Yehudi Menuhin said of her “she has a wonderful talent with a lively temperament, virtuosic brilliance and a very high professional level.”
Maria Solozobova is indeed a great violinist who has achieved fame throughout the world. Born in Moscow and now living in Switzerland (where she is leader of the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande) she issued her debut album in 2007 to great acclaim. On her beautifully toned Nicolò Gagliano violin, dated 1728, Maria gave us an enthralling solo violin recital outside Giacomo Puccini’s ancestral home in the delightful village of Celle di Pescaglia last July 29th.
(Maria and the Puccini Museum at Celle, run by the ‘Lucchesi’ nel Mondo Association)
Maria warmed us up (if that could be the right word in these balmy summer evenings) with J. S Bach’s solo violin sonata no 1.
She then proceeded to what must be her showpiece: the devilishly difficult variations on “Nel cor più non mi sento” from Paisiello’s 1788 opera ‘L’amor contrastato, ossia La molinara’.
Here is Solozobova’s recording of it taken from a concert in Zurich. What technique and what passion!
More Paganini and an Ysaye sonata followed:
(Recognize the tune? Rachmaninov used it in his Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini!)
If one is thinking that a solo violin recital before Puccini’s house is somewhat unusual then you’re right. Normally concerts before this beautiful setting tend to consist of operatic arias. However, it should be remembered that Paganini has a strong connection with Lucca’s music scene. His first job was with Napoleon’s sister Elisa Baciocchi, princess of Lucca and Piombino (to whom he gave music lessons and perhaps something a little more).
It was a totally unforgettable, fabulous evening!
To conclude here’s a photo I took of the lovely Maria Solozobova standing by the bed in which Giacomo Puccini was born in 1858 (the one in Puccini’s birth-house in Lucca is a copy).
For more concerts at Celle Dei Puccini see