Alfredo Campoli
This revered violinist was remarkable for the exquisite tone he drew from his Stradivarius (the Dragonetti, dated 1700), as well as his comprehensive musicianship. His interests embraced works from the Classical period through compositions written by the composers of his own time. His collaborations with the best conductors were always of a special order: two great artists meeting for the full realization of works they both valued. Campoli was born to a father who taught violin at Rome's Accademia Santa Cecilia and a mother who had retired from a career of concert and operatic performance. At the age of five, Alfredo began his musical studies with his father. Several years later, after the family had moved to London, the child was heard in a series of concerts given for English forces at YMCA facilities. At the age of 13, Campoli began entering competitions, eventually winning seven first prizes, a silver cup, and two gold medals. One of these was presented to him by Princess Mary at the 1919 London Music Festival after a performance of Mendelssohn's violin concerto. Campoli's professional debut came with a recital at London's Wigmore Hall. In the aftermath of his success there, offers came from all regions of the country for both recital engagements and solo appearances with England's premiere orchestras. Given the depressed state of the British economy, Campoli pursued a career in light music during the 1930s, gaining celebrity for his radio broadcasts with his Salon Orchestra. Smaller settings, afforded him by his Welbeck Light Quartet and his trio, also heightened his popularity with the public. At the same time, Campoli maintained a schedule of performances, if a less arduous one, devoted to serious music. With Sir Henry Wood, he appeared at a 1938 Promenade Concert. Prior to the beginning of WWII, Campoli disbanded his Salon ensemble and stood ready to provide concerts for British forces. Initially, Campoli's Italian citizenship stood in the way of his broadcasting, but eventually that obstacle was cleared. In any event, it did not interfere with the innumerable concerts the violinist gave for troops in hospitals and army camps and for British workers keeping up the war effort in the nation's factories. Upon the conclusion of hostilities, Campoli resumed his career, concentrating on serious music and making extended tours of Europe, Southeast Asia, New Zealand, and Australia. Appearing once more on regular BBC programs, he eventually amassed a total of more than 1,000 broadcasts. Recordings for British Columbia and HMV also added to Campoli's expanding audience. Campoli's American debut came as a soloist with the New York Philharmonic on December 5, 1953, when he performed Lalo's Symphonie espagnole under conductor George Szell. Later, the violinist undertook several American tours. In 1956, he toured the Soviet Union as part of a troop of British artists (the first since WWII) and was subsequently invited to return to perform in orchestral concerts. Campoli's recorded artistry maintains as persuasive a hold on the imagination as it did in concert. However sensuous, the beautifully sculpted tone never cloys. The violinist's grace and ease prompted from certain conductors (Boult, for example) a less-confined, less emotionally restricted performance. Campoli's ability to invest a full measure of life into his work while never letting his tone slip out of focus is uncanny. Several discs on the Beulah label reissue incomparable Decca performances.
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España
Alfredo Campoli, London Symphony Orchestra, Ataulfo Argenta
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1 Jan 1995
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Campoli: The Bel Canto Violin, VI (Bach, Brahms, Mozart...)
Alfredo Campoli, Daphne Ibbott, Norihiko Wada
Duets - Released by Universal Music Australia Pty. Ltd. on 1 Jan 1972
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Art of George Szell, Vol. 2 (Edouard Lalo - Johannes Brahms - Carl Maria von Weber)
Alfredo Campoli, Clifford Curzon, The Cleveland Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, George Szell
Classical - Released by West Hill Radio Archives on 4 Oct 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Violin Concerto, Op. 61 (Mono Version)
Alfredo Campoli, London Symphony Orchestra, Josef Krips
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1958
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Campoli: The Bel Canto Violin, III (Violin encores)
Alfredo Campoli, George Malcolm, Eric Gritton
Chamber Music - Released by Universal Music Australia Pty. Ltd. on 1 Jan 1953
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto; Bruch: Scottish Fantasy (Adrian Boult – The Decca Legacy III, Vol. 6)
Alfredo Campoli, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Adrian Boult
Classical - Released by Universal Music Australia Pty. Ltd. on 1 Jan 1959
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Campoli: The Bel Canto Violin, I (Bach, Tartini, Handel)
Alfredo Campoli, George Malcolm
Duets - Released by Universal Music Australia Pty. Ltd. on 1 Jan 1951
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Campoli: The Bel Canto Violin, IV (Lalo, St-Saëns, Sarasate...)
Alfredo Campoli, Eduard van Beinum, Piero Gamba, Anatole Fistoulari, Ataulfo Argenta
Violin Concertos - Released by Universal Music Australia Pty. Ltd. on 1 Jan 1953
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Handel: Six Violin Sonatas, Op. 1 by Alfredo Campoli
Alfredo Campoli, George Malcom
Classical - Released by Alexandre Bak - Classical Music Reference Recording on 8 May 2023
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Campoli: The Bel Canto Violin, V (Elgar, Bruch, Bliss)
Alfredo Campoli, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Adrian Boult, Arthur Bliss
Violin Concertos - Released by Universal Music Australia Pty. Ltd. on 1 Jan 1955
Gramophone Editor's Choice16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ludwig van Beethoven - Violin Concerto in D Major, Op.61 · Romance for Violin No.1 in G Major, Op. 40 · Romance for Violin No.2 in F Major, Op.50
Alfredo Campoli, Max Rostal, Sir John Pritchard, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Classical - Released by G.O.P. on 15 Apr 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Violin Concerto
Alfredo Campoli, London Symphony Orchestra, Josef Krips
Classical - Released by Universal Music Australia Pty. Ltd. on 1 Jan 1952
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Campoli : The Bel Canto Violin II (Bruch, Beethoven...)
Alfredo Campoli, Eduard van Beinum, Royalton Kisch, Josef Krips, Sir Adrian Boult
Classical - Released by Universal Music Australia Pty. Ltd. on 1 Jan 1950
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Elgar: Violin Concerto (Adrian Boult – The Decca Legacy I, Vol. 2)
Alfredo Campoli, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Adrian Boult
Classical - Released by Universal Music Australia Pty. Ltd. on 1 Jan 1955
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Saint-Saëns: Introduction & Rondo Capriccioso, Op. 28 - Havanaise, Op. 83
Alfredo Campoli, Anatole Fistoulari, London Symphony Orchestra
Classical - Released by Infinity on 6 Aug 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Lalo, Sibelius & Stravinsky: Orchestral Works
Eduard van Beinum, Alfredo Campoli, Concertgebouworkest, London Philharmonic Orchestra
Classical - Released by Urania Records on 7 Jan 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64
Alfredo Campoli, London Philharmonic Orchestra
Classical - Released by Past Classics on 13 Oct 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Handel: Sonates pour violon et clavecin (Mono Version)
Alfredo Campoli, George Malcolm
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1954
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
The Art Of Campoli
Classical - Released by Editions Audiovisuel Beulah on 1 Jun 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tippett & Bliss: Symphony No. 2 - March: Welcome the Queen - Ballet for Children - Checkmate (Excerpts) - Theme and Cadenza for Violin and Orchestra - Overture: Edinburgh
Alfredo Campoli, Sir Adrian Boult, Arthur Bliss, BBC Symphony Orchestra, The BBC Concert Orchestra
Classical - Released by Infinity on 19 May 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Elgar: Violin Concerto, 'In the South'
London Philharmonic Orchestra / Sir Adrian Boult, Alfredo Campoli
Classical - Released by Regis Records on 9 Apr 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo