Viktoria Mullova Essentials

When it comes to spinning out gorgeous lines from the Four Seasons, this Russian violinist can compete with any virtuoso on the Vivaldi circuit. But Mullova also has an exquisite ear for the music of 20th-century composers like Stravinsky and Shostakovich; her sometimes-dry attack allows her to bring out the rhythmic abandon of a modern-repertoire piece. Given this range, she's created sublime partnerships with conductors as divergent as André Previn and Esa-Pekka Salonen. And she has a taste for popular styles, too, occasionally performing works by Antônio Carlos Jobim.