I don’t know what to make of Nigel Kennedy anymore; from the one-name days (Kennedy) to the bad boy image (he still has that spiky hair, at age 52), to his sometimes very willful performances, this is an artist who while highly respected by those in the know still proves high maintenance among music lovers. This latest release is no exception. His second go at the Beethoven (and the first, with Tennstedt, did not exactly garner rave reviews internationally) is as frustrating as before. Tempos in movement one are fast but not outrageously so, and they get pulled about. But he plays as if consciously trying to avoid involvement of personality, almost as if he doesn’t want to be liked. He fails in this in the gorgeous second movement, one of the most utterly riveting I have ever heard, but returns to his iconoclasm in the rondo.
Mozart fares even worse. The cadenzas are these strange orchestra/violin creations of the performer that seem to launch us into some kind of parallel musical universe, modern of course, and somewhat Keith Jarrett-like in feel. And then presto, we are melded back into Mozart after our brief time travel. Not convincing, and not worthy of Wolfgang. The last piece here is a violin and double bass jazz effort that makes no sense on this album, and isn’t that good. I have not heard the infamous Nigel Kennedy Blue Note jazz sessions, but based on this I cannot see what the attraction is.
His sound is rather coarse and uneven, though always technically proficient. The Polish Orchestra is about the same—they don’t sound rehearsed in terms of phrase endings and polish. The sound is very good, but I have certainly heard much better from EMI. Some people might find this perversely attractive, and Kennedy’s fans will swipe it up. I won’t.
— Steven Ritter
