BBC Symphony Orchestra - Prokofiev (CD)

Details: Canadian pianist Stewart Goodyear, in a seminal year approaching his debut at the BBC proms, presents his new album of works by Sergei Prokofiev, alongside the BBC Symphony Orchestra under Andrew Litton. Proclaimed "a phenomenon" by the Los Angeles Times and "one of the best pianists of his generation" by the Philadelphia Inquirer, Stewart Goodyear has carved out a formidable international reputation as both concert pianist and composer, with an impressive catalogue of recorded repertoire to date. Following on from his releases of Beethoven, Ravel, Gershwin and his own suite for piano and orchestra, "Callaloo" along with his piano sonata, Goodyear's new recording features some of the greatest works in the repertory: the Op. 16 and Op. 26 Piano Concertos, as well as the Piano Sonata no. 7 in B flat major. This ambitious undertaking, with it's roots in the struggles of the 2020 pandemic, is inherently personal to Goodyear, as he revisits one of the key composers from his very first days on the piano recital circuit, and channels the youthful dynamism and vibrancy central to Prokofiev's music. With Goodyear's sage and seasoned take on these three works, the album takes on another dimension: that of steadfast endurance in the face of personal challenges.