In the liner notes for some violin recital discs, we can read about the vintage of the instrument being played. On Linda Brava s debut disc for EMI, we get to read about some of the violinist s turn-ons: skiing, scuba diving, acting, and car racing. A true Renaissance woman, she has graced the pages of Playboy and appeared on TV s Baywatch, and she owns an apple cider company (which, we re told, is a top-seller in her native Finland). She also plays the violin. Sadly, her performance isn t nearly as spotless as her complexion. Joined by pianist John Lenehan, Brava performs a mixed bag of compositions--short pieces from Elgar, Faur?, Paganini, and Sibelius, to name a few. The trait these performances share is that they re played uncommonly slowly and unremarkably. She performs a passable version of Faur? s Berceuse pour violin, but on Sibelius s Rondino she sounds absolutely stiff and erratic; Ave Maria highlights Brava s poor intonation. It s a good thing she has so many other assets to fall back upon. --Jason Verlinde
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