Struggling with his fondness with the conventions of the Classical era, the widespread appeal of neo-Romanticism, and his desire to forge new territory, the works of
Sergey Prokofiev frequently offer a little something for everyone to enjoy. Such is certainly the case with his two violin concertos. Both works maintain the classical three-movement structure, though the first concerto discards the traditional movement order. Many of the melodies are extremely Romantic in nature only to be interrupted by extended techniques and acts of utter virtuosity. Few violinists have succeeded in capturing these rapidly changing characters as clearly as
Itzhak Perlman. This EMI album is a reissue of
Perlman's 1980 recording of the two concertos with the
BBC Symphony Orchestra under
Gennady Rozhdestvensky, a time when
Perlman was still at the height of his prowess and intensity on the violin. While this performance of the G minor Concerto lacks some of the spontaneity and vigor of the live recording with the
Chicago Symphony and
Daniel Barenboim, it more than makes up for it with increased technical precision, superior intonation, and near-seamless communication between the soloist and orchestra. The album also contains the Grammy-nominated performance of the Sonata for Two Violins, with
Perlman joined by
Pinchas Zukerman. As in the concertos, technical precision meets musical aplomb in what could easily be considered the definitive recording of this work.