Concierto En Mi Mayor Para 2 Pianos y Orquesta. Concierto En La Menor Para Piano y Cuerdas

Released by Decca in 1976, this recording features the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields under the direction of Sir Neville Marriner, with soloists John Ogdon and Brenda Lucas. The album showcases two of Mendelssohn's early concertos, which were composed during his teenage years and demonstrate the composer's precocious command of classical form and romantic sensibility. These works were long overshadowed by his more mature repertoire, but this mid-1970s production was part of a broader critical movement to re-examine the charm and technical agility of Mendelssohn’s early orchestral writing.

The recording benefits from the collaboration between the virtuosic piano duo of Ogdon and Lucas and the precise, historically informed style that defined the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields during the 1970s. Marriner’s approach to these scores was celebrated for its clarity and balanced textures, which allowed the intricate interplay between the two pianos to remain distinct. Upon its release, the performance was praised for its stylistic elegance and the technical ease with which the soloists navigated the rapid, virtuosic passages characteristic of Mendelssohn's concertante style.