It is fascinating to compare Pinchas Zukerman’s latest readings of these two masterpieces with those he recorded earlier, the Brahms for DG in Paris in 1979, the Bruch for CBS (Sony) in Los Angeles in 1977. In both works the most obvious contrast is in the sound of Zukerman’s violin, more I suspect a question of recording quality and balance than of his own development. In both concertos the violin is balanced far less closely than before, more naturally and without spotlighting. Though the earlier recordings may initially seem to pack a weightier punch, the power of Zukerman’s playing remains very clear, and the reflective quality in his later interpretations – one of the most striking developments – is conveyed all the more intensely in readings regularly marked by hushed poetry. What I find less welcome in the RCA recording is the slight edginess in the solo violin sound, particularly in the Brahms, missing the roundness which always used to mark Zukerman’s tone on disc. As to my other comparisons, Ughi on an earlier RCA digital recording sounds fuller and warmer, while Grumiaux on a much earlier Philips analogue recording is arguably the warmest of all in sound.
In the Brahms Zukerman is not only more reflective than before, often more tenderly expressive, he is a degree less expansive. That is the case, not so much in the basic speeds as in the linking passages, where with Barenboim as conductor he is encouraged to take his time. Mehta is a stiffer, squarer Brahmsian, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic in this instance play with less expressive intensity than the LPO in the Bruch. There Zukerman takes an exceptionally broad view in all three movements, but then he did so before on Sony, also partnered by Mehta but with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. The big gain in the new recording is the hushed, inner intensity of the reading, helped by the recording balance, and though the finale may be less beefy, the clarity of Zukerman’s articulation means that he is no less biting.
For this apt coupling the new disc is a strong contender, though Ughi on a budget-price RCA issue gives satisfyingly straightforward readings, very well played, and for those who do not insist on a digital recording Grumiaux on a mid-price Philips Duo offers a reading of the Brahms unsurpassed in its imagination and insight.'