Korngold & Barber Violin Concertos

Paul Huang, violin I Jun Märkl, conductor I London Philharmonic Orchestra

After two initial chamber music albums recorded with Helen Huang, violinist Paul Huang, recipient of the Avery Fisher Career Grant in 2015, confirms in the concerto repertoire his strong affinity for the lyrical qualities of his instrument. He chose to record the concertos by Barber and Korngold for their broad, expressive melodies, their sumptuous harmonic language, and their climaxes of great emotional transparency, which echo the spirit of late Romanticism associated with Brahms, Tchaikovsky, or Bruch. Korngold himself said that he had composed his concerto “for a Caruso of the violin rather than for a Paganini.” This is sure to appeal to the thirty-something violinist, who was drawn to his instrument at a very young age “because of its singing tone, a sound that resembles the human voice.”

These two American concertos, dating from the mid-twentieth century, offer him the stimulating challenge of painting worlds that are both luxuriant and intimate, using the refined palette of a chamber musician. To meet this challenge, he is joined by the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Jun Märkl, a conductor with whom he frequently collaborates in concert. Korngold, an Austrian composer who fled to America in 1936 under pressure from the rise of Nazism and whom Mahler described as a “musical genius,” composed extensively for Hollywood. Here, he notably draws his thematic material from several of his earlier film scores. The American composer Barber, for his part, captures the atmosphere of the United States in the 1930s, while also evoking the vast American landscapes and the industrial dynamism of New York. “A profound vulnerability also emerges from these two works, particularly in their sublime slow movements,” the violinist notes. The slow movement of Barber’s concerto expresses a deep sense of dismay, uncertainty, and despair characteristic of the Great Depression.

The luxuriant Romantic language of old Europe, transformed through Korngold’s experience in cinema, and Barber’s lyrical voice - marked by great emotional sincerity and deeply rooted in the American soil - represent for Paul Huang two complementary visions of American musical identity. They take on particular meaning for him, a Taiwanese-born musician trained and based in the United States, in this commemorative year 2026 marking the 250th anniversary of American independence.

康果爾德 ＆巴伯 小提琴協奏曲

黃俊文, 小提琴 Ｉ準·馬寇爾, 指揮 Ｉ倫敦愛樂管弦樂團

小提琴家黃俊文是2015年艾佛瑞·費雪事業獎的獲得者，在與鋼琴家黃海倫合作錄製了兩張二重奏唱片後，在協奏曲中他再次展現了對小提琴抒情特質的深刻理解。他選擇錄製康果爾德和巴伯的協奏曲，是因為它們具備寬廣而富有表現力的旋律、華麗的和聲語言以及極富情感張力的高潮，這些都與布拉姆斯、柴可夫斯基及布魯赫等晚期浪漫主義作曲家的精神遙相呼應。康果爾德本人曾說，他的小提琴協奏曲是「為了小提琴界的卡魯索而不是帕格尼尼而創作」。對這位踏入而立之年的小提琴家而言這極具吸引力，他很小的時候就“因為它的音色如歌，宛如人聲”而被小提琴所吸引。

來自二十世紀中期美國的這兩首協奏曲，為他帶來的是一種頗爲刺激的挑戰：運用室內樂般的細膩技法，描繪既繁茂又私密的音樂世界。為了應對這項挑戰，他再度與他熟識的指揮家準·馬寇爾合作，並攜手倫敦愛樂管弦樂團一同錄音。奧地利作曲家康果爾德曾被馬勒稱贊為「音樂天才」，在納粹主義的壓力下於1936年流亡美國。他曾為好萊塢創作了大量作品，在這首協奏曲中他也大量運用了他此前電影配樂的主題素材。美國作曲家巴伯的作品中則捕捉了20世紀30年代美國的氛圍，同時也展現了美國宏大的自然風光和紐約的工業活力。黃俊文也著重指出「這兩部作品也流露出一種深刻的脆弱感，尤其是在它們優美的慢樂章中」。巴伯協奏曲的慢樂章表達了大蕭條時期特有的深刻沮喪、困惑和絕望。

在黃俊文眼裡，康果爾德從電影中得來的經驗為舊歐洲華麗的浪漫主義語言賦予了新的生命，巴伯的琴聲則充滿抒情色彩與真摯情感、並深深紮根於美國本土，這兩首協奏曲共同代表了演繹美國音樂獨特性格的兩種互補視角。對於這位出生於台灣、在美國接受音樂教育並定居於此的音樂家而言，這兩首作品在2026年 — 紀念美國獨立250週年 — 對他具有了更爲特殊的意義。

MIRRORS

Works by Francis Poulenc, Arvo Pärt, Sergei Prokofiev

Paul Huang | Helen Huang

Paul Huang and Helen Huang have been exploring the repertoire for violin and piano for now a decade.​ As a way of celebrating their fruitful and enriching collaboration, they have devised this album as an​ ingenious game of mirroring. The title of this second album for naïve is not accidental, as the two​ musicians offer highly diverse perspectives. This new recording focuses first on two sonatas composed​ by Francis Poulenc (1942-1943) and Sergei Prokofiev (1938-1946) during the second world war of the​ 20th century, respectively at the opening and closing of this album. Between these two pieces, Spiegel im​ Spiegel by Arvo Pärt (1978), a page with ethereal lines, a moment of introspection and calm that becomes a space for contemplation and reflection necessary in this otherwise dense and angular​ programme.

Poulenc composed his Sonata as a response to fascism and dedicated it to the memory of the Spanish​ poet Federico García Lorca, shot in 1936 during the Spanish Civil War. The composer imagines fleeting​ melodies, punctuated by bold contrasts. The irregularity of the phrases, the sudden pauses, the​ mischievous fantasy intertwined with moments of discord, seek to transcribe the emotional and societal​ whirlwind that was the War, right down to these violin pizzicatos at the end of the movement evoking both​ the bullets of a rifle and the guitar, this iconic instrument of Lorca’s country. War also feeds Prokofiev​'s​ inspiration, in the abrasive and anguished din of the battle that the second movement imitated, in the​ lullaby of the third movement that dreams of a better future, as in the folk dance, lively, joyful, in reality so​ dramatic that its climax is a metaphor for chaos. This album encapsulates music’s profound ability to offer​ a poignant reflection on the past while resonating deeply with our present. In a world that often feels as tumultuous as the one that birthed these works, music offers a space for​ contemplation and connection.

In this maelstrom of emotions, Paul Huang and Helen Huang have grown as musicians. This new stage in​ their musical journey has required them to refine their sense of contrasts to connect with the rawest of​ human emotions. The two musicians have reinvented their duo, they have now reached a crucial moment where modesty turns into delicacy, fierceness into ferocity, tact into grace. A reflection of an ongoing​ journey, Mirrors is above all a mirror of their absolute mutual understanding.

《無垠之鏡》

普朗克、佩爾特和普羅高菲夫作品

黃俊文、黃海倫

黃俊文和黃海倫對小提琴與鋼琴二重奏作品的鑽研，已經走過了十年歲月。為了慶祝這段成果豐富的合作旅程，他們將這張專輯設計成一個巧妙的鏡像隱喻。作爲他們在Naïve發行的第二張專輯，其標題並非偶然，因為兩位音樂家在其中展示的觀點具有高度的多樣性。這張新專輯重點聚焦於弗朗西斯·普朗克和謝爾蓋·普羅高菲夫在第二次世界大戰期間創作的兩首奏鳴曲 (前者創作於1942-1943年，後者創作於1938-1946年)，分別收錄于這張專輯的開頭和結尾。在這兩部作品之間，阿佛·佩爾特的《鏡中鏡》(1978年）是一頁繪有空靈線條的白紙，一段內省與平靜的時刻，成為這套密集鋒芒畢露的曲目之中所必需的沉思與反省的空間。

普朗克的這部奏鳴曲是他對法西斯主義的回應，並將其題獻給1936年死於内戰子彈下的西班牙詩人費德里科·加西亞·洛爾卡。作曲家寫下想象中稍縱即逝的旋律，以大膽的對比作爲點綴。他運用不規則的樂句、突然的停頓、與不和諧時刻相互交織的胡鬧幻想，試圖記錄戰爭在情感上與社會中掀起的旋風，由此直到各個樂章結尾處的小提琴撥奏，讓人想起槍聲與子彈，同時也像是吉他聲，那是洛爾卡其祖國的標誌性樂器。戰爭也催發了普羅高菲夫的靈感，體現於第二樂章模仿戰爭的粗暴和痛苦的喧囂中，也出現在第三樂章夢想美好未來的搖籃曲中，還在富於民間舞蹈風格的段落裏，看似活潑歡樂，實際上充滿戲劇性，迸發出的高潮暗含混沌混亂的隱喻。這張專輯概括了音樂深入人心的能力，可以對歷史進行深刻的反思，同時與我們所處的現在產生深刻的共鳴與照應。在一個與這些作品誕生時同樣動盪的世界中，音樂提供了一個沉思的空間，並讓靈魂相互連結。

作爲音樂家的黃俊文和黃海倫也在這種情感的漩渦中成長。兩人的音樂之旅踏入的這個新階段要求他們將自己的對比感進一步精細化，從而與人類最原始的情感相聯繫。兩位音樂家在此重塑了他們的組合，如今已經到了由中庸走向細膩、由圓滑達至優雅的關鍵時刻。作爲這一段仍在進行中的旅程之反映，《無垠之鏡》更是他們各自相互理解的一面鏡子。

Toshio Hosokawa is Japan's leading living composer. This fourth volume in the series of his orchestral works, during which he was present for all recording sessions, contains two concertos and two works for orchestra. The Trumpet Concerto "Im Nebel", which draws its inspiration from Herman Hesse's poem, conjures up a vision of man and nature, in which the trumpet slowly and magically melts into the orchestral mist. Inspired by a birth, Violin Concerto "Genesis" again places the soloist as the human protagonist in a universal drama of finding harmony through conflict. "Sakura" is one of Japan's best-loved songs, arranged by Hosokawa for orchestra, and "Uzu" displays unique orchestral sonorities. 

For his debut album, the violinist Paul Huang has chosen to spotlight the colour and poetry of his instrument in a kaleidoscopic recital of sonatas by Saint-Saëns, Respighi, Chopin and Paganini.

Paul Huang is undoubtedly a virtuoso. A recipient of the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant and Lincoln Center Award for Emerging Artists, he is already renowned, and has been a guest at the most prestigious venues and festivals such as the Kennedy Center, Wigmore Hall, Aspen and Lucerne Music Festivals. The sonatas by Saint-Saëns and Respighi are also undeniably virtuosic, and among the most difficult works in the violin repertoire. But virtuosity is not the most important quality that Huang focuses on here: he was initially attracted to the instrument as a young boy for “its sonority and its wonderful lyric qualities”.

A subtle, refined violin – the legendary 1742 “ex-Wieniawski” Guarneri del Gesù – ensures a variety of colour and contrast for this vibrant Romantic programme. Paul Huang deploys a wide, generous palette of emotions bestowing a moving intimacy to Paganini’s famous Cantabile or Chopin’s Nocturne. Respighi’s too little known sonata vibrates from the initial Moderato with velvety phrasing and controlled interiority, while the sonata by Saint-Saëns assumes the virtuosity of its last two movements with carefree beauty. “I often compare a great instrument to a great painter – its countless nuances enable him to create and recreate his art in countless ways. This is precisely what I feel when playing this violin,” says Paul Huang. In the pianist Helen Huang, the young Taiwanese violinist has found an attentive partner who delicately enhances his textured playing. Their duets flourish in an atmosphere of confidence that has matured throughout their long collaboration and a shared exacting and passionate zest for chamber music. “I would like this album to reflect my love of the violin,” concludes Paul Huang. It certainly does.

 琴炫彩影

小提琴家黃俊文選擇了聖桑、雷史畢基​奏鳴曲、​以及蕭邦和帕格尼尼的​小品，收錄於他加盟法國唱片大廠naïve的首張專輯中，以這套萬花筒般五彩斑斕的獨奏曲目展現他手中樂器的豐富色彩和詩意。

黃俊文的藝術才華毋庸置疑。作為著名的​艾佛瑞·費雪​事業獎和林肯中心新銳藝術家獎​得主，他曾經在甘迺迪表演藝術中心、​英國威格莫爾音樂廳、​亞斯本音樂節和琉森音樂節等最著名的​音樂廳和音樂​節登臺，早已聲名遠播。這張專輯中收錄的聖桑和雷史畢基奏鳴曲對演奏者的技藝要求非同一般，可謂最難演奏的小提琴作品之一。但黃俊文在這張專輯中最注重的並不僅僅是演奏技巧：在他年少時，是小提琴的“音質和美妙的抒情性”吸引了他。

黃俊文錄製這張專輯時使用的是來自1742年的富有傳奇色彩的​耶穌-瓜奈里小提琴，曾經由維尼奧夫斯基使用，音色細膩精緻，使這套充滿活力的浪漫主義曲目飽含豐富色彩與對比。他在演繹帕格尼尼《如歌》和蕭邦《夜曲》中抒發了宏大而豐富的情懷，從而營造了一種動人的親切感。他演奏雷史畢基鮮為人知的奏鳴曲時，憑藉其天鵝絨般的柔潤分句與精心控制下的內斂演繹，從開頭的慢板開始就動人心弦，而在聖桑奏鳴曲最後兩個樂章中，他則以精湛技藝展現了無憂無慮的美感。“我經常把一把出色的樂器比作一位偉大畫家——它能夠展現的無限細節使其能夠以無數種方式來創造和再現藝術。這就是我演奏這把小提琴的感覺。” 黃俊文如是說。

鋼琴家黃海倫作為一位細心的搭檔，為這位年輕臺灣小提琴家質感十足的演奏增添了不少精緻色彩。他們在長期的合作中，憑藉對室內樂共同的嚴謹和熱情，逐漸培養成熟了一種飽含自信的氛圍，讓他們的合作能夠在這種氛圍中蓬勃生長。黃俊文說： “希望這張專輯能反映出我對小提琴的熱愛。” 的確如此。