Vengerov unafraid of making waves

By David Patrick Stearns
Philadelphia Inquirer Music Critic
17 October 2006

Maxim Vengerov has reached the age of conditional popularity.
It was bound to happen: The world-renowned Siberian violin virtuoso dazzled the classical world and beyond - including a Grammy Awards telecast years back - with his scintillating playing and dark good looks. Now that he's going beyond the usual career-building concertos and doing things in a way that only he could, he inspires consistent attention, but not always rapture.

That's to be expected with an artist whose edge seems to grow sharper. In a life that revolves around tours, his girlfriend in Amsterdam, and his summer place in Israel (though he calls Monaco home), he's not one to take the easy way out with music-making.
His 8 p.m. recital tomorrow at the Kimmel Center has him collaborating with strong-minded pianist Lilya Zilberstein; some critics worry that she can be overbearing, even if Vengerov's previous collaborator, Turkish firebrand Fasil Say, was as imposing as they come.

Then there's his newish Beethoven Violin Concerto recording, conducted by Mstislav Rostropovich, who is hardly a specialist in that repertoire and delivered results that are both praised and reviled.

But the wildest is yet to come: The Viola-Rock-Tango Concerto by Benjamin Yusupov - which requires Vengerov to improvise on electric violin, play viola, and dance the tango. That figures high on his list of recording projects.

The 32-year-old Novosibirsk-born Vengerov discusses the mixed reactions to his work in his typically soft-spoken manner, but with a conviction that reminds you how infrequently artists risk being so decisive. Disagreeing with him, in a way, is a luxury. On a recent morning in his New York hotel, he minded not at all.

Question: You've rarely had bad reviews. However, the reception for the Beethoven Violin Concerto has been all over the place.
A: I think it's the best recording I've ever made. The first time I played the concerto for Rostropovich, he said: "The only enemy to playing the concerto is yourself. [The problem is] you're using Beethoven's music to express your soul and character. If you try to detach yourself and become sort of an actor in this music, you'll play Beethoven's character rather than expressing your own needs. Then I think that will be a start to Beethoven's interpretation." Which makes perfect sense.

Q: What about the incredibly slow tempo of the first movement? That's where many part company with you.
A: I think the music requires it. I think Beethoven is always meant to be vocalized... . And I need time for the harmonies to go through my body. If I play fast, I can't feel it... . It's sad to say that everybody should play the same, to say this is what Beethoven is like. Every convincing interpretation has the right to exist.

Q: You're one of the few violinists with a traditional recording contract, yours being with EMI. Do you ever wonder how long that can last? You've heard that Tower Records will be out of existence in a matter of weeks.
A: Really? That's unbelievable. My God! It's scary. Nobody buys records. Everybody downloads, but in my view - and I'm old-fashioned, so don't listen to me - downloading is pathetic. It's like downloading a book from a computer. You can burn the CD, get your own cover, draw a picture of the artists... .

Q:I was recently forced to get an iPod for my work and I don't know what to do with it.
A: I was given one, ironically, from EMI. The devil is spreading! For one year, it was sitting in its nice box. Then I gave it to my girlfriend. Since then, she hasn't bought a single disc. It's a new age. We have to find something positive about it.

Q: During your sabbatical in 2005, you learned the Viola-Rock-Tango Concerto by Yusupov. You learned to tango.
A: That's how I met my girlfriend.

Q:Funny, I always thought that the tango was like sex. Then I took a tango lesson, and realized that tango is sex.
A: I once asked my tango teacher, who is from Argentina, if the tango is sexual. And he said: "No, it's sensual. When you dance, you sense that you and the partner can become one. After the dance, it can become sexual."

Really, it's like playing violin. It perfectly corresponds with what I [usually] do. I just had to learn the footwork. I had never thought about using my feet before. But tango changed my life, my view on posture. I became more flexible.

Q: Next you'll be doing yoga?
A: I do it already.

Q:You're not playing the 130 engagements a year that you have in the past, but still, 90 concerts are a lot, considering airport security, with rules about carrying musical instruments on board. Before the restrictions were relaxed, Viktoria Mullova slipped her violin through security in a shopping bag.

A:It's one of those sad moments of life. How much more can humanity take? And apparently, we're going there, exploring where the limits are. Every time I go to the airport, I go through enormous security... because they see that I travel so much. They literally go in and check your teeth. And I'm not allowed to touch my violin. They have to lift it and look at it.

Thank God we're musicians. It's very important to carry on with what we really believe in. Every time I go onstage, I feel blessed that I'm doing what I'm doing. Every day, it becomes more of a mission than a job. I don't believe - well, I never believed - classical music is for connoisseurs, for limited audiences. The great composers, they'll always be there for us.

Q: You're also starting a music school in Israel.

A: In addition to studying their main instruments, the students will do painting and sculpting. They'll be able to improvise freely, in jazz and classical. If we teach children to improvise from childhood, they're more likely to become composers.

My idol is Rachmaninoff, who was a fantastic performer and a great composer. These musicians will have a different mission - one that's more spiritually guided from the beginning, one that will create an aura around them. For them, the concert hall will be a temple of art.