The first impression, here, as the orchestra begins the D major Concerto, is of plenty of spring in the step, a jaunty air even, borne out by the entry of the soloist a minute later. This is not surprising, since he also directs and we may thus expect the interpretation to be all of a piece. Zehetmair, 30 last year and a Salzburger, has the right credentials to play these youthful works written in Mozart's native city. Indeed, he is an impeccably clean violinist and an intelligent one as well. If he has any weakness, it is that his brightly lit, direct approach leaves little room for half-tones and ambiguities, and that his tone lacks variety of colour. However, it can be argued that the music itself does not demand such expressive refinements. The soloist provides his own cadenzas, to good effect, though I find that of the first movement of the G major Concerto rather self-consciously chirpy in material and presentation.
So far, so pretty good. It is only at times, say in the finale of the D major Concerto, that I find the playing too unrelentingly bouncy and miss a more thoughtful style; but as I have suggested, how much this matters is a question of taste, and if all three works here seem rather similarly presented some will say that that is because they are indeed, more or less, all of a kind. If you wonder how you will respond to Zehetmair, try his buoyant account of the Adagio of the G major work; others have found more Gluckian poise and elegance in this music, which here seems to me rather superficial. On the other hand, he brings wit to the eloquent finale of the same concerto and the 'Turkish' music of the A major. He takes a briskly rhythmical view of his first entry in the latter work (most violinists take this brief Adagio slower and more dreamily), but at least his playing is consistent in its bright, uncomplicated vigour.
The recording was made in the Snape Maltings. It is reverberant for this location, but has good orchestral detail and the soloist, though forwardly placed, is not too much so. The Philharmonia strings do not sound too big for the music. Despite my reservations, it would be churlish to deny this expertly made issue a recommendation, but if you have doubts, try to sample before purchasing.'