When 13-year-old Himari Yoshimura took to the stage with the Berlin Philharmonic in March 2025, she became the youngest Asian soloist to appear with the orchestra in a subscription concert. A subsequent contract with Decca made her the label\u2019s youngest-ever female signing. Her debut album features that Berlin performance of Wieniawski\u2019s Violin Concerto No 1, alongside studio recordings of music by Chopin, Godowsky and Sibelius.<\/p>\n
The artwork for Himari: Debut Photograph: Naruyasu Nabeshima<\/p>\n
What is immediately apparent is the technical security of her playing, combined with an easy lyricism across the instrument\u2019s full range. The fearsome double stopping in the Wieniawski is impressive, with some supple dynamic phrasing in the upper register. Occasionally a leap to a high note comes up a hair\u2019s breadth short, something absent from the studio recordings, but this is nevertheless a significant performance. She\u2019s not entirely helped by Sebastian Weigle\u2019s smooth but staid accompaniments. It\u2019s not the greatest concerto and needs a lighter touch to give it some lift (compare Michael Rabin and Adrian Boult).<\/p>\n
The rest of the programme is safe, old-school even, including Heifetz and Milstein arrangements of Chopin Nocturnes, a suitably toothsome reading of Godowsky\u2019s Alt Wien and a lithe-limbed account of the Mazurka from Sibelius\u2019s Five Pieces for Violin and Piano. The playing exhibits depth and feeling, ably supported by pianist Chelsea Wang. The finale, Wieniawski\u2019s Fantasia on Themes from Gounod\u2019s Faust, reveals a keen instinct for musical storytelling amid the fireworks.<\/p>\n
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