Violin Concerto No. 2 (Wieniawski)

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Violin Concerto No. 2 in D minor by the Polish violin virtuoso, Henryk Wieniawski, may have been started in 1856, but the first performance did not take place until November 27, 1862, when he played it in St. Petersburg with Anton Rubinstein conducting. It was published in 1870, inscribed to his dear friend Pablo de Sarasate. The work is in three movements:

1. Allegro moderato
2. Romance: Andante non troppo
3. Allegro con fuoco - Allegro moderato (à la Zingara)

Both main elements of the first movement, its sombre, restless first subject, and its lyrical pendant (begun by a solo horn) are discussed freely and subject to dazzling embellishments by the solo violin.

The slow movement, a Romance in B-flat Major, follows without a break. It is based on a lilting tune in 12/8 time and rises to an impassioned central climax.

A rhapsodic passage marked Allegro con fuoco and mainly a solo cadenza, leads to the finale, a dashing rondo in the "Hungarian" gypsy style, which quotes the first movement's subsidiary theme in the course of its second and third episodes.

Wieniawski's second Violin Concerto in d minor remains to be one of the greatest violin concertos of the Romantic era, memorable for its lush and moving melodies and harmonies.

[edit] References

• Golding, Robin (1991). Wieniawski: Violin Concertos Nos. 1 & 2, Sarasate: Zigeunerweisen. Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Hamburg, pp. 1-2.