Zino Francescatti
Though indeed of Italian background, violinist Zino Francescatti was a Frenchman, born in Marseilles in 1902. His real name was René-Charles Francescatti. Both his parents played the violin, and his father René had been a student of Paganini. The younger Francescatti performed the Paganini Violin Concerto No. 1 at his official Paris debut in 1925.
By that time Francescatti was already an experienced performer. He gave his first concert at age 5 and played the Beethoven violin concerto at 10. From his late teens he concertized regularly, and after arriving in Paris in 1924 he formed a duo with none less than Maurice Ravel and embarked on an international tour. In the 1920s and 1930s Francescatti toured the globe, although his U.S. debut didn't come until 1939, once again with the Paganini Concerto No. 1, in a New York Philharmonic concert.
Despite his fondness for Paganini, Francescatti was more identified with elegant, natural-seeming playing than with sheer virtuoso fireworks. Later in life he toured and recorded with the similarly fluid French pianist Robert Casadesus in duo repertory; they recorded a complete set of Beethoven's violin and piano sonatas, lyrical works ideally suited to their combined styles. Living in New York but often returning to France to perform and teach, Francescatti made durable recordings of several major repertory works, including the Beethoven concerto with conductor Bruno Walter and the Columbia Symphony Orchestra. Francescatti retired in 1976, moved back to France, and sold his prized Stradivarius instrument to Salvatore Accardo. In 1987 he used part of the proceeds to establish an educational foundation and a violin competition in the city of Aix-en-Provence.
Despite the deep-rooted European traditions exemplified in his playing, Francescatti's memory has not been particularly well served by reissue houses. An exception, however, is the Bridge release An Evening of Paganini (Great Performances from The Library of Congress, Vol. 17), which won a Best Recording of the Year award from Fanfare magazine. The disc presents a 1954 Paganini recital Francescatti gave with pianist Artur Balsam. The Zino Francescatti in Performance two-disc set released by the Music & Arts label offers Francescatti concerto performances from the 1940s and 1950s with various orchestras. Some of his original concerto recordings on the Columbia label have been reissued as part of the Sony Masterworks Heritage series.
© TiVo
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The Complete HMV Recordings
Zino Francescatti, Georges Becker, Éliane Zurfluh-Tenroc
Chamber Music - Released by Biddulph Recordings on Nov. 15, 1990
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Walton: Concerto for Violin and Orchestra - Lalo: Symphonie Espagnole
Classical - Released by Sony Classical on Mar. 21, 1960
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
An Evening of Paganini (Arr. for Violin and Piano by Zino Francescatti)
Zino Francescatti, Artur Balsam
Classical - Released by Mangora Classic on Jan. 1, 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven, Brahms, Saint-Saëns, Debussy, Ravel
Classical - Released by Ina Archives on Feb. 28, 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Violin Concerto, Op. 77 - Sibelius: Violin Concerto, Op. 47
Classical - Released by Sony Classical on Jul. 28, 1992
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mendelssohn: Concerto pour violon, Op. 64 - Tchaikovsky: Concerto pour violon, Op. 35 (Mono Version)
Zino Francescatti, Dimitri Mitropoulos, New York Philharmonic
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on Jan. 1, 1956
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Concert de sonates (Aix, 1951)
Chamber Music - Released by INA Mémoire vive on Sep. 28, 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms, Bach, Ben-Haim & Others: Works for Violin (Live)
Zino Francescatti, Eugenio Bagnoli
Classical - Released by Orfeo on Aug. 7, 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Violin Sonatas 2, 6 & 8 (Remastered)
Classical - Released by Sony Classical on Mar. 1, 2019
24-Bit 192.0 kHz - Stereo -
Paganini: Concerto pour violon No. 1, Op. 6 - Saint-Saëns: Concerto pour violon No. 3, Op. 61 (Mono Version)
Zino Francescatti, Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on Jan. 1, 1950
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Violin Sonatas Nos. 7 & 10 (Remastered)
Classical - Released by Sony Classical on Mar. 1, 2019
24-Bit 192.0 kHz - Stereo -
Paganini: 5 Caprices (Arranged for Violin and Piano by Mario Pilati, Mono Version)
Zino Francescatti, Artur Balsam
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on Jan. 1, 1958
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Double concerto pour violon et violoncelle, Op. 102 & Variations sur un thème de Haydn, Op. 56a (Mono Version)
Zino Francescatti, Pierre Fournier, Bruno Walter
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on Jan. 1, 1960
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Bruch: Concerto No. 1 in G Minor - Beethoven: Violin Romances - Saint-Saens: Violin Concertos
Classical - Released by Sony Classical on Apr. 22, 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Art of Zino Francescatti
Classical - Released by Andromeda on Sep. 17, 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Paganini, Kreisler & Others: Works for Violin & Piano
Zino Francescatti, Max Lanner, Artur Balsam
Chamber Music - Released by Biddulph Recordings on Nov. 27, 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mitropoulos, Francescatti and Casadesus in Concert
New York Philharmonic, Dimitri Mitropoulos, Robert Casadesus, Zino Francescatti
Classical - Released by Archipel on May 27, 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 36 - Brahms: Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 77 (Live)
Wiener Philharmonic Orchestra, Zino Francescatti, Dimitri Mitropoulos
Classical - Released by Orfeo on Jan. 1, 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Violin Sonatas 7 & 8 (Remastered)
Classical - Released by Sony Classical on Mar. 1, 2019
24-Bit 192.0 kHz - Stereo -
Tchaikovsky, P.I.: Violin Concerto / Bruch, M.: Violin Concerto No. 1 / Saint-Saens: Violin Concerto No. 3 (Francescatti) (1943, 1945, 1951)
Classical - Released by Music and Arts Programs of America on Jan. 1, 1990
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Violin Sonatas Nos. 3 & 4 (Remastered)
Classical - Released by Sony Classical on Mar. 1, 2019
24-Bit 192.0 kHz - Stereo