Henri Vieuxtemps (1820-1881)
Six études de concert, op. 16
Adagio en mi majeur
Étude n° 28 en sol mineur, op. 48
Six morceaux, op. 55

Francesco Parrino, violon

When evoking Vieuxtemps, you convene the whole Belgian violin School. His way of playing fosters purity of intonation, total technical command, broad tone and a strong power of expression, which will all remain the representative qualities of the Belgian violin school. Contrary to Paganini, Vieuxtemps has never used virtuosity for its own sake. Ysaÿe used to stress that Vieuxtemps’ motto was not to play a stroke for its own sake, but to sing, always to sing. When listening to the works presented here, we understand that Vieuxtemps enjoyed interpreting ancient composers and that he never hesitated to include in his repertoire works by Mozart, Couperin, Bach and Haydn. While belonging to the romantic aesthetics, his compositions combine Paganini’s virtuosity, Kreutzer’s classicism and Bach’s polyphony. Francesco Parrino’s main intention is to powerfully restore the brilliant character of Vieuxtemps’ work by performing the works for solo violin neglected by discography. Parrino’s choice of works offers a new dimension and brings an immense contribution to the revival of the Belgian violinist’s music.