Nathan Milstein - favourite recordings

[LaurieWatt]

I wondered what others felt about old NM - sometimes I have found his recordings a little too fast - but a very cheap DG Double has resuscitated his very lovely early 1970s Tchaikovsky and Mendelssohn with Abbado ( especially the Mendelssohn ) and a Brahms with Jochum which i have enjoyed a great deal

His Goldmark is legendary - other favourites ?

I am surprised noone has mentioned the wonderful performance Milstein recorded of the Beethoven Violin Concerto with William Steinberg and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra for Capitol in about 1955 which latterly found its way onto EMI's GROC label (coupled with the Brahms, also very good).

[Barbirollians]

I am surprised noone has mentioned the wonderful performance Milstein recorded of the Beethoven Violin Concerto with William Steinberg and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra for Capitol in about 1955 which latterly found its way onto EMI's GROC label (coupled with the Brahms, also very good).

Fine indeed but rather like Heifetz I found NM a little too speedy for my liking on those records .

[neiltingley]

Milstein has an intense dislike of the Brahms Violin concerto. I'm trying to find out where I read that but may have been in Tully Potter liner notes so Naxos CDs.

[Barbirollians]

Milstein has an intense dislike of the Brahms Violin concerto. I'm trying to find out where I read that but may have been in Tully Potter liner notes so Naxos CDs.

He seems to have recorded it quite a few times for a piece he disliked intensely ! With Steinberg and Jochum and I find also with Fistoulsri and the Philharmonia in the early 1960s. Picked up a copy of the Seraphim pressing recently . I like it rather more than the account with Steinberg and it comes with a terrific Tchaikovsky VC conducted by Steinberg where I find their fleet of foot approach really works well.

[Barbirollians]

So it seems he intensely disliked both the Brahms and the Elgar.

I do prefer NM in lighter works though I liked his Brahms with Jochum much more than that with Steinberg. The Beethoven with Steinberg I still find too fast very accurate beautiful playing but not very moving.

[mikealdren]

The Brahms was the only thing I heard him play live, hard to believe that he played and recorded it so often if he really disliked it. He was an inveterate joker so if asked how much he liked the Brahms, I could well imaging him saying 'I hate it!'.

[richardfinegold]

I hard play the Bach Second Partita, in what must have been one of his last concerts. There have been several live concerts that surfaced since death, from varying decades, that seem to feature the Bach Partita