During his student days he played with a student gypsy band called Tzigane.
Tzigane |
He also taught many female violinists such as Stefi Geyer, Bartók's first love, to whom he dedicated his first violin concerto; Jelly d'Arányi, Joachim's niece, who was successful in England and France and who collaborated on Maurice Ravel's Tzigane; and Ilona Fehér.
Casadesus is also known for having given the first recital of Ravel's "Tzigane" in the presence of the composer in Barcelona.
He rediscovered original settings of classics such as Chausson's Poème and Ravel's Tzigane and has also championed the forgotten violin concertos of G. Fauré and the concerto by English composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor.
Among the works on this CD are the Brahms D minor sonata and Ravel's Tzigane, both performed with pianist Lusine Khachatryan, his sister, as well as Chausson's Poeme and Waxman's Carmen Fantasy, both performed with pianist Vladimir Khachatryan, his father.