Violinist Nikolaj Znaider's Beethoven Odyssey

Ludwig van Beethoven tried certain musical forms only once. One opera, one violin concerto, was all he wrote.

Violinist Nikolaj Znaider says he spent years preparing to take on, what he says is, one of the most difficult pieces for his instrument. It took age, and its attendant personal and artistic growth, for him to get beyond what he describes as "mere graphical representation of the music, those black dots on white paper."

http://youtu.be/uH9iZ9k7ywI

Under the baton of guest conductor Stéphane Denève, The Philadelphia Orchestra plays the Shostakovich Symphony No. 10, and Beethoven’s Violin Concerto with soloist Nikolaj Znaider on Sunday, June 8th at 1 pm.