Pamela Frank Plays Mozart: Violin Concertos Nos. 1-5/Haffner Serenade

Following his successful series of Beethoven Symphonies with this orchestra, Zinman collaborates with the American violinist Pamela Frank in a satisfying series of Mozart Violin Concertos. It's a fascinating experience to follow the way, in a single year (his 19th), Mozart progressed from the Baroque pleasantries of the First Concerto to the deeply personal expression of the last three. Frank and Zinman are pleasant guides. They aren't as warm as some Mozart interpreters (like the splendid Grumiaux), but their collaboration is alert and charming, and, as in his Beethoven, Zinman leads the orchestra with sparkling clarity. Zinman must have felt deeply involved in this project, as he wrote cadenzas for most of the five concertos. To fill in, they extract the three "concerto" movements (with violin solo) from Mozart's "Haffner" Serenade, not a bad idea. But there was also room for the two isolated Mozart Violin Concerto movements, which appear in some sets although not here. Too bad. At the price, it's still a bargain. --Leslie Gerber