Khachaturian: Concerto-Rhapsody; Sonata-Monologue; Liapunov: Violin ConcertoSignum Classics **

Violinist Hideko Udagawa is a fearless if effortful adventurer. A sense of striving is a major part of the intensity she conjures up. Udagawa has temperament to spare, but her musical personality is not entirely cogent, and the sometimes wincing waywardness of her intonation is also problematic in a rarely heard repertoire that needs all the help it can get. With the violin recorded in larger-than-life perspective, the role of conductor Alan Buribayev is very much secondary. Sample a couple of minutes of Udagawa's playing of any of the three works to test your tolerance of the peculiarities of her style. url.ie/gb48