Quatuor Danel, internationally celebrated for their interpretations of Shostakovich and Weinberg, present Sergei Prokofiev's rarely heard string quartets in a stunning new recording. Prokofiev composed only two quartets, yet these works reveal his genius in crafting masterpieces within a genre he rarely explored. The String Quartet No. 1 in B minor, Op. 50, was commissioned by the Library of Congress during Prokofiev's American tour in 1930. It's intricate textures and unconventional form, culminating in a poignant slow finale, showcase Prokofiev's unique voice and meticulous attention to detail. String Quartet No. 2 in F Major, Op. 92, composed during Prokofiev's wartime exile in the Caucasus, integrates Kabardinian folk themes into a vibrant, classical framework. It's lively dances and evocative melodies demonstrate his ability to merge folklore with sophisticated artistry. Completing the album is the Visions Fugitives, a series of fleeting miniatures originally written for piano and arranged for string quartet. This adaptation highlights Prokofiev's kaleidoscopic tonal palette and lyrical depth. Recorded in the Mendelssohn Hall of Leipzig's Gewandhaus in March 2024, this album offers a deeply immersive journey into Prokofiev's "closed world" - a magical blend of drama, intimacy, and innovation that defines his chamber music legacy.

On 16 December 1932, Triton, a Parisian society devoted to the performance of new chamber music, was officially launched. Triton's members included Honegger, Milhaud, Poulenc and Prokofiev, whose Sonata for Two Violins, Op. 56 was given it's Western premiere at the society's inaugural concert.

Sergiu Celibidache conducts the Orchestra Sinfonica di Torino della RAI in works by Prokofiev and Strauss in this rare footage recorded for TV in 1970.

"The ''refreshing lyrical innocence'' which EG complained was missing at the opening of the Bernstein CBS performance is certainly caught by Slatkin who secures excellent, responsive playing from the St Louis orchestra. The reading is direct, not without its volatile moments, but essentially more conventional, less imaginative than Bernstein's. As EG noted, Bernstein is marvellously persuasive in holding concentration, building tense climaxes. The climax of the slow movement on the RCA disc is aided by the wide dynamic range and sense of spectacle of the splendid recording, but Bernstein creates much greater tension in the playing itself, as is immediately noticeable in the sense of ecstasy in the upper things soon after the movement's opening and in the closing section where the affinity with Romeo and Juliet is strong. similarly in the lyrically flowing string theme of the middle part of the Scherzo the rhythmic feeling is quirkier with Bernstein to match the bluff humuor of his finale.

Comparisons with the Karajan and Previn versions are pointless in the present context as neither is scheduled for Cd issue at present. The plus point for the RCA issue is the unaffected commitment of the over-all conception, with the finale engagingly high spirited to draw a parallel with the Classical Symphony alongside the famous ballet. The RCA recording too is first rate, naturally balanced within a convincing concert hall ambience. I did not find the weighty bass on the CBS compact Disc so oppressive as EG and certainly the Israel quality does not lack body and sharpness of focus, but detail is less natural and there is a touch of microphone-coloured glossiness on the violins..."

-- Ivan March, Gramophone [4/1985]

PROKOFIEV: PIANO SONATAS NOS 2

Classical Music

2009 2X CD remaster. Enchanting, full of pathos and with it's serpentine waltzes & nightmarishly urgent clock sometimes unnerving, Prokofiev's Cinderella conjures up the enticing, ambiguous world of fairy tales. First performed in Moscow in 19745, the ballet was an immediate triumph. The debut of Raymonda, set at the time of the Crusades, took place nearly 50 years earlier in St. Petersburg. Glazunov's colorful score incorporates elements from Hungary, Spain and the Middle East.

"Tetra works wonders with four 'standard' instruments. The oneness of their attack (the guitar is a percussive instrument) and variation of nuance speaks of countless hours of rehearsal—by players of first-rate technical control and sensitive musicianship. . . . All this would be futile in a programme of 'borrowed' music if the arrangements were not of comparable quality which they are. Put the original forms of this music out of your mind, eschew comparisons and enjoy it in its new dress. . . . The quality of the recording per se is superb, as we have come to expect of John Taylor, who has happily married his talents as an excellent guitarist and the possessor of a degree in physics. . . . [B]uy and enjoy this fine issue." -- John Duarte, Gramophone

The Graffman/Szell recordings of Prokofiev's First and Third Piano Concertos gained "classic" status almost from their original release, and they still hold up very well. While the First Concerto may not have quite the glittering edge that Martha Argerich brings to it, there is certainly no want of virtuosity on Graffman's part, and it practically goes without saying that Szell and Cleveland are terrific. They are particularly wonderful in the Third Concerto's central variations, whose dry wit seems tailor-made for these performers. The two sonatas are equally impressive, with Graffman's unfailingly intelligent shaping of the Second Sonata's big opening movement and his romp through the single-movement Third Sonata obstinately memorable. The sonics have dated a bit in the four decades since original release, but hardly so as to distract from the interpretive excellence on hand, with the DSD remastering very sensitively accomplished.

--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

RACHMANINOV, PROKOFIEV: CELLO

...[I]n such a spirited reading [as this performance of the Prokofiev First] the parallels between the Prokofiev and the Bizet [Symphony in C] are very much highlighted: the 'classical' symphonies of Prokofiev's title—those, presumably, of Haydn and Mozart — seem comparatively remote. But for all their brilliance elsewhere the players manage to be sinuously winning enough in the Symphony's slow movement... [a performance] of the very first class.

-- Gramophone [5/1969, reviewing an LP release of the First Symphony]

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Bernstein gives a highly romantic version of the first movement... [I]t could hardly be better done... The playing throughout the whole symphony is in the highest class and the recording is of the same quality.

-- Gramophone [10/1967, reviewing the original LP release of the Fifth Symphony]

Music For You: Prokofiev — Romeo and Juliet, Op. 64 (Excerpt

del 9/95 - Sony 7/95 pop cat
Includes work(s) by Sergei Prokofiev. Ensembles: New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra. Conductors: Leonard Bernstein, Eugene Ormandy.

This is a distinguished issue and a welcome reminder of an artist of whom we have heard far too little in recent years. Fleisher's Ravel is beautifully moulded, with a fine rhythmic snap when needed, and his Prokofiev and Britten are comparably sensitive and finished. Combine that with high-class orchestral support and splendid recorded sound and you have what has to be a highly recommendable disc.

-- Gramophone [4/1993]

Bernstein's charisma is effectively demonstrated in a collection of Russian music... [P]redictably energetic...are Glinka's Ruslan and Ludmilla Overture and Glière's Russian Sailors' Dance from The Red Poppy... But the highlights are lyrical, with Bernstein suitably atmospheric in a fine account of Borodin's In the steppes of Central Asia and giving a coolly poised reading of the beautiful Prelude to Khovantschina of Mussorgsky (with glowing orchestration from Rimsky-Korsakov).

-- Gramophone [7/1985]

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...Prokofiev's Scythian Suite, which [Bernstein] does well; I have not heard all the other available recordings but I should imagine that none surpasses this one in brilliance of colour, excitement and virtuosity.


-- Gramophone [10/1969, reviewing the original LP release of the Scythian Suite]

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These very popular examples of colourful Russian music are very well played and recorded in a style to emphasise brightness, thus enabling us to hear clearly some of the inner parts that are sometimes obscured.


-- Gramophone [12/1967, reviewing the original LP release of the Glinka, Mussorgsky, and Ippolitov-Ivanov works]