Sinding: Violin Concerto in A Minor, Op. 45, Romance in D Major Op. 100 - Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64 Lea Birringer, Hofer Symphoniker & Hermann Bäumer

• Christian Sinding (1856 - 1941): Violin Concerto in A Minor, Op. 45:
• 1 Sinding: Violin Concerto in A Minor, Op. 45: I. Allegro energico 06:38
• 2 Sinding: Violin Concerto in A Minor, Op. 45: II. Andante 06:01
• 3 Sinding: Violin Concerto in A Minor, Op. 45: III. Allegro giocoso 09:38
• Romance for Violin and Orchestra in D Major, Op. 100:
• 4 Sinding: Romance for Violin and Orchestra in D Major, Op. 100 10:33
• Felix Mendelssohn (1809 - 1847): Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64:
• 5 Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64: I. Allegro molto appassionato 13:20
• 6 Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64: II. Andante 08:15
• 7 Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64: III. Allegretto non troppo - Allegro molto vivace 06:04
• Total Runtime 01:00:29

Info for Sinding: Violin Concerto in A Minor, Op. 45, Romance in D Major Op. 100 - Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64

Lea Birringer’s first concerto recording is a fascinating programme of the well known and a delightful concerto that does not deserve the obscurity to which it has been consigned.

Christian Sinding (1856-1941) composed his concerto 1898. It proved a great success, so its neglect today is difficult to understand. It is certainly demanding on the soloist, but also flatters them.

Full of memorable tunes and with brilliant use of the orchestra, this is a cleverly constructed work that deserves to be better known.

The later Romance published in 1910 is a wonderfully tender, romantic piece similar to those by Bruch or Dvořák.

Mendelssohn’s evergreen concerto of 1845 occupies a place in the pantheon of great violin concertos. It was to be his last orchestral composition (a third piano concerto remained unfinished), and represents perfection – playing without a break, it has many surprises, not least the entry of the soloist after a bar of accompaniment.

"It’s a treat to hear this artist tackle Mendelssohn’s more familiar work juxtaposed with the Sinding, which provides an opportunity to compare her interpretation with that of so many others. From her opening notes in the opening Allegro molto appassionato, it becomes immediately clear that Birringer means business, performing with passionate zeal. Her rubato is particularly effective, while the Andante displays greater sensitivity, with her instrument scaling the uppermost heights. [...] The work ends with the sprightly finale, Allegretto non troppo, providing one last burst of bravura by this artist from whom we undoubtedly will be hearing much more from in future." (Winnipeg Free Press)

Lea Birringer, violin
Hofer Symphoniker
Hermann Bäumer, conductor

Lea Birringer
The German violinist, who completed her musical education with Igor Ozim at the University Mozarteum in Salzburg and with Pavel Vernikov in Vienna, is considered 'one of the most talented violinists of her generation' (Pizzicato). Verve, passion and 'full-blooded commitment' (Gramophone) are the characteristics which Lea Birringer is most often associated with. Her musicality is reflected in her numerous awards and prizes, among others at the international violin competitions Johannes Brahms, Kloster Schöntal, Premio Rodolfo Lipizer, Louis Spohr and Abram Yampolsky. For those extraordinary accomplishments, she was honored by her hometown Saarbrücken with the Cultural Award.

Her debut with the Berliner Symphoniker was followed by invitations to festivals such as the Salzburg Festival, the MDR Music Summer, the Usedom Music Festival, the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, the Davos Festival, the Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and the Crescendo Winter Music Festival in Florida, as well as appearances in major European music centres, including the Philharmonie Berlin, the Laeiszhalle Hamburg, the Gasteig in Munich, the Herkulessaal in Munich, the Musikverein in Vienna, the Maggio Musicale in Florence and the Louvre in Paris.

An enthusiastic chamber musician, Lea Birringer collaborated with artists like Igor Levit, Pavel Vernikov, Atar Arad, Barbara Bonney, Eszter Haffner and Wen-Sinn Yang.

In 2011 Lea Birringer had a big chamber music breakthrough in collaboration with her sister and permanent Duo partner Esther Birringer (Piano). The siblings caused a furor by winning two prestigious international chamber music competitions consecutively, Premio Vittorio Gui and Concorso Internazionale di Musica da Camera Città di Pinerolo. Since then the Duo has received numerous invitations from chamber music festivals and concert series, and has impressed audiences with their stylistic and original interpretations of works from both the standard and modern repertoire.

After their joint debut recording, which was released by Avi-music in 2014 with sonatas by Hindemith, Szymanowski and Respighi, the sister’s second album Lifelines followed in 2018 on the British label Rubicon Classics with works by Grieg, Liszt and Franck: 'This musical adventure is an absolute must for any chamber music aficionado' (Pizzicato).

In 2019, Rubicon Classics released Lea Birringer's album Di tanti palpiti featuring virtuoso works by Sarasate, Paganini, Ravel and Waxman. This album was nominated for both the International Classical Music Awards 2020 and the German Record Critics' Award and has also been included in the Lufthansa In-flight Entertainment programme.

Lea Birringer's solo album Transformation has recently been released with works for solo violin from J. S. Bach to Lera Auerbach. On this album, the violinist bridges the gap between the baroque and the contemporary and 'reveals the maturity of her art' (SR 2 Kulturradio).

After graduating the Music and Arts University of Vienna, Lea was teaching as assistant of Pavel Vernikov at the Haute École de Musique de Lausanne, Site de Sion and had a teaching position at the University of Music Franz Liszt Weimar. Additionally, she gave masterclasses in Europe, Latin America and the US and has been invited to be member of the jury at the competition 'Jugend musiziert'. At present, she is guest teacher at the Accademia d’Archi Arrigoni in Italy.

Booklet for Sinding: Violin Concerto in A Minor, Op. 45, Romance in D Major Op. 100 - Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64