Customer Reviews

Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich: Violin Concertos

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This recording features a 20-year-old prot'égé' of Itzhak Perlman, Ilya Gringolts, with the Israel Philharmonic, conducted by Perlman himself. I know that Perlman is conducting more and playing the violin less, but on the evidence of this recording I'd have to say he should have waited awhile longer to record these pieces.

Gringolts himself is a standout. But the accompaniment provided by Perlman, particularly in the Shostakovich, is much too genial, too self-effacing. There needs to be grit in the orchestral accompaniment in the Shosty and here there is none. Maybe it's partly the fault of the famously bad acoustics of the IPO's Mann Auditorium, but there have been superior recordings made in that venue.

The Tchaikovsky is better, at least partly because there is no need for 20th-century angst in the piece. And the first two movements are really quite lovely, a bit inward, an approach I happen to like. But the third movement is, how shall I say?, frenetic rather than impetuous. And again there is too little spine in Perlman's accompaniment.

There are better versions of both concertos. Mr Gringolts is young, and he'll almost certainly have a major career and therefore the opportunity to records these concerti again.

Scott Morrison

Ilya Gringolts is a fine fiddler, and since this recording was done almost 10 years ago, he probably plays them at least a little differently nowadays. But these recordings, with Itzhak Perlman conducting, are pretty boring. Perlman's lack of ability as a conductor is most certainly a factor in the failings of this disc.

The Tchaikovsky is the better of the two here; he plays the concerto's original version and does some interesting things interpretively. I was expecting a lot more though. There have been so many boring performances and recordings of this old warhorse within the past 20 years that it really is time for someone to take the audience by storm and put a new spin on it. In the first movement, the only places that Gringolts really shines are in the first section of double-stops and silvery passagework right before the first tutti, and in the final 'stringendo' section before the end. The slow central movement (which in the original version does not utilize the higher-octave) fails to move. The finale is interesting, if only because he avoids the Auer cuts. Other than that, not much. Perlman's direction of the orchestra? Well, he made sure that they didn't overpower Gringolts, and that's about it. The Shostakovich - the first movement is a sleeper. Listen to Nadja Salerno Sonnenberg or Lydia Mordkovitch and how they capture its icy coldness so wonderfully. The second movement is supposed to be an "evil, demonic" scherzo. Gringolts plays it straight, and Perlman's accompaniment lacks a single element of zest. It sounds more Israeli than it does Russian! The "Passacaglia" (third movement) - also a yawner, and Gringolts does some weird things with the tempi; he rushes like crazy at the end of the cadenza which bridges the finale.

I don't recommend it.

I was not familiar with either of these concertos, except in a general way, hearing them occasionally on the radio, before buying this disc, so I have no other performances to compare them to. As it is, I am quite satisfied with this Gringolts/Perlman disc, both as to the playing, and more particularly, the programming. The flashy, romantic Tchaikovsky concerto, comes first. It is fresh and enjoyable, and more than competently played. The moody Shostakovich fills out this 73 minute disc, giving it a depth and edge that most paired concerto discs don't have. Again, the playing and the conducting seem fine to me. The recording could be a little better, but I doubt that I'll be cruising the net or flipping through bins to find the 'ultimate' performances of either work. I can listen to these quite happily for a while. And as I see used discs are available at a bargain price, I'd say go for it. You probably won't be disappointed.