Masterclass

SIBELIUS’S VIOLIN CONCERTO IN D MINOR

The Finnish composer put all his knowledge as symphonic writer and frustrated violinist into
this great, elemental work. LEONIDAS KAVAKOS explains how to do it justice

There are many things not only his skills as a composer but also his
about this piece that knowledge as a player. He was incredibly aware
make it special. It is of the instrument and uses it in a way that no
a 20th-century piece, other composer does.
YANNIS BOURNIAS

and yet it feels like The work was performed in its first version in
Beethoven or Brahms. February 1904, dedicated to Franz von Vecsey,
Sibelius was going in a Hungarian wunderkind; but Sibelius withdrew it,
Leonidas Kavakos, the only violinist
to record the original version of
a totally different direction and in 1905 substantially revised it into the piece
Sibelius’s concerto, performs the from the other great we know today. In the first version the conflict
revised composition in London
and Athens this month composers of the time, between Sibelius’s dream of being a virtuoso and
and his concerto has the feeling of being an his frustration at not succeeding is even clearer
ancient piece. Sibelius’s aesthetic was to concentrate than in the final one – we see a much more
the best aspects of Romanticism and nationalism, complicated violin part against a simpler orchestral
using a Classical mould. Both he and his contemporary part. The main ideas and the treatment of the themes
Nielsen were pioneers who maintained links with are the same in both versions, but unlike the final
the past while producing music that sounds fresh. version, in which everything is in the service of
So even though the score of the Sibelius looks the idea, in the first version all is in the service of
Classical in terms of structure and form, the result violin virtuosity.
is unique, and its identity penetrates the mind In the final version we see the great symphonic
and ears of the listener – it has such power, such composer at work: in the first version everything
concentrated energy. takes longer and there is a sense of the orchestra
The piece is also very personal. Sibelius was observing the soloist, whereas in the second version
a violinist himself, and so when he wrote it he used the orchestra is an almost equal partner to the soloist.

FIRST MOVEMENT whereas the first time the phrase ends on the D, the second time
The first movement is the most complicated. The stillness of the Sibelius moves off the D and introduces a G sharp, which takes the
opening reflects the calmness of a Finnish lake (see example 1). music off into a completely different direction. One has to look closely
The first theme is linked to central European folk music: stretching at the material in this way, as every detail is important; without these
over the bar-lines and using dissonance, for example in the first note. elements the structure would be totally different. Then one has to see
This is like a traditional Greek or Transylvanian dirge, in which a lute the bigger units and be sensitive to every change, so that when one
plays a slow tremolo, while a clarinet or violin starts with a dissonance. looks at the score to find out how to play the first G, and the G in the
Here the orchestra plays a D minor chord in the distance and the third bar of figure 1, it is clear that each has a totally different harmonic
soloist starts with a note that is dissonant to it. background. The latter is in E flat major, and requires a different sound.
The first phrase has an incredible structure. The tonic (D) is reached Harmonies and rhythmic swing are the cornerstones of music.
twice, and then the phrase of bar 9 is repeated again in bar 11, The biggest problem today is that melodies are played without
to get to the dominant (A). This should sound like an improvisation. the necessary rhythmic swing. A melody that is without a sense of
The quintessence of improvisation is to reach the tonic, and the genius structure, harmony and rhythm is ill.
of the instrumentalist is how far they can get away from the tonic There is a big question as to the amount of vibrato one should use.
before returning to it. It’s like an elastic band that can be stretched Vibrato must serve the context of the music, and here I’d suggest that
a long way, but that always bounces back to its original form. the dissonant opening note has more effect without any, or with
One has to try to realise what Sibelius does with the material, how minimal, vibrato. The continuous motion of the accompaniment serves
he places it within bigger sections, and the connections between as a vibrato, and the soloist should restrain themselves in terms of
these. For example, the turn in bar 7 is repeated in bar 14; however, sound until the crescendo in bar 16, when they can start opening it up.

66 THE STRAD JANUARY 2008

 Masterclass
[1] The opening of the first movement
Allegro moderato ( = 68) II
3 3 3
( ) 4 I
Vln. 1
1 1 1

3
dolce e espressivo
3 4 II II I 1 2 3
3 1 2 4 3 2
1 1 2 3 1
( )

cresc. 3

3
[2] 16 bars after figure 1 in the first movement 2 3
2 2 2
a piacere 3 3 3 1
(1 2) 1 1 1
1 1 7 2 2
1 1
1

(I) 1 III III ( )

III
cresc. molto

[3] The cadenza 16 bars before figure 2 in the first movement

Largamente [Kadenz bis zum Tempo I] 2
1 1 1
poco string.
ten. 3 1 3 1 3 1 3

cresc. poco a poco

[4] Six bars after figure 3 in the first movement

Largamente 3
3 3
3 3
2 2

espress.

Sibelius uses a chorale-like chord progression 16 bars after figure 1 The first movement is complex, sometimes making it difficult for
(see example 2), moving from F on the first note of that bar, to the G the soloist and the orchestra to gel – for example in the second
on the first note of the next, the harmonic A in the same bar and then theme, the Largamente after figure 3 (see example 4). This is an
the B flat in the 18th bar after figure 1. As the violin part moves expressive moment, but the orchestral counter-rhythm limits the
upwards, the basses move downwards. This motif is repeated 16 bars amount of freedom that the player can adopt.
after figure 8, which is a more perfect version: the first time, the A comes The music from figure 6 is difficult technically – not so much
too soon, on the second beat of the bar rather than on the down-beat, the passage downwards in the first three bars, but the arpeggios.
as it does after figure 8. So when we come out of this the second They shouldn’t be too slow or take too long, because the harmony
time, at figure 9, it’s a huge climax. stays the same, with extensions on each run (similar to Paganini’s
The double-dotted figure that appears 13 and 15 bars after figure Caprice no.5); and the return of the original theme in the seventh bar
1 is linked to the opening phrase, but the dots suggest extra drama, of figure 6 is important and shouldn’t be delayed.
and the notes are marked with forte followed by a decrescendo. Embarking on the technique required in this fast passage is not
Another important element of the work is its polyphony – perhaps made any easier by the fact that it follows the Largamente, with its
more than in any other violin concerto. The cadenza 16 bars before slow notes, big melodies and double-stops. There, one also needs to
figure 2 (see example 3) is a good example of polyphony at work, apply a certain amount of weight to make the D and G strings sound,
although this aspect is often ignored. When one has to play so many which makes it even harder for the player later to switch to fast
notes, it’s important not to get lost. Practise the notes as triple-stops fingerwork. Sometimes such passages are perfectly playable on
to hear the harmonies and understand the point of the semiquavers their own but are difficult in context. One must be both mentally
(). Here, I would always phrase towards the higher note. Let the and physically aware of such juxtapositions of music requiring
important notes shine, even pointing them out by adding accents. the application of different playing techniques – everything comes
The music is not just about fast notes and sounding virtuosic. In from the mind, and if the mind gives the correct order, the hand
general, all the virtuosic elements serve the musical ideas: the piece doesn’t get confused. But one shouldn’t use this piece to learn
will sound empty if this isn’t taken into consideration. technique: one can’t learn Greek by reading Aristotle, after all.

JANUARY 2008 THE STRAD 67

 Masterclass
[5] Four bars before figure 1 in the second movement
IV IV 1
ten. 2 1 1 1 2 1 1 2 1 2 1 1 3 2 2 1 2 1 2

dolce

[6] Figure 2 in the second movement

2
2 4 3
1

3 0
3
3
3 3 3
meno
[7] The second bar of figure 3 in the second movement
2 2 3
2 2 2 4
2 4
I 3
2 4
0 1 1 1

cresc. rinfz. I

SECOND MOVEMENT THIRD MOVEMENT

The second movement is as close to Wagner as violin music gets. The opening of the third movement, which is incredibly complex
There should be no sense of time here. Adagio di molto is a hard rhythmically, is based on the dactyl rhythm – a long note followed by
tempo to play, and it is important to hold the bow firmly and produce two short ones. From the first solo entrance the violin is given all the
a healthy and big enough sound against the accompanying brass attention, with the orchestra staying in the background and the soloist
section. It’s a long melody – 20 bars – and it’s difficult to build asked to present a show of extreme virtuosity. At the second entrance
a structure for it and to sing it right to the end. There is a feeling the music is gypsy-like. The dance rhythm of the semiquaver followed
of the eternal here, something ancient. Sibelius has chosen a low by a dotted quaver (
) is a particularly Hungarian idiom. So, for example,
register for this, as if it’s the expression of a human being praying ten bars after figure 3 one should give an emphasis on the down-beat.
to someone who is on a higher level – a device that Bach used in There is a tendency to go towards the higher note, but this is wrong –
his religious works. Sibelius even marks ‘forte’ on every beat.
The phrase four bars before figure 1 (see example 5) is a question: Later in the movement, from figure 10 to figure 12, I try to build the
it is always written on the second, third or fourth beat, never on the emotional tension by ‘pushing’ the tempo, with a slight accelerando into
down-beat. The middle section of the second movement, from figure figure 12, where the violin plays a series of expressive intervals in
2, involves an incredible change of atmosphere. The accompaniment octaves. This is clearly the climax point of the movement, and although
is syncopated, in the Hungarian folk music idiom. The melody has these are difficult intervals to play, jumping from one register to another
a rhythmic swing, and the syncopations create an emotion that and accompanied by a big orchestral scoring, it is this very difficulty that
leads to something new. What was calm and prayer-like becomes creates the emotional charge. In the end, Sibelius allows the soloist to
more down to earth, and musically there is much more complexity, triumph by writing a relatively easy arpeggio over three strong orchestral
which is the genius of Sibelius. chords and reaching up to the top D. This was the only time that
The double-stops at figure 2 (see example 6) are an example Sibelius involved himself in writing in concerto form, and with this piece
of Sibelius’s polyphony – the lower voice is a triplet figure, of his vision of the virtuoso is fully realised. Interview by Ariane Todes
which the second note is the most expressive each time (usually it
is the first). This builds up to figure 3, where an idea from the opening
is turned into a chorale in the second bar of figure 3 (see example 7),
WIN KAVAKOS’S SIBELIUS
WE HAVE TEN COPIES OF LEONIDAS KAVAKOS’S
which leads to a climax point four bars after figure 3. Here, the GROUNDBREAKING CD OF BOTH
first note of each group of semiquavers is dissonant, whereas VERSIONS OF THE SIBELIUS CONCERTO
the second notes of the groups make up the B flat major chord (BIS) TO GIVE AWAY
(this motif is connected to the last four bars of the whole concerto). For a chance to win one, send
The next bars are full of dissonant and expressive 7ths, and a postcard marked ‘Kavakos’, with your
the violin then takes a secondary role to the orchestra with its name, address and telephone number,
octaves. This builds to an even bigger climax at the fourth bar to the address shown on page 3, or enter online
of figure 4, which finally reaches B flat. For me the movement at www.thestrad.com/kavakos. The first ten entries
ends four bars before the final bar-line: after that, the notes are picked out of the hat will each receive a CD.
a trip to heaven. Closing date: 29 February 2008

JANUARY 2008 THE STRAD 69