Janine Jansen - Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto

I try to give classical music a listen. I don’t claim to be a connoisseur by any means, but I’m definitely a fan. As cliché as it is, I’m one of those people who are profoundly moved whenever they hear “Moonlight Sonata”. Yet still, I’m not familiar with much classical music at all, when I hear good things about a particular performer, then I look into them and give them a chance.

I heard about Janine Jansen’s Tchaikovsky violin concerto in a podcast called “On Being” by APM, in which Irish poet and writer, John O’Donohue, mentions how moved he was by the performance; “Everywhere she went on this violin, she got exactly what she was looking for… you could almost see the music hurting her even when she wasn’t playing”

After I heard that, I absolutely had to find this performance.

He heard it in live in New York, and I’m not sure where the version I have was recorded but I’m sure it’s just as brilliant as that particular performance was.

I’m not familiar with Tchaikovsky’s work at all, but this performance is pretty awesome.

If you give even a part of it a listen, there is so much raw emotion being expressed, in both the written music and the performance, it’s absolutely spectacular.

Transitions between faster and slower parts are seamless and create an attention-grabbing mood. Everything seems artfully and meticulously planned and yet at the same time has an air of spontaneity and improvisation.

I know what I’m saying sounds somewhat vague and abstract, and honestly you probably will have no idea what the hell I mean unless you’ve heard it. Give it a listen.