Violinist , in his notes to this release, states that violinists have long wished that composer/virtuoso had written a concerto. It turns out that he sketched one, which has been assembled from various sketches by musicologist , and here receives its world premiere. There is also a , listed as "orchestrated by " (it is not quite clear what the original form of this work was). A good deal of musicological labor went into this album, from coordinating the sketches of the to editing and reproducing the letters sent to , the dedicatee of the and the composer's mistress at the time. What propelled the album onto classical best-seller charts in 2024, though, was not musicological thoroughness but the chance to hear new music by , a composer whose popularity has been increasing ever since it once again became permissible to enjoy the pleasures of virtuosity. The violin concerto is not quite in a league with the unaccompanied sonatas from later in 's career (these are both early works), but especially in the finale, one can hear him developing the language of those, and it is quite a ride. is a fine exponent of the Belgian style who has played before, and he is an expert in the kind of brilliant clarity the music demands. He gets strong support from the under conductor and from pianist in the small pieces that round out the album. Anyone who likes should hear this newly reconstructed music. ~ James Manheim