Description
The piano sonata is a genre that occupied Sergei Prokofiev from the beginning of his career until its end. He was himself a virtuoso pianist, well equipped to understand the possibilities offered by the instrument and exploit them to the fullest. Taken together, Prokofiev’s piano sonatas form a remarkable body of work, and he must be considered a major contributor to this genre. Natalia Trull’s traversal of these sonatas offers the listener a chance to explore this repertoire in its entirety in her brilliant and commanding performances. Silver Medalist of the Tchaikovsky International Piano Competition, Natalia Trull is one of today’s outstanding pianists, who is in great demand as a performer all over the world. Among the distinguished orchestras with which she has performed are the London Symphony, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and many others. Her repertoire includes over 50 concertos, of which Tchaikovsky’s First Concerto has proven to be the most popular. She has performed the work on over one hundred occasions in the world’s leading concert halls.
Reviews
“Here’s a rare case of a relatively unknown pianist, coming out of nowhere with a recorded set of major piano sonatas made two decades ago, who astonishingly pushes all contemporary competitors into the dust….Needless to say, this recording is a must if you like Prokofiev and particularly the sonatas. No one else even comes close. You could listen to this set of records every day for the next five years and never tire of them, that’s how good they are.”
— Lynn René Bayley, The Art Music Lounge, 2017
“Anyone interested in the music of Prokofiev, the cultural impact of the Soviet era, or highly charged piano music, should acquire this recording.”
— Jean-Yves Duperron, Classical Music Sentinel, 2017
“The sound engineering throughout the set is excellent, full, warm, and just a little dry—in keeping with the composer’s emotional world….Listening to all the sonatas straight through in Trull’s hands is an overwhelming experience, mixing agitation with beauty. The album is a superb artist’s mature reflection on repertory that is close to her, and cannot fail to elicit feelings of vulnerability and wonder from the hearer. It is an important document of the course of piano music in the last century.”
—Dave Saemann, Fanfare Magazine, 2017