The photogenic violinist
David Garrett, who uses the maiden name of his American mother professionally, has been known for crossover releases featuring the likes of
Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit." He was trained partly in Israel, which may have led to his pairing with the nearly octogenarian conductor
Zubin Mehta and the
Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.
Mehta makes his aims explicit in the booklet: "I hope that this CD will help
David's other public, the crossover public, to also listen to
Brahms and
Bruch and to admire his honesty toward this music. I hope
David brings in this whole generation into the classical concert hall." The performance is perhaps led by
Mehta with this end in mind: as a whole it's brash, bright, and sharp. You might have a different taste in the
Brahms Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 77, especially, but the fact is that
Garrett is a good deal more than adequate here. He may be following
Mehta's lead in some respects, but the dense first-movement interactions between violin and orchestra
Brahms wrote for the virtuoso
Joseph Joachim crackle with intensity. The inevitably crowd-pleasing Violin Concerto in G minor, Op. 26, of
Max Bruch fits
Garrett still better. The booklet offers an interview with
Garrett geared toward newcomers, who may well find this album an enjoyable path into core classical repertoire.