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For the Record, Op. 401: Himari, Soojin Han
Welcome to "For the Record," Violinist.com's weekly roundup of new releases of recordings by violinists, violists, cellists and other classical musicians. We hope it helps you keep track of your favorite artists, as well as find some new ones to add to your listening! Click on the highlighted links to obtain each album or learn more about the artists.
Debut
Himari, violin
Berliner Philharmoniker, Sebastian Weigle conducting
Himari presents a live recording of Henryk Wieniawskiâs rarely-recorded Violin Concerto No. 1, along with a number of short pieces performed with pianist Chelsea Wang, including Chopin nocturnes arranged by Heifetz and Milstein, as well as miniatures by Sibelius and Leopold Godowsky. She recorded the Wieniawski at age 13, using the 1717 "Hamma" Stradivarius and the other works with the 1732 "Ferni" Guarneri del GesÃđ. Now age 15, Himari is the youngest female artist in the Decca Classicsâ history. BELOW: Himari performs Wieniawski: Violin Concerto No. 1.
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2027 Primrose International Viola Competition Details Announced
Attention violists: Applications will open on Dec. 1 for the 18th triennial Primrose International Viola Competition, which will place October 28-31, 2027 at the Colburn School in Los Angeles.
The competition, sponsored by Colburn and the American Viola Society, will take place alongside the Primrose Festival, a three-day celebration of the viola bringing with performers, educators, students, luthiers, and viola enthusiasts for performances, masterclasses, presentations, exhibits and more. It also will feature the world premiere of a newly commissioned work for viola by Sungji Hong. Keep reading...
Composer Jessie Montgomery: Inside The Indianapolis 2026 Commissioned Violin Work
"Who is writing the new violin work for The Indianapolis this year?"
It's Jessie Montgomery, you may know her from....
"PERFECT!"
This is a variation on many such exchanges I've had in recent months, leading up to the International Violin Competition of Indianapolis (IVCI). It's simply obvious that Montgomery was the perfect person to compose this year's commissioned piece, which is called "Rhapsody No. 3."
Montgomery is a composer who also is a violinist - and people don't have to ask who she is. These days you will find numerous pieces by Montgomery -- like Strum, Rounds (which won the 2024 Grammy for best composition), Banner, Hymn for Everyone, Starburst -- in symphony and recital programs across the United States and the world.
Her works continue to grow in popularity -- because when people play or hear her pieces, they tend to want more. Her pieces are fun and challenging to play (I can personally attest). They make a point; they are always about something. And they are well-crafted.
The IVCI started on Sept. 17, and on Friday begins the round in which 16 semifinalists each will play Montgomery's newest piece, "Rhapsody No. 3," as part of a full recital. (Get the score here, and watch those recitals here.) Written especially for the 2026 IVCI, it is the twelfth in a string of commissioned works that date back to the first IVCI in 1982. Those include pieces by composers John Harbison, William Bolcom, Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, Joan Tower, Bright Sheng, Richard Danielpour, Ned Rorem, Witold Lutoslawski, George Rochberg, Leon Kirchner and Joonas Kokkonen. Some of these works - such as "Subito" by Lutoslawski - have by now become staples of the recital hall.
I spoke with Jessie several weeks ago via Zoom, from my home in Pasadena to hers in Chicago. She shared her thoughts about writing the IVCI's commissioned piece, its dedication to her violin teachers Ann Setzer and Sally Thomas, the general challenges and joys of writing for violin, and she even explained the subtitle for the piece, "The White Rabbit."
First of all, this new piece is called Rhapsody No. 3 - what about Rhapsodies Nos. 1 and 2?
"When I wrote my first rhapsody, I was at a point where I was starting to focus more on composing, and I was nervous that my shift away from performance would mean that my chops were going to suffer as a violinist," Montgomery said. "So I actually wanted to write a piece for myself to play, something that I found challenging and musically stimulating. But I also wanted it to be pedagogical -- a tool for other violinists who wanted to do the same." The result was her Rhapsody No. 1. Keep reading...
16 Semi-Finalists announced in 2026 International Violin Competition of Indianapolis
Sixteen violinists were named as semi-finalists in the 2026 International Violin Competition of Indianapolis, IVCI) on Wednesday, after four days of preliminary rounds, in which each of 38 participants performed a 45-minute recital of masterworks selected from Ernst, Hindemith, Milstein, Mozart, Paganini, Prokofiev, Schubert and YsaÃŋe, plus a work from the encore repertoire.
Here are the semi-finalists (click on their name for their bio and program):
- Zachary Brandon, 27, of the United States
- Karisa Chiu, 27, of the United States
- Elli Choi, 25, of the United States
- Bade Dastan, 19, of Turkey
- Corina Deng, 18, of Canada
- Wenlan Jackson, 24, of the United States
- Yeyeong (Jenny) Jin, of 23, of South Korea
- Donghyun Kim, of 26, of South Korea
- Chaeyeon Lee, of 22, of South Korea
- Yesong Sophie Lee, of 22, of the United States
- Chaowen Luo, of 25, of China
- Lina Nakano, of 21, of Japan
- Audrey Park, 23, of the United States
- Sara Watanabe, 21, of Japan
- Aozhe Zhang, 18, of China
- Xunyue Zhang, 22, of China
The Semi-Final round will begin on Friday at 1:30 p.m. ET. Click here to watch archived performances of the Preliminaries, as well as the schedule for and livestream of the Semi-Finals, which will take place Friday through Monday with two sessions each day, one at 1:30 p.m. and another at 7:30 p.m. ET. Each of the 16 semi-finalists will present a full recital of 19th and 20th century works from the standard repertoire as well as the 2026 Commissioned Work, Rhapsody No. 3 for Solo Violin by Jessie Montgomery. (Read our interview with Jessie Montgomery about that work here.) Keep reading...
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