Tag: LPO

ELDBJØRG HEMSING IN CLASSICAL MUSIC MAGAZINE

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Eldbjørg Hemsing prominently featured in May 2018 issue of CLASSICAL MUSIC magazine (UK)

Violinist Jack Liebeck curates this strings edition of Classical Music encompassing his many artistic passions, from music education and photography through to practical advice for performers on maintaining healthy technique and taking instruments on tour. Professors Brian Cox, Robert Winston and Brian Foster explore the relationship between science and music; the benefits of hand therapy for common musicians’ injuries; CITES and travelling with instruments; the art of photographing performers; and what happens when students exercise their rights as consumers in higher education?

Plus, violinist Eldbjørg Hemsing turns up the Romantic heat in Norway; Joanna MacGregor celebrates the 70th anniversary of Dartington International Summer School; Orchestra Manager of the Year Sue Mallet; percussionist and conductor Thomas Søndergård; the role of a recording producer; Gallicantus tackle Orlande de Lassus’s sibylline prophecies; and osteopathy for musicians.

> More details in the digital and print version of CLASSICAL MUSIC

ELDBJØRG HEMSING DEBUT CD REVIEW IN THE ARTS DESK

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Credits: Photography by Nikolaj Lund

Classical CDs Weekly: Borgström

“Wonderfully played […], Eldbjørg Hemsing’s dynamism and rich, warm tone exactly what the concerto needs. She’s really impressive.”

Graham Rickson | theartsdesk.com | 28 April 2018

Hjalmar Borgström sounds like the name of a BBC Four gumshoe, a melancholy detective solving crimes in downtown Tromsø. He was actually a Norwegian composer (1864-1925) who, like Grieg, studied in Germany, remaining there for 15 years. Grieg quickly assimilated his technique with native folk music, later expressing dismay at the younger Borgström’s lack of interest in making his music sound specifically Norwegian. His G major Violin Concerto was premiered in 1914. It’s an ambitious, 35-minute work, brimming with ideas, but you can understand why it’s fallen by the wayside. It’s much more German than Nordic in style. Nothing wrong with that, except that we’re talking conservative late 19th century Germany rather than Strauss. There are flashes of brilliance: the soloist enters within seconds after a flurry of timpani, and the lyrical asides are gorgeous. All very attractive (what a superb close the work has!), but nothing especially distinctive. Wonderfully played though, Eldbjørg Hemsing’s dynamism and rich, warm tone exactly what the concerto needs.

Unexpectedly, Hemsing couples it with Shostakovich’s brooding Concerto No. 1. She’s really impressive, sustaining the argument in the chilly Nocturne and suitably snarky in the scherzo. There’s good orchestral support too from Olari Elts and the Wiener Symphoniker, low winds, tuba and percussion making plenty of impact. Hemsing is at her best in the Passacaglia, the temperature rising inexorably to boiling point. The last movement’s adrenalin rush is joyous. Excellent sound, too – an enjoyable disc.