Gil Shaham, Orli Shaham - Dvořák for Two (1997)

The Shaham siblings play Dvorak's Sonatina, wonderful music with great tones recorded with great clarity!
The piano sound is remarkably clear and sharp sounding and no introduction needs to be said about the incredible violin tone displayed here. DG really did an amazing production on this recording.
The violin is played with incredible warmth and awesome phrasing, every heartfelt note is carefully shaped by a master craftsman: Gil Shaham shows yet again his ability to speak with every note. The piano is played with a great sense of dynamics and effortless technique while never being obtrusive. Orli shows great maturity in how she handles and shapes the music with her great hands. Of course, since the two grew up playing together and were both trained at Julliard, they make a great team playing dynamically as one.
The Sonatina in G maj should be played much more, great melody here. In fact one can argue that it is easily one of the greatest violin piano compositions of all time, full of romantic charm and sincerity. Dvorak was highly influenced by Brahms but had his own sound in a rhythmic sense due to his Czech nationality. It is interesting to think about how the musical environment must have affected the great composers, as most of them admit being influenced by the folk music of European countries.
I encourage all violinists to perform the G maj Sonatina in their recitals because of its' beauty. I like to see recitals where a soloist speaks with every note instead of a display of virtuosity. I also like to see works played that everyone else does not, that is the challenge to keep things fresh and play new things but still hold the attention of the listener. These pieces fill that void for me in every way.
This is a five star recording but so is Perlman's recording of the same works, I give both my highest recommendation.