Lera Auerbach’s ‘T’filah’ performed by violinist Christine Bernsted

Danish violinist Christine Bernsted presents her solo violin performance of T’filah (‘Prayer’) by contemporary American composer Lera Auerbach.

The single was released on 1 November 2024 on Naxos and is available digitally. The work will be included in Bernsted’s upcoming album Speak, Memory, which will contain the complete works for solo violin by Auerbach, as well as a world-premiere recording.

The album follows Bernsted’s recording of Auerbach’s 24 Preludes for violin and piano, which she recorded with pianist Ramez Mhaanna and was released in 2023.

Bernsted describes Auerbach’s compositions for solo violin as having ’a dark reality as their basic premise, which through the music is transformed and unfolded into many different moods and expressions.

’Each piece therefore has a complexity in it like a kaleidoscope, because the illusion of a certain emotion or state quickly bursts and develops in a new unpredictable direction.’

She describes the works’ unique temperament, intensity and strong drive as her motivation for recording complete solo violin works by Auerbach.

’The sense of timelessness and intensity that Lera Auerbach captures in her solo violin composition T’filah (jewish prayer) is, for me, something very special and a strong musical statement. ’Prayer’ unfolds the dark reality of the past - here embodied in sound and as a music video.’

The video was produced by Elena Belevantseva. Speak, Memory will be released on 24 January 2025.

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