Felix Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in E minor, composed over an extended period and in collaboration with it's dedicatee Ferdinand David, was an instant success at it's premiere. The concerto's glorious melodic invention and innovative character have made it one of the most beloved works in the classical canon. Dramatic in mood and troubled in it's history, Robert Schumann's Violin Concerto is regarded by soloist Albrecht Menzel as revealing the composer's inner world, from the deepest anguish to the heights of exhilaration.