PA Arts Sunday - July 19, 2009 -- Glazunov Violin Concerto

Next May, University of Alaska Anchorage violin professor and noted violinist, Walter Oliveros, will perform the Alaska premiere of Alexander Glazunov's Violin Concerto, Op. 82. He will be accompanied by the Anchorage Civic Orchestra, and I'll be conducting.

Walter's been wanting to perform this concerto with an orchestra since he was very young. At one time, Juneau violinist Paul Rosenthal and Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra maestro Gordon Wright considered performing the work in Fairbanks, but passed it up for another concerto.

Other works by Glazunov have been performed very rarely in Anchorage. His Violin Concerto is considered to be one of the very best of the lesser known violin concerti, and was a personal favorite of Jascha Heifitz. Perhaps Glazunov's best-known composition is his ballet, The Seasons.

If all goes well with our rendition of the concerto, maybe we'll hear more music by Alexander Glazunov in the coming Anchorage musical decade.

Here is the young violinist, Hilary Hahn, performing the concerto, with an unnamed French orchestra:

Part One:


Part Two - Go to this URL to watch Part Two.

image - Glazunov by Ilya Repin