Last weekend, the Pittsburgh Symphony did three concerts with Joshua Bell that they recorded. Manfred Honneck and the Symphony is recording a Mahler Cycle with EXTON records. They use 28 microphones and they turn off the Heinz Hall air-conditioner because the microphones record it as background noise. EXON produces those multi-channel, surround, hi-def records that put the audience in the middle of the orchestra.

So they played:

STRAUS - Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks

STRAUS - Don Juan

STRAUS - Death and Transfiguration

in case you are unfamiliar with those three instrumental pieces - they are BRASS heavy and on the three days, they alternated which piece was first so they had a recording session (LIVE) with fresh brass playing. Them thar lips get tired blowing notes, yanno.

All three pieces are wildly bombastically wonderfully huge orchestral pieces. All sorts of solos parts for various instruments from oboes to harp to first violins to every piece of brass in the orchestra.

And for funsies Joshua Bell played Brahms Violin Concerto in D with the orchestra to cheers.

If you ever get to see Joshua Bell, please go. His playing is brilliant.

And just in case you've never heard the Brahms, I was being sarcastic when I said funsies. Most violin concertos (or piano for that matter) have one massive cadenza where the soloist gets to shine. In this Brahms has three passages where the violin is singing onstage alone and the rest of it is so technically difficult that your eyes pop and your ears just delight. the second movement (Adagio) was heaven sent.