Koncz, Les Musiciens du Louvre.
I naturally feel very honoured to be allowed to include one of my recordings as a bonus choice in this list! As I've said, historical performance practice has always been very close to my heart. The main concern with this recording was to try, with the help of Mozart's own violin, to be as authentic as possible. I'm convinced that Mozart's own experience with this violin greatly influenced the way he composed violin concertos. The instrument sounds strikingly beautiful, and you can play cantabile particularly well with it – and these are exactly the qualities that you need regularly in Mozart's violin concertos. This violin, in fact, is normally confined to Salzburg, and can usually be viewed and heard only there, which is why it's so wonderful that we're able to spread the sound of this unique instrument around the whole world with our recording.
[Translation by IDAGIO]