Bartok Violin Concerto No. 2

I am considering learning the Bartok Violin Concerto No. 2 for my graduate school auditions and am wondering if anyone has performed/learned this piece and if you have any advice on how to approach it? My background is mostly Suzuki. I started violin when I was 5 or 6 and just graduated from university with a degree in Music Performance on the violin. I am taking a year or so to prepare for grad school and am looking at schools in the UK where I am living and working at the moment. I have a lot of music in my repertoire but wanted a fresh start with something that fit my style. I ADORE twentieth century music and love the new and different music. A friend and I just finished tackling the Kodaly Duo and we had a lovely time learning and performing it. The only major concerto that I have worked on (besides the various Mozart) is the Bruch. I want to learn the Bartok for grad school auditions and for orchestra auditions. I really want to learn it because it is not played often and I do not want to play what everybody else is playing.

Because I started learning violin with the Suzuki method, I have obtained a recording of the concerto that I have listened to often. I have not yet started practicing it. I know this is a difficult piece, but my current teacher thinks I am entirely capable of tackling it. I guess I am posting because I would like other opinions on how to approach a massive piece like this. Does anyone else have any advice?

Bartok Violin Concerto No. 2

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