Prokofiev: Piano Concertos Nos.4 & 5, Symphonies Nos.4, 6 & 7

This major release launches the Mariinsky label's projects to honor the 125th anniversary of Prokofiev's birth. A long-time champion of the music of Prokofiev, Valery Gergiev conducts Symphonies Nos. 4, 6 & 7, performed masterfully by the Mariinsky Orchestra and coupled with Piano Concertos Nos. 4 & 5. Prokofiev began his Symphony No. 4 in 1929, drawing from the musical material of his ballet The Prodigal Son. The Symphony was premiered the following year, though he substantially revised the work seventeen years later. Acclaimed for his highly sensitive touch and technical brilliance, Alexei Volodin performs Prokofiev Piano Concerto No. 4. Written for the one-armed pianist Paul Wittgenstein, the concerto was completed in 1931. It was the only one of Prokofiev's piano works that never saw a performance during his lifetime.