Perlman's mastery of the violin is amazing. I prefer his performances to my long-time favorites. But, while I love his performance of each of the pieces individually, the real power of the CD or video for me is knowing that all of the pieces were all performed in a single concert. Hearing (or seeing) his brilliance in performing piece after piece is awe-inspiring. I am always moved to give him a standing ovation after the Bazzini piece that ends the concert. Recently, I listened to the CD with my eight year old son (who never claps for anything). At the end of the CD, even my son was moved to spontaneous applause.
Don't miss this one.
Musically, it's sensational. The Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto provides a generous showcase for Mr. Perlman's powers. IMHO it is a bit long, but that's all the more music to enjoy, I suppose. The liner notes contain the very interesting story of how this concerto came about--a famous violinist of Tchaikovsky's day, for whom the work was composed, rejected it for being "unviolinistic"!
The rest of the program features Perlman with a pianist, minus the orchestra. Some pieces, like Wieniawski's "Etudes-Caprices" are really musical bonbons. But reducing the second movement of Tchaikovsky's first string quartet to a single violin and piano is quite a feat. Every musical offering brings down the house; at the end the crowd practically carries him off the stage. The recording is crisp, with a good sense of the hall, with Perlman rightly being given acoustic center stage. A treat!
