Nicoló Paganini - What about this Mr.Paganini - Saschko Gawriloff - Kira Ratner - Tacet S 36 (2004)
SACD rip via PS3 to iso (3.58GB) | Originally 1996 | 24bit/88.2kHz flac | Mch (1.69GB) (+6dB gain) | 2ch (905MB) DR13 (+6dB gain) | Classical

For violinerds ;) I respectfully suggest one uses one's ears rather than believe everything one reads.
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What might be the best violin ever made? This album takes 7 violins from the world's most famous makers, so you can hear & compare them. As well as, maybe the most obvious, a Stradivari, were an Amati, a Guidagnini, 2 Guarneris ( 1 Andrea & 1 by Petrus), and a Vuillaume; plus 1 modern violin, a Horvath.

Works by Bach, Veracini, Kreisler, Dvorak, Paganini, Webern.
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AudAud review: http://audaud.com/audaud/MAY05/hires/hires1.old.php#pag

This recording is another one of those "gimmick" discs that Tacet is constantly throwing our way, with the end result being some seriously good listening for everyone.
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SA-CD.net review by canonical:
As already noted, the central premise of this disc is that the same Sarabande from Bach's Partita in D minor is performed on 7 different violins, including an Amati, a Gaudagnini, two different Guarneris, a Strad and a Vuillaume. An exciting & fun project (even if it has been done before). Would an AXB test, open to anyone, pick up a statistical difference? I think not. Can one hear the difference. Yes ... I think my vote goes to the Guadagnini & the P. Guarneri (the latter has an earthy rich sound). The rest of the disc is filled with mostly classic violin/piano repertoire pieces, some of which I know very well from playing them as a teenager:

* Veracini Sonata Concertante
* Kreisler's Tartini Variations
* Dvorak: Romantic Pieces for Violins
* Paganini: Cantabile
* Webern: 4 pieces op.7

Do I like the disc? Nope. I barely made it through the 7 renditions of the Bach Sarabande. Why? Gawriloff's sound, at least on this disc, & irrespective of which violin he is playing on, is scratchy & unpleasant & his intonation is sloppy. The recording sound is poor. Most of my redbook violin CDs sound substantially better. This must rank near the bottom of the pile. The brochure provides copious details about microphones et hoc genus omne, but fails to mention the recording resolution ... which no doubt is something very redbook-ish. It's a 1995 recording .... so don't expect any DSD miracles. The most interesting aspect of the disc is actually the Webern 4 Short pieces which are new to me, & which come across very well.

I also have Gawriloff playing the Ligeti Violin Concerto on DG (world premiere recording made 2.5 years earlier in 1993) ... & I had a quick listen to that again for comparison. The scratchiness is not as evident, & the intonation problems are not as evident either, though being modern music, one can often 'get away' with much more, in part because the music is less familiar, & in part because any intonation discordance is less obvious.

Brochure: Excellent notes with pictures & descriptions of the various instruments.
Recording resolution: Unstated: sounds like a bad CD
Recording: 1995
Superjewel box: Yes

Performance: 2 stars


      Tracks:

01. Amati (2:44)
02. Guadagnini (2:41)
03. A. Guarneri (2:38)
04. P. Guarneri (2:46)
05. Horvath (2:41)
06. Stradivari (2:50)
07. Vuillaume (2:47)
08. Ritornello. Largo (P.Guarneri) (3:49)
09. Allegro Con Fuoco (P.Guarneri) (3:42)
10. Giga. Presto (P.Guarneri) (2:37)
11. Variations On Tartini (A. Guarneri) (3:12)
12. Allegro Moderato (A. Guarneri) (2:43)
13. Allegro Maestoso (A. Guarneri) (2:37)
14. Allegro Appassionato (A. Guarneri) (1:56)
15. Larghetto (A. Guarneri) (5:06)
16. Cantabile For Violin And Piano (Amati) (3:17)
17. Very Slow (Horvath) (1:11)
18. Fast (Horvath) (1:15)
19. Very Slow (Horvath) (1:14)
20. With Movement (Horvath) (0:54)


      Musicians:

Kira Ratner - piano
Saschko Gawriloff - violin 


http://www.filefactory.com/folder/f8952b192fd8522d
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