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Violin Concerto by Brahms with Alena Baeva and Symphony No. 5 by Shostakovich

by Vasily Schipkov

Arnold Kats State Concert Hall
The Arnold Kats State Concert Hall in Novosibirsk. Photo © Ruslan Schipkov, 2013

I went to the Arnold Kats State Concert Hall (Krasny prospect, 18/1) on 17th September 2014 to a concert called "To the 90th anniversary of A.M. Kats" by Novosibirsk Philharmonic Orchestra (Artistic Director and Chief Conductor Gintaras Rinkevicius) with the beautiful violinist Alena Baeva, the winner of the Competition of Young Violinists in Novosibirsk (1994), the Henryk Wieniawski Violin Competition in Poznan (2001), the Grand Prix at the Moscow International Niccolo Paganini Competition (2004), the Sendai International Music Competition (2007).
Novosibirsk Philharmonic Orchestra played Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich "Symphony No. 5 in D minor, Op. 47". Alena Baeva with Novosibirsk Philharmonic Orchestra played Johannes Brahms "Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 77".
Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich worked on his Symphony No. 5 in 1937. For the first time the Symphony No. 5 in D minor was played on November 21, 1937 in Leningrad (St Petersburg), and Yevgeny Mravinsky was the conductor. As all Shostakovich's symphonies the Symphony No. 5 is really brilliant, with all feelings, with joy and suffering, with a monumental finale. Novosibirsk Philharmonic Orchestra with Gintaras Rinkevicius made all to show the beauty of the Symphony No. 5 with all bright colours and sounds, infected people with the joy of creation.

Alena Baeva with a violin
Alena Baeva with a violin. Photo by V. Shirokov

Alena Baeva is clearly a virtuoso like Paganini, she performed excellently, expressively and energetically. The Orchestra also played very well, with passion, as must play the Russian orchestra. The conductor Gintaras Rinkevicius almost jumped up, then bent and sometimes mightily, sometimes gently waved arms.

Alena Baeva. Beautiful, beautiful Alena Baeva. Photos by V. Shirokov
The beautiful violinist Alena Baeva. Photos by V. Shirokov

"Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 77" by Johannes Brahms is a great work. So in this case Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was not right when he wrote about "scoundrel Brahms" and "self-inflated mediocrity".
Johannes Brahms worked on his Violin Concerto in the second half of 1878. For the first time the Violin Concerto in D major was played on January 1, 1879 in Leipzig, and Johannes Brahms was the conductor. It is somewhat odd, but the Violin Concerto sounds much better than his Symphonies and as good as his Piano Concertos, although Johannes Brahms did not play a violin, he was a composer, conductor and pianist.


Alena Baeva with Novosibirsk Philharmonic Orchestra played Johannes Brahms "Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 77".

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