5 essential recordings by violinist Itzhak Perlman

 

Franck Violin Sonata; Brahms Horn Trio

Itzhak Perlman (violin) Vladimir Ashkenazy (piano) Barry Tuckwell (French horn)

Decca 475 8246

A classic coupling whose seamless amalgam of virtuoso flair and expressive warmth still finds all comers wanting after nearly half-a-century. Perlman’s tonal refulgence and Ashkenazy’s peerless command prove a match made in heaven, especially in the Brahms in which the million-dollar horn trio set the sparks flying.

Encores

Itzhak Perlman (violin) Samuel Sanders (piano)

Warner Classics 350 8792 (two discs)

At a time when attractive miniatures in the Romantic virtuoso tradition had been effectively side-lined by the latest avant-garde sensations, Perlman and Samuel Sanders emerged triumphant with an unprecedented series of encore albums that combined the technical wizardry of Heifetz with Kreisler’s charismatic opulence.

Mozart Sinfonia concertante; Concertone

Itzhak Perlman (violin) Pinchas Zukerman (viola/violin) Israel PO/Zubin Mehta

Deutsche Grammophon 476 1651

On paper it is difficult to imagine a casting much more inauthentic in Mozart than the above line-up, yet unshackled by concerns of historical appropriateness and fired up by the Sinfonia concertante’s powerful emotional narrative (in particular), the sense of occasional generated by these live recordings proves irresistible in practice.

Goldmark Violin Concerto; Sinding Suite; Korngold Violin Concerto

Itzhak Perlman (violin) Pittsburgh SO/André Previn

Warner Classics 509 6762

Perlman enters hallowed Milstein and Heifetz territory with a winning combination of swaggering bravado and irresistible charm that if anything surpasses his legendary predecessors. Few of his recordings demonstrate so captivatingly his ability to take music of the perceived lower divisions and make it sound utterly cherishable.

Bruch Violin Concertos nos.1 & 2; Mendelssohn Violin Concerto in E minor

Itzhak Perlman (violin) LSO/André Previn; NPO/Jesús López-Cobos

Warner Classics 433 2922

Combining a Stern-like emotional imperativeness with an ease and naturalness reminiscent of Michael Rabin (another Galamian protégé), Perlman plays the two warhorses with striking freshness and spontaneity and in the neglected Bruch Second Concerto phrases with a musical incandescence rarely captured on disc.

Photo: Lisa Marie Mazzucco / Sony Music

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