I had not realized that Heifetz made so many arrangements until I compared the contents of this new CD with that of the Japanese violinist Hideko Udagawa (ASV DCA624, 12/88); only the Schumann, Chopin and Ponce are duplicated. This suavely expressive repertoire is so much suited to Perlman's style that one cannot imagine that overall it could be better played. Of course, this is not to say that his playing is really like Heifetz's own—the American fiddler has a richness and succulence of tone that are more comfortable and ultimately less challenging than that of the late Russian master.
One factor that elevates these transcriptions from sounding routine is the quite remarkable quality of writing in the accompaniments. Although some of the music is second rate (Drigo's Valse bluette, for instance), the arrangements are so well put together that one entirely tolerates the more trivial music, especially since no item exceeds four and a half minutes.
Of course, they are encore pieces, to be played as light relief after a more serious programme. Perlman treats them as such and he really gets his bow into the strings and produces the mellowest of singing lines. There were one or two, however, that I found disappointing: the Ravel could have been done with more feeling for the waltz rhythm and both the Saint-Saens ''Le cygne'' and Schumann's ''Vogel als Prophet'' are too clever by half in terms of over-artful phrasing. The numbers I enjoyed the most were the Albeniz ''Sevilla'', Debussy's ''Golliwogg's Cake-walk'' and Achron's Hebrew Melody. It is in the latter that Perlman most resembles Heifetz. There is a wonderful economy in the way that he slides between notes and the simple melody has gripping intensity and sincerity of intent.
I feel that Samuel Sanders's role in the proceedings is sometimes a bit distorted by the recorded balance. In the Chopin Noctume (this is not the E flat Nocturne, but one that has more contrapuntal textures than any of the others) the piano is relegated far too much to the background, so that the effect of much of the polyphony is lost—this is a great pity, since Heifetz has laid out the piano part with such care. Also, in my opinion, someone misjudged badly in the Gershwin Preludes; the violin tone is uncomfortably close and overpowering—I had to switch down the volume considerably for these.'