Symphony-Concerto (Prokofiev)


's Symphony-Concerto in E minor, Op. 125 is a large-scale work for cello and orchestra. Prokofiev dedicated it to Mstislav Rostropovich, who premiered it on February 18, 1952 with Sviatoslav Richter conducting. After this first performance, it was revised and given its current title. It is itself a revised version of his earlier Cello Concerto, Op. 58, written in 1933–1938.
The work was written and revised mostly in 1950 and 1951, a period when Prokofiev was in declining health and official disfavor for musical formalism. One of his final completed works, it is about 40 minutes long in three movements:
  1. Andante
  2. Allegro
  3. Andante con moto – Allegretto – Allegro marcato
For a long time, the Symphony-Concerto was considered unplayable. Even though many cellists today are now able to play it, it still remains a formidable challenge for any cellist.
This work inspired Dmitri Shostakovich to write his Cello Concerto No. 1, also dedicated to Rostropovich.

History

The premiere of Prokofiev's Cello Concerto was generally thought to have been very poorly interpreted by the cellist, though the blame fell on Prokofiev for writing a "soul-less" concerto. The concerto was seldom played afterwards, until Prokofiev heard Rostropovich play it at a 1947 concert at the Moscow Conservatory. The performance reawakened Prokofiev's interest in the cello, and he rewrote his concerto to create the Symphony-Concerto. Also dating from this period are his cello sonata of 1949, and an unfinished concertino for cello and orchestra, later completed by Rostropovich and orchestrated by Kabalevsky.

Recordings

Cello Concerto in E Minor, Op.58
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CellistOrchestraConductorRecord CompanyYear of RecordingFormat
Roger AlbinOrchestre des Cento SoliRudolf AlbertClub Français du Disque1960LP
Christine WalevskaOrchestre National de Monte-CarloEliahu InbalPhilips1973LP
János StarkerPhilharmoniaWalter SüsskindEMI Classics1995 CD
Alexander IvashkinRussian State Symphony OrchestraValeri PolyanskyChandos Records2003CD
Alban GerhardtBergen Philharmonic OrchestraAndrew LittonHyperion Records2008CD
Steven IsserlisFrankfurt Radio Symphony OrchestraPaavo JärviHyperion Records2013CD

Note that cellist/composer/conductor Roger Albin was the first to record the complete, uncut original score.
Symphony-Concerto, Op.125
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CellistOrchestraConductorRecord CompanyYear of RecordingFormat
Mstislav RostropovichStaatliche Philharmonie LeningradKurt SanderlingIntense Media Records1957CD
Mstislav RostropovichRoyal Philharmonic OrchestraSir Malcolm SargentEMI1957CD
Samuel MayesBoston Symphony OrchestraErich LeinsdorfRCA Victor1964LP
Mstislav RostropovichUSSR State Symphony OrchestraGennady RozhdestvenskyRussian Revelation1964CD
Raphael WallfischScottish National OrchestraNeeme JärviChandos Records1986CD
Mstislav RostropovichLondon Symphony OrchestraSeiji OzawaWarner Bros. Records1987CD
Yo-Yo MaPittsburgh Symphony OrchestraLorin MaazelSony Classical Records1991CD
Lynn HarrellRoyal Philharmonic OrchestraVladimir AshkenazyDecca Records1994CD
Mischa MaiskyRussian National OrchestraMikhail PletnevDeutsche Grammophon1995CD
Alexander RudinUkrainian National Symphony OrchestraTheodore KucharNaxos Records1995CD
Truls MørkCity of Birmingham Symphony OrchestraPaavo JärviVirgin Records1998CD
Han-na ChangLondon Symphony OrchestraAntonio PappanoEMI Classics2002CD
Lynn HarrellRoyal Liverpool Philharmonic OrchestraGerard SchwarzChandos Records2005CD
Alban GerhardtBergen Philharmonic OrchestraAndrew LittonHyperion Records2008CD
Gautier CapuçonMariinsky Theatre OrchestraValery GergievErato2010CD
Wolfgang Emanuel SchmidtNDR RadiophilharmonieGabriel FeltzSony2015CD
Bruno PhilippeHessian Radio Orchestra FrankfurtChristoph EschenbachHarmonia Mundi2019CD