Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64 (with works by Mozart, Schubert & MacMillan)

This album includes a new piece by the Scottish composer and conductor James MacMillan, entitled From Ayrshire. "His ear for orchestration is incredible", Benedetti says, "but he's actually writing for the violin, and the different effects that you can create on the violin. "It all works and feels very natural to do, but it's not like anything else I have done." After MacMillan was approached to write a piece, she expected an answer "maybe in five years' time". But, to her astonishment, he immediately said yes. The first, more lyrical, section of the piece is inspired by a Burns song, Ca' the Yowes to the Knowes. The second part is more like a reel.