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| Teldec (Full price) (CD) 9031-73257-2 (two discs: 123 minutes: DDD). |
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| No. 1 in D flat, Op. 10; No. 2 in G minor, Op. 16; No. 3 in C, Op. 26; No. 4 in B flat, Op. 53; No. 5 in G minor, Op. 55. |
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| Comparative versions—coupled as above: |
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| Beroff, Leipzig Gewandhaus, Masur (7/89) CMS7 62542-2 |
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| Ashkenazy, LSO, Previn (3/90) 425 570-2DM2 |
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| Paik, Polish Nat RSO, Wit (11/92) 8 550566 |
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Vladimir Krainev is a thoroughbred from the famous Neuhaus stable. Far too little heard of in the West, he reminds us, if anyone needed reminding, how sheerly exciting these concertos can be in the hands of a virtuoso on top form. Here are the dash and flamboyance, the spacious and rhythmic grasp, the balletic poise and acrobatic daredevilry which announce a born Prokofiev player.
Only in the Third Concerto, far and away the most popular of the five, does Krainev succumb to the temptations of smash-and-grab overstatement—perhaps he has played the piece too often, or maybe he was conscious of the plethora of fine rival recordings. In this case the first movement pushes forward in a crude, attention-grabbing manner, the second is laboured in places (and his best friend should have told him about the mis-learned chords at 3'22" and 3'26", after fig. 65), and the finale is again rather roughly handled. Not that pussy-footing is what Prokofiev needs, but here the impression is of a foreground-only portrait of the music.
The finest performances, I feel, are of the First, Fourth and Fifth Concertos, all of which have a splendid cut and thrust. Krainev revels in their extravagance and physicality, and he is backed up by beautifully prepared, sensitive orchestral playing. The massive Second Concerto is also fine, though here I was bothered by a recorded balance which tends to swallow up important woodwind solo lines in a generalized warmth of ambience (elsewhere, for the most part, this warmth is a definite advantage).
This set is distinctly superior to that of Kun Woo Paik and his Polish partners (still a good super-bargain price option on Naxos) and it can hold its own beside Beroff and Masur on mid-price EMI. But all its achievements are surpassed, its few flaws avoided, and even its greatest virtues surpassed by Ashkenazy and Previn, whose mid-price Decca set remains an indispensable classic of our times.
DJF