Dimitri Kabalevsky’s First Piano Concerto owes a heck of a lot to Prokofiev’s Second–so much so that at times you might think you are listening to that work. But Prokofiev is more formally imaginative, edgier, and more melodically distinctive, and that explains why this Kabalevsky work isn’t well known. Every movement goes on a couple of minutes longer than it should–but that said, it’s still very listenable and often quite appealing. Pianist In-Ju Bang certainly can’t be faulted for any lack of color or character; she brings plenty of freshness and no lack of virtuosity to the part. But this is perhaps better appreciated in the shorter and more distinctive Second Piano Concerto. Here, Bang is at least as interesting as Kathryn Stott on Chandos (though the latter has the more interesting couplings and slightly better sonics). Dmitry Yablonsky and his sometimes hit-or-miss band are in very good form here, in music for which they have a clear affinity. Okay, the music may not be uniformly great, but it’s very enjoyable, and so are the performances.
