Prokofiev & Kabalevsky: Cello works
Leonard Elschenbroich (cello) & Alexei Grynyuk & Petr Limonov (pianos)
Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, Andrew Litton
Never has this often underestimated work [the Prokofiev Sonata] seemed more rich in incident and so eloquently expressive.
Prokofiev & Kabalevsky: Cello works
Leonard Elschenbroich (cello) & Alexei Grynyuk & Petr Limonov (pianos)
Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, Andrew Litton
Purchase product
Never has this often underestimated work [the Prokofiev Sonata] seemed more rich in incident and so eloquently expressive.
About
Leonard Elschenbroich’s debut ONYX disc of sonatas by Rachmaninov & Shostakovich was greeted with universal praise by critics worldwide. ‘Exceptional’ said the Guardian awarding it the maximum 5 stars. The Daily Telegraph also awarded it 5 stars saying ‘There is an intensely inward, deeply communicative quality to this performance that draws you right to its tragic, pensive core’.
Elschenbroich for his second ONYX release gives a blistering performance of the little known 2nd Cello Concerto of Kabalevsky with the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra under Andrew Litton. Recorded live in the Concertgebouw, it reveals this powerful concerto to be a neglected masterpiece worthy of a regular place in the repertoire. Prokofiev’s late Cello Sonata composed for Rostropovich in 1949, a difficult time for the composer. In failing health and accused by Stalin’s thuggish henchman Zhdanov of committing ‘formalist crimes’ against the Soviet people, his works were banned.
Rostropovich and Sviatoslav Richter supported Prokofiev through this nightmare, giving the premiere in early 1950.
Contents and tracklist
- Leonard Elschenbroich, Alexei Grynyuk
Awards and reviews
February 2015
Never has this often underestimated work [the Prokofiev Sonata] seemed more rich in incident and so eloquently expressive.
February 2015
a wonderfully played and atmospherically recorded CD.
3rd March 2015
Beautifully played by Elschenbroich and splendidly recorded this Onyx release is worth obtaining for his magnetic performance of Kabalevsky’s Second Cello Concerto. It's a real find.
24th November 2014
The concerto is not exactly a stranger to the catalogue, but Elschenbroich’s performance...makes a highly distinguished addition to an emotionally multifaceted work...Elschenbroich, with Andrew Litton and the Netherlands Philharmonic, captures the fluctuating moods perceptively and with striking immediacy and depth of feeling.
7th November 2014
If you only know [Kabalevsky] through his children’s pieces, you may be surprised by the weight of his 1964 Second Cello Concerto, in which Elschenbroich also finds an affecting wistfulness.
