Violinist Sayaka Shoji, who has performed around the world, released a recording of concertos by Beethoven and Sibelius on Sept. 26.
Shoji is accompanied on the CD, which is being released by Deutsche Grammophon, by Russia's prestigious St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Yuri Temirkanov.
The performance was recorded last year in St. Petersburg.
"I was asked about who would be a good partner for a Beethoven recording, and naturally I thought of Temirkanov," Shoji said.
Shoji has a long history of performing with the maestro, who turns 80 this year.
They started to interact soon after Shoji, at just 16 years old, became the youngest violinist to win the International Violin Competition Premio Paganini.
"He was a difficult person to converse with, but after a performance, in the dressing room I asked him, 'What did you think?' and he started teaching me all kinds of things," she said.
Their conversations are not only about performing, but also his friendship with composer Sergei Prokofiev, the poems of Pushkin, history and other topics.
Shoji said the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, where Temirkanov is artistic director, "has become like a family to me as we've spent time together over the years."
The latest Beethoven recording was "a challenge that feels like a major milestone," she said.
Shoji spent five years recording all of Beethoven's sonatas, an undertaking she completed in 2014.
"It was a compilation. In each sonata, each movement, I was able to see different sides of Beethoven," she said.
Temirkanov's conducting "can be like theater or a drama, like Shakespeare's plays," she said.
For example, in the middle part of the first movement "something invisible, like the madness of King Lear, feels like a visible lunacy that travels up the spine."
The solo cadenza usually carries many echoes from performers of the past. Shoji, nevertheless, makes the music her own.
The Sibelius concertos are played with a crisp and articulated timbre that evokes the atmosphere of Finland, the composer's homeland.
Shoji has visited Finland several times. "The rhythm and intonation of the language is connected to Sibelius' music. I understand the differences with traditional European art," she said.
The result is a Sibelius that feels not only transparent, but brimming with indigenous vitality. She said she placed importance on the sense of rhythm in Finland's ethnic music.
"Every time, I treasure the opportunity to make something new. For me, it's important not to fear change," she said.
Shoji, Temirkanov and the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra are scheduled to perform the Sibelius concertos from the latest recording on Nov. 12 at Suntory Hall in the Akasaka district of Tokyo.
Call (03) 5774-3040 for information.
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