Two Christians; two Joachims .... a CD sent to me by a friend seemed to have things in common. Joseph Joachim's first (Op 3) violin concerto is played by Thomas Christian in a recent off-air broadcast (WDR). Joaquin Rodrigo's Concerto d'Eté is an old recording by Christian Ferras (with Ataulfo Argenta).

But there the similarities end. In truth, Joseph Joachim's first violin concerto is a pretty stodgy and uninspired work. Thomas Christian sounds like an accurate player, but he is neither inspired nor inspiring. The work drags on and sounds like many dutiful violin concertos that have never survived the test of time.

Joaquin Rodrigo's violin concerto came like a welcome draught of clear spring water. The concerto is immediately attractive, with good thematic material. Moreover, Ferras communicates a love of the work and his playing (in 1953) is charismatic. Ferras might even have been able to breathe life into Joachim's first concerto ...

There is a strange symmetry between the lives of Christian Ferras and Michael Rabin. Both were truly first-class violinists. Both had an enthusiasm and joie de vivre in their playing. Both sprang on the world in the early 1950s. Both reached their zeniths in the early 1960s. Both fell to earth in the 1970s, one the victim of alcohol, the other of narcotics. On this current CD, it is good to have the playing of Ferras in the Rodrigo concerto preserved.