Erich Wolfgang Korngold composed his Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35, in

1945 1945 marked the end of World War II and the fall of Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan. It is also the only year in which nuclear weapons have been used in combat. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. Januar ...

Instrumentation

The work is scored for solo violin, two

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

s (one doubling

piccolo The piccolo ( ; Italian for 'small') is a half-size flute and a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. Sometimes referred to as a "baby flute" the modern piccolo has similar fingerings as the standard transverse flute, but the so ...

), two oboes (one doubling

cor anglais The cor anglais (, or original ; plural: ''cors anglais''), or English horn in North America, is a double-reed woodwind instrument in the oboe family. It is approximately one and a half times the length of an oboe, making it essentially an alto ...

), two

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

bass clarinet The bass clarinet is a musical instrument of the clarinet family. Like the more common soprano B clarinet, it is usually pitched in B (meaning it is a transposing instrument on which a written C sounds as B), but it plays notes an octave bel ...

, two

bassoon The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuo ...

s (one doubling

contrabassoon The contrabassoon, also known as the double bassoon, is a larger version of the bassoon, sounding an octave lower. Its technique is similar to its smaller cousin, with a few notable differences. Differences from the bassoon The reed is consi ...

), four horns, two trumpets, trombone,

harp The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has a number of individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orche ...

strings String or strings may refer to: *String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...

, and a colorful percussion section of timpani,

bass drum The bass drum is a large drum that produces a note of low definite or indefinite pitch. The instrument is typically cylindrical, with the drum's diameter much greater than the drum's depth, with a struck head at both ends of the cylinder. Th ...

cymbal A cymbal is a common percussion instrument. Often used in pairs, cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys. The majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs soun ...

s, gong, tubular bell,

glockenspiel The glockenspiel ( or , : bells and : set) or bells is a percussion instrument consisting of pitched aluminum or steel bars arranged in a keyboard layout. This makes the glockenspiel a type of metallophone, similar to the vibraphone. The glo ...

, vibraphone, xylophone, and

celesta The celesta or celeste , also called a bell-piano, is a struck idiophone operated by a keyboard. It looks similar to an upright piano (four- or five-octave), albeit with smaller keys and a much smaller cabinet, or a large wooden music box ( ...

Movements

*''

Moderato Moderato may refer to: * ''Moderato'', an Italian musical term; see Glossary of music terminology#M * Moderato Wisintainer (1902-1986), Brazilian footballer generally known as Moderato See also * ''Moderato Cantabile ''Moderato Cantabile'' is ...

nobile'': The violin solo which opens the concerto is a theme from '' Another Dawn'' (1937), running over two

octave In music, an octave ( la, octavus: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is the interval between one musical pitch and another with double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been refer ...

s in five notes. '' Juarez'' (1939) provided the second theme (the Maximilian & Carlotta theme), more expansive and reliant upon the orchestra. *'' Romance'': The solo violin introduces the principal theme of the slow movement, quoted from '' Anthony Adverse'' (1936) and revisited after a contrasting middle section that seems to have been uniquely composed for the concerto. *''

Allegro Allegro may refer to: Common meanings * Allegro (music), a tempo marking indicate to play fast, quickly and bright * Allegro (ballet), brisk and lively movement Artistic works * L'Allegro (1645), a poem by John Milton * ''Allegro'' (Satie), an ...

assai vivace'': The most demanding movement for the soloist begins with a

staccato Staccato (; Italian for "detached") is a form of musical articulation. In modern notation, it signifies a note of shortened duration, separated from the note that may follow by silence. It has been described by theorists and has appeared in music ...

jig, which leads to a second theme based like the first on the main

motif Motif may refer to: General concepts * Motif (chess composition), an element of a move in the consideration of its purpose * Motif (folkloristics), a recurring element that creates recognizable patterns in folklore and folk-art traditions * Moti ...

from '' The Prince and the Pauper'' (1937) and builds up to a

virtuoso A virtuoso (from Italian ''virtuoso'' or , "virtuous", Late Latin ''virtuosus'', Latin ''virtus'', "virtue", "excellence" or "skill") is an individual who possesses outstanding talent and technical ability in a particular art or field such as ...

climax. A typical performance lasts about 25 minutes.

Overview

Korngold had vowed to give up composing anything other than film music, with which he supported himself and his family, until Hitler had been defeated. With the end of World War II, he retired from films to concentrate on music for the concert hall. The Violin Concerto was the first such work that Korngold penned, following some initial persuasion from the violinist and fellow émigré Bronisław Huberman. Korngold had been hurt by the assumption that a successful film composer was one who had sold his integrity to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

, just as earlier he had been hurt by many critics' assumptions that his works were performed only because he was the son of music critic Julius Korngold. He was thus determined to prove himself with a work that combined vitality and superb craftsmanship. The concerto was dedicated to Alma Mahler, the widow of Korngold's childhood mentor

Gustav Mahler Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and the modernism ...

. It was premiered on 15 February 1947 by Jascha Heifetz and the St. Louis Symphony under

conductor Conductor or conduction may refer to: Music * Conductor (music), a person who leads a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra. * ''Conductor'' (album), an album by indie rock band The Comas * Conduction, a type of structured free improvisation ...

Vladimir Golschmann. It received the most enthusiastic ovation in St. Louis concert history. On 30 March 1947, Heifetz played the concerto in

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...

with the New York Philharmonic conducted by Efrem Kurtz; the broadcast performance was recorded on transcription discs. The composer wrote about Heifetz's playing of the work: ''

In spite of the demand for virtuosity in the finale, the work with its many melodic and lyric episodes was contemplated more for a Caruso than for a Paganini. It is needless to say how delighted I am to have my concerto performed by Caruso and Paganini in one person: Jascha Heifetz.

'' Heifetz's performance launched the work into the standard repertoire, and it quickly became Korngold's most popular piece. However, the fame of the violin concerto, combined with Korngold's eminent association with Hollywood film music, has helped obscure the rest of his legacy as a composer of concert-hall works written before and after his arrival in the United States. Although Korngold was credited with introducing the sophisticated musical language of his classical training to the soundscapes of Hollywood films, a kind of reverse inspiration also occurred. Like many of Korngold's "serious" works in traditional genres, the violin concerto borrows thematic material from his movie scores in each of its three movements.

Notable recordings

*Nigel Armstrong and Neville Marriner with the Colburn Orchestra * Kristóf Baráti and

Otto Tausk Otto Tausk (born 1970 in Utrecht) is a Dutch conductor. Biography Tausk was a violin student of Viktor Liberman and István Párkányi. He studied conducting with Jurjen Hempel and Kenneth Montgomery. He continued his music studies with Jonas Al ...

with the South Netherlands Philharmonic * Nicola Benedetti and

Kirill Karabits Kyrylo Karabych ( uk, Кирило Карабиць); born 26 December 1976) is a Ukrainian conductor. Biography Early Life Karabits' father was the conductor and composer Ivan Karabyts. Karabits was born in Kyiv (then in the Ukrainian SS ...

with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra * Renaud Capuçon and Yannick Nézet-Séguin with the

Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra The Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra (RPhO; nl, Rotterdams Philharmonisch Orkest) is a Dutch symphony orchestra based in Rotterdam. Its primary venue is the concert hall De Doelen. The RPhO is considered one of the Netherlands' two principal orc ...

*Miranda Cuckson and Paul Freeman with the Czech National Symphony Orchestra *

Glenn Dicterow Glenn Dicterow (born December 23, 1948), is an American violinist and former concertmaster of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. He is on the faculty of the University of Southern California's Thornton School of Music where he holds the Jascha ...

and David Robertson with the New York Philharmonic * James Ehnes and Bramwell Tovey with the

Vancouver Symphony Orchestra The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (VSO) is a Canadian orchestra based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The VSO performs at the Orpheum, which has been the orchestra's permanent home since 1977. With an annual operating budget of $16 million, it is ...

(2006) * James Ehnes and Alexander Shelley with the National Arts Centre Orchestra (2024 release of 2022 concert) * Liza Ferschtman and Jiří Malát with the Prague Symphony Orchestra *

Vilde Frang Vilde Frang Bjærke (born 19 August 1986) is a Norway, Norwegian classical music, classical violinist. Early life and education Born in Oslo, Norway, Frang began playing the violin by the Suzuki method at the age of four. In the years 1993–2 ...

and James Gaffigan with the

Frankfurt Radio Symphony The Frankfurt Radio Symphony (german: hr-Sinfonieorchester) is the radio orchestra of Hessischer Rundfunk, the public broadcasting network of the German state of Hesse. From 1929 to 1950 it was named ''Frankfurter Rundfunk-Symphonie-Orchester'' ...

Alexander Gilman Alexander Gilman is a German violinist, academic teacher and artistic director of the LGT Young Soloists. He has been performing internationally as a soloist and chamber musician and regularly conducting masterclasses. Early life and education ...

and

Perry So Perry Pak Hin So (蘇柏軒) is an orchestral conductor. Between 2008 and 2012 he was the Assistant, subsequently Associate Conductor of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra. In 2009/10 he was a conducting fellow of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. B ...

with the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra * Vadim Gluzman and Neeme Järvi with the Residentie Orchestra *Caroline Goulding and

Kevin John Edusei Kevin John Edusei (born 1976) is a German conductor. He is in his eighth and final season as Chief Conductor of Munich Symphony Orchestra, and from the 2022/2023 season will be Principal Guest Conductor of Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. Biogra ...

with the Bern Symphony Orchestra * Ilya Gringolts and Julien Salemkour with the Copenhagen Philharmonic * Andrew Haveron and Jiří Bělohlávek with the BBC Symphony Orchestra *Andrew Haveron and

John Wilson John Wilson may refer to: Academics * John Wilson (mathematician) (1741–1793), English mathematician and judge * John Wilson (historian) (1799–1870), author of ''Our Israelitish Origin'' (1840), a founding text of British Israelism * John Wil ...

with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra * Jascha Heifetz and Alfred Wallenstein with the

Los Angeles Philharmonic The Los Angeles Philharmonic, commonly referred to as the LA Phil, is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. It has a regular season of concerts from October through June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and a summer season at th ...

. This recording was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. *

Ulf Hoelscher Ulf Hoelscher (born 17 January 1942 in Kitzingen) is a German violinist. He has been soloist with the Berlin Philharmonic, the Vienna Symphony, the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic. He has recorded numerous concertos b ...

and Willy Mattes with the

Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra The Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra (German: ''Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart des SWR'') was a German radio orchestra based in Stuttgart in Germany. History The ensemble was founded in 1945 by American occupation authorities as the orchest ...

* Daniel Hope and Alexander Shelley with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra * Thomas Albertus Irnberger and Doron Salomon with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra * Chantal Juillet and John Mauceri with the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra * Laurent Korcia and Jean-Jacques Kantorow with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Liège *Ji-yoon Lee and

Kristiina Poska Kristiina Poska (born 12 July 1978, Türi, Estonia) is an Estonian conductor. Biography At age eight, Poska began piano lessons. She graduated from Türi Music School in piano studies in 1994, and then studied choral conducting at the Georg Ot ...

with the Odense Symphony Orchestra *

Jack Liebeck Jack Liebeck (born 4 August 1980) is a British–German violinist. In 2010, he won a Classical Brit in the young British classical performer category. He was soloist on the score for the 2011 film ''Jane Eyre'', directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga and ...

and Paul Watkins with the Ulster Orchestra *Ulrike-Anima Mathé and Andrew Litton with the

Dallas Symphony Orchestra The Dallas Symphony Orchestra (DSO) is an American orchestra based in Dallas, Texas. Its principal performing venue is the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center in the Arts District of downtown Dallas. History The orchestra traces its origins to a ...

* Anne-Sophie Mutter and

André Previn André George Previn (; born Andreas Ludwig Priwin; April 6, 1929 – February 28, 2019) was a German-American pianist, composer, and conductor. His career had three major genres: Hollywood films, jazz, and classical music. In each he achieved ...

with the London Symphony Orchestra *František Novotný and

Martin Turnovský Martin Turnovský (29 September 1928 – 19 May 2021) was a Czech conductor whose career flourished under the guidance of George Szell, but was hampered by the communist regime. Biography Turnovský was born in Prague. As a boy, he showed promi ...

with the

Brno Philharmonic The Brno Philharmonic (Czech: ''Filharmonie Brno'') is a Czech orchestra based in Brno, the Czech Republic. Its principal concert venue in Brno is the ''Besední dům''. The orchestra also performs regularly in the Janáček Opera House in Brno ...

* Hyehoon Park and

Lawrence Renes Lawrence Renes (born 1970) is a Dutch-Maltese conductor. He studied violin at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam and conducting at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague, from which he graduated ''cum laude'' in 1993. Renes was the first prize winn ...

with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra *

Itzhak Perlman Itzhak Perlman ( he, יצחק פרלמן; born August 31, 1945) is an Israeli-American violinist widely considered one of the greatest violinists in the world. Perlman has performed worldwide and throughout the United States, in venues that hav ...

and

with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra *

Philippe Quint Philippe Quint (born March 26, 1974) is an American classical violinist. Biography Quint was born on March 26, 1974, in Leningrad. He studied at Moscow's Special Music School for the Gifted with Russian violinist Andrei Korsakov and made his orch ...

and Carlos Miguel Prieto with the Orquesta Sinfónica de Minería *

Benjamin Schmid Benjamin ( he, ''Bīnyāmīn''; "Son of (the) right") blue letter bible: https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h3225/kjv/wlc/0-1/ H3225 - yāmîn - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (kjv) was the last of the two sons of Jacob and Rachel (Jacob's thi ...

and

Seiji Ozawa Seiji (written: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , or in hiragana) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese ski jumper *, Japanese racing driver *, Japanese politician *, Japanese film directo ...

with the Vienna Philharmonic * Gil Shaham and

with the London Symphony Orchestra * Baiba Skride and Santtu-Matias Rouvali with the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra *

Arabella Steinbacher Arabella Miho Steinbacher (born 14 November 1981) is a German classical violinist. Biography Steinbacher was born in Munich to a Japanese mother and a German father. When she was three, her mother read that a German violin teacher had recentl ...

and Lawrence Foster with the Gulbenkian Orchestra *

Matthew Trusler Matthew may refer to: * Matthew (given name) * Matthew (surname) * ''Matthew'' (ship), the replica of the ship sailed by John Cabot in 1497 * ''Matthew'' (album), a 2000 album by rapper Kool Keith * Matthew (elm cultivar), a cultivar of the C ...

and Yasuo Shinozaki with the

Düsseldorf Symphony Orchestra The Düsseldorf Symphony Orchestra (german: Düsseldorfer Symphoniker) is Germany's second oldest municipal orchestra, based in Düsseldorf. Tonhalle, the hall of the orchestra, lies opposite the Rhine river. Alongside the Duisburg Philharmonic, i ...

*Paul Waltman and David Björkman with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra * Vera Tsu and Yu Long with the Razumovsky Sinfonia * Nikolaj Znaider and Valery Gergiev with the Vienna Philharmonic

References

;Notes ;Bibliography *

External links

* *Program Notes
A ''Hollywood Concerto'': Korngold’s Violin Concerto
- Houston Symphony
Erich Wolfgang Korngold: Violin Concerto in D major, op. 35
-

*interview, feature article
Violinist.com interview with Philippe Quint: For the Love of Korngold
(2009)
Violinist.com Interview with Gil Shaham: Korngold Violin Concerto and more
(2013)
EarRelevant Q&A: Gil Shaham discusses Korngold’s Violin Concerto
(2022) *Audio and video
Nicola Benedetti, James Gaffigan, Radio Filharmonisch Orkest
(2012)
William Hagen, Christoph Eschenbach, Frankfurt Radio Symphony
(2017)
Guro Kleven Hagen, Roderick Cox, Kristiansand Symphony Orchestra

Guro Kleven Hagen, Vasily Petrenko, Oslo Philharmonic
(2021)
James Ehnes, Alexander Shelley, National Arts Centre Orchestra
(2022)
Radio New Zealand - Music Alive (July 8, 2021)
Benjamin Morrison, Giordano Bellincampi, Auckland Philharmonia
WQXR Carnegie Hall Live (February 12, 2024)
James Ehnes, Gianandrea Noseda, National Symphony Orchestra (4m30s interview1, 29m Korngold, 57m encore1, 1h6m encore2, 1h10m interview2
carnegiehall.org
{{Authority control

Korngold Erich Wolfgang Korngold (May 29, 1897November 29, 1957) was an Austrian-born American composer and conductor. A child prodigy, he became one of the most important and influential composers in Hollywood history. He was a noted pianist and compo ...

Compositions by Erich Wolfgang Korngold 1945 compositions Compositions in D major Arrangements of film music