Sergei PROKOFIEV (1891-1953)
Violin Concerto No. 1 in D major, Op.19 [22:08]
Violin Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op.63 [27:10]
Sayaka Shoji (violin)
St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra/Yuri Temirkanov
rec. 25-26 September 2012, D.D. Shostakovich St. Petersburg Academic Philharmonia, Grand Hall
DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON 0580370 [49:21]
Following on from her thrilling recording of the Shostakovich
Violin Concertos in 2012 on the French Mirare Label, Sayaka Shoji
now turns her attention to that other great Russian composer,
Sergei Prokofiev.
Born in Japan, Shoji spent her childhood in Siena, Italy. She
studied at the Hochschule für Musik in Cologne. Her teachers
have included big names, such as Shlomo Mintz and Uto Ughi. In
1999, she became the first Japanese and youngest winner of the
Paganini Competition in Genoa. A year later she made her debut
CD with the Israel Philharmonic under Zubin Mehta playing, amongst
other things, the Paganini First Violin Concerto. Since then she
has amassed a pretty fine discography on DG and Mirare, including
Bach and Reger, the Mendelssohn and Tchaikovsky Concertos and
Prokofiev’s Violin Sonatas with Itamar Golan, one of her
regular partners. The recording here is her first recording collaboration
with the Russian conductor Yuri Temirkanov who, we are told, is
her mentor and supporter.
Prokofiev’s First Concerto started life as a ‘concertino’
in 1915, and was then put on hold for completion of his opera
‘The Gambler’. It was finally completed in 1917 for
the Polish violinist Paul Kochanski who had advised the composer
on technical matters. It is set in the traditional three movement
plan with, unusually, the fast movement being in the middle. However,
historical events intervened and the Bolshevik Revolution delayed
the premiere until 1923. This was given by the violinist Marcel
Darieux, leader of the Paris Opera Orchestra, in a concert under
Serge Koussevitsky. The concerto was later championed by Josef
Szigeti and subsequently by David Oistrakh.
His second concerto in G minor, again in three movements, was
composed in 1935. It was the result of a commission by the French
violinist Robert Soetens, who gave the first performance of the
work in Madrid in December of that year. Heifetz later took this
work into his repertoire and made it popular.
The beautiful theme which begins the opening movement of the First
Concerto, sets the scene for what is to follow. This is a spacious
reading, nicely paced and with a youthful freshness and spontaneity.
Shoji’s Recamier Strad of 1729 has a full rich tone, and
her technical brilliance enables her to negotiate the many difficulties
which confront the performer along the way. Her vibrato allows
her a kaleidoscopic range of colour - a prerequisite for a score
of this kind, with its myriad shadings. She possesses a tonal
opulence well-suited to a canvas such as this. Temirkanov is,
all the while, a sympathetic partner. Each subsequent listening
emphasized the feeling that the music was being created on the
wing. The Scherzo is energetic and extrovert. It is well-articulated,
spiky, quixotic and mercurial. There is an infectious wit and
verve about this and the violinist displays both fantasy and imagination.
The finale is rhapsodic and passionate, with double-stops distinguished
by immaculate intonation.
The Second Concerto is cast in a more romantic mould. It is darker,
and melancholy, a sense of yearning and pathos imbue the score.
Orchestrally it is more sparsely textured than Op. 19. The violin
enters with a plaintive melody which Shoji etches with true Russian
flavour. There’s a haunting quality to the whole proceedings.
The ‘big tune’ is expressive, eloquent and ravishing
in its intensity. The Andante is taken at a comfortable tempo,
with Temirkanov and the St. Petersburg players sustaining a buoyant
accompaniment to Shoji’s narrative. The third movement is
jaunty, with double-stops that bristle with excitement. The castanets,
which augment the percussion, ring out in a vivid display. The
work is a masterstroke of scoring.
These are two electrifying performances in stunning sound quality.
The DG engineers have worked wonders with the warm ambience of
the acoustic of the St. Petersburg Grand Hall. Balance between
soloist and orchestra is ideal. Orchestral detail emerges with
clarity and definition. These are well-argued performances which
set the bar high. I wouldn’t hesitate to place them alongside
my favourite versions, which include Oistrakh, Perlman and Kyung-Wha
Chung. Programme notes are in Japanese only, but a profile of
the soloist, conductor and orchestra is in English.
Truly memorable performances. Pure magic.
Stephen Greenbank
Masterwork Index: Prokofiev
violin concertos
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