Itzhak Prokofjew

Because he's long been stereotyped by the rousing neo-romantic adventure scores for the Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Jurassic Park franchises, it's easy to forget that composer John Williams is hardly idiomatically challenged. When Steven Spielberg gratifyingly used the clout of his enormous commercial success to produce and direct this brave Holocaust drama, his longtime musical collaborator used the opportunity to display both the depth and maturity of his musical gifts and training, producing a score with sad, evocative melodies frequently carried by the violin of the great Itzhak Perlman. Rich with ethnic nuance and showcasing the composer's masterful orchestral/choral subtlety, Williams's emotionally compelling score for Schindler's List also won the Academy Award for Best Dramatic Score.

In his introductory note to this CD, Itzhak Perlman informs us that, more than anything else he has recorded, this is truly his own music–"what you might hear if you came to my house and I decided to jam with some friends." And jam he does–with some very talented friends indeed. Klezmer music, which combines the folk and religious music of Yiddish-speaking cultures with various musical traditions of countries such as Russia, Turkey, and Greece, is unusual territory for a major label and a superstar artist, but here the combination works perfectly.

Originally released in the 1980s as separate albums, Itzhak Perlman's recordings of Mozart's violin sonatas were reissued in this box set in 1991 as a special collector's edition. In these sonatas for keyboard and violin, the piano dominates as the violin often tags along in unison with the piano's melody, rarely departing from it except in an ornamental capacity. Even so, Perlman brings his customary good humor and energy to these pieces, and through his vibrant and spirited playing makes the violin's obbligato more or less equal to the pianist's elaborate part.

Ludwig van Beethoven is a fixture in the career of the pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim: “Beethoven’s music is universal, no matter where you are in the world – it speaks to all people.” Before his thirtieth birthday, Barenboim had made legendary recordings of all of Beethoven’s piano sonatas and concertos. That said, he has also not shied away from the composer’s less frequently played works, those less liked by audiences and critics alike; on the contrary, he has approached them with great passion.

Fans of great violin playing naturally will want to hear this outstanding sampling of the art of the young Itzhak Perlman, most of which has never been released on CD. The violinist blasts through Paganini's Caprices Nos. 1, 16, and (of course) 24 with scrupulous technique and a total lack of inhibition. In the remaining works he's well partnered by pianist David Garvey, best known for his work with soprano Leontyne Price.

Saint-Saëns's reputation rests on a few popular works–Danse Macabre, Symphony No. 3, The Carnival of the Animals–but his output was far more vast and varied than most people realize. The Third Violin Concerto is one of the great Romantic masterpieces for the instrument, yet it's much less popular than it once was. Whatever the reasons, they certainly aren't Itzhak Perlman's fault, for he simply plays the daylights out of both this piece and Lalo's ever popular Symphonie espagnole. I'm always amazed, when listening to the Saint-Saëns composition, just how well-written it is, and how good it always sounds. Perhaps his level of sheer craftsmanship was so high that people lose sight of the music's genuine inspiration.

To most, the names of the composers on this disc will be unfamiliar, but students of the violin will either smile or shudder in recognition. These men were violin pedagogues: some, such as Giovanni Battista Viotti and Charles August de Bériot, were historically important theorizers on the art of fiddle playing, but all of them wrote didactic concerti for the advanced beginner or intermediate student, little pieces that have been sawed away at by grade school age prodigies for a century and a half.

Perlman and Zuckerman are great violinists. Their rendition of the Mozart Sinfonia Concertante for Violin and Orchestra is magnificent. The Allegro Maestoso first movement is delightful and lively. The rest of the slower movements are graceful and charming. If you are a fan of Mozart, you will love this cd. Not like the Violin Concertos because the Concertante is more of a lighter and less "complex " work, but still a masterpiece. It is garuanteed to be of your liking.