The Philips Duo line is a two-for-the-price-of-one reissue series that offers a quite economical way for the budget-minded collector to purchase favorite past recordings. This new release pairs Previn's 1985 readings of the Elgar First Symphony and Pomp and Circumstance Marches with his 1993 accounts of the Second Symphony and Cockaigne Overture. Those familiar with Previn's forays into British repertory are aware of his success with the music of Vaughn Williams. His RCA cycle from the late '60s and early '70s of that master's nine symphonies successfully challenged the then competing one on EMI of the venerable late Sir Adrian Boult. Here, in the Elgar Symphonies, Boult's ghost hovers imposingly, as well, but the undaunted Previn serves up interpretations of lush character and penetrating insight that capture an Elgar perhaps less rugged, less intense than Boult's, but also more epic and more beautiful.
Previn plays up the post-Romantic richness in the scoring and expressive language of these early twentieth-century symphonies. You can notice the seeming perfection throughout in his orchestral balances, how neither the strings nor the brass dominate the proceedings, how the less prominent woodwinds are never slighted, and how contrapuntal lines are given their just due. When the textures thicken and the fortes blare out, he never squanders detail at the expense of momentary effect. Try virtually any of the big climactic moments in either symphony's first movement (moments anti-Elgarians would charge as fulsomely scored), and notice how Previn never loses focus, never allows competing lines to trample one another.
He doesn't skirt the darker elements in these works, either, especially in the tragic Second Symphony, where, with anguished passages punctuated by weight and disruptive episodes heightened by a surreal nervosity, he seems to erect scaffolding to connect with the grimmer, more neurotic world of Gustav Mahler. In sum, Previn gives you a multi-dimentional Elgar, beautiful, compelling and sometimes unsettling. In the Pomp and Circumstance Marches and Cockaigne Overture, he deftly captures the mixture of grandiosity and lightness, fun and nostalgia. And he coaxes spirited, precise playing from the Royal Philharmonic and London Symphony Orchestras in all the works. Philips' sound is excellent, even in the decade-old First.
This is one affordable pair of discs that should be in the collection of all Elgarians and anyone interested in exploring the music of one of the greatest British composers.
Written by Robert Cummings
Richter plays Scriabin, Myaskovsky and Prokofiev
Scriabin - Etudes; Piano Sonata No.6, op.62 / Myaskovsky - Piano Sonata No.3 in C minor, op.19 / Prokofiev - Piano Sonata No.7 in B-flat major, op.83
Sviatoslav Richter, piano (BMG/Melodiya 74321 29470 2)
This is Volume 10 of a box-set called "The Sviatoslav Richter
Edition", issued by BMG in honour of one of the greatest
pianists of this century. Save for some minor disappointments,
the whole set is actually worth acquiring.
I think this is the finest disc in the entire collection. It represents
Richter at the height of his powers in the 1960s, and he is playing
music here that is most often associated with him, and which he
admitted to be closest to his heart.
The highlight here is a jaw-dropping account of Prokofiev's all-too-famous
Seventh Sonata, the second in the triptych commonly called the
"War Sonatas". There are plenty of good recordings
here: Frederic Chiu (Harmonia Mundi), Boris Berman (Chandos),
Vladimir Horowitz (RCA), and my current favourite, Maurizio Pollini
(DG) all lead a highly-competitive field (although honestly, I
do not think very highly of Horowitz's at all).
But Richter is probably the Prokofiev pianist to die for.
No one else, not even Emil Gilels, is known to have come closer
to the heart of this quirky but immensely gifted and spontaneous
composer's music. Their friendships and long-standing mutual
admiration of each other's talents fuel what is probably one of
the strongest composer-interpreter associations the music world
has ever come to know.
Richter has never played bad Prokofiev, not even on his worst
days; he is just too good at this repertoire. The legendary performance
of the Seventh Sonata at hand is a classic of the gramophone.
Stunning power and technique, immensely purposeful and highly
illuminating, and ingeniously musical. Perhaps next to Pollini,
Richter might seem at first a little less openly aggressive, but
I don't think that equates to gentility. Richter packs a big
punch in his own way, and delivers this seemingly wild music with
a difficult combination of nobility and ferocious power. Pollini
might seem to have the edge here, but Richter's less openly animalistic
yet equally satisfying approach grows on you. (Richter makes
Pollini sound a little too cool and too slick, and this is most
apparent in the second movement.)
The 12 selected Scriabin etudes and the Sixth Sonata are equally
well-played. The Myaskovsky sonata is a new work to me, and as
a composition, I find its indecisiveness and incessant rhetoric
rambling a little disruptive to my total enjoyment of Richter's
excellent performance. Not a first-class work, but it certainly
receives top-notch treatment here.
The recordings from the early 60s are all in mono, but the remastering,
while not completely eliminating the inherent tape hiss, retains
the warm piano sound and much clarity for its age. An outstanding
reissue that deserves a standing ovation.
(Note that all the CDs in this set are also available separately.)
Written by Lionel Choi
César Franck (1822-1890);
Franz Liszt (1811 - 1886)
Prélude, Choral et Fugue,
M. 21; Mephisto Waltz No.1, S. 514; Sonetto 104 del Petrarca,
S. 161 No.5; Two Concert Studies, S. 145 - No. 1 "Waldesrauchen"
& No. 2 "Gnomenreigen"; Au bord d'une source, S.
160 No. 4; Rhapsodie espagnole, S. 254
Murray Perahia, piano (Sony Classical SK
47180)
In a rare move that sees who I personally consider
to be the quintessential Mozart interpreter of our generation
venturing into the more prickly and passionate Romantic era, we
are treated to a recital of extraordinary depth and feeling. Murray
Perahia shows that despite his dearth of recordings in this arena,
he is every bit as convincing and dedicated an advocate of Liszt
as more seasoned musicians like Richter or Kissin.
From the opening notes of Franck's tragic sounding
Prelude, Choral et Fugue, the sheer beauty and elegance of Perahia's
playing of this tragic-sounding work is apparent. Perahia is able
to go beyond where most other pianists fall short, reading the
music not only with his mind but also with his heart. Thus, we
are not treated merely to a spectacular display of virtuoso playing
but also to a performance that is full of intelligence, passion
and personality.
Perahia's Liszt is equally outstanding. He
seems every bit as competent in this barnstorming repertoire as
he is in the Mozart concertos and the Schubert repertoires. My
only reservation is that his incredibly elegant and aristocratic
playing might actually be a little of a liability in Liszt. For
example, the upper tessitura of the Mephisto Waltz, while flawlessly
executed and heartfelt, seems to lack a little of that devilish
glitter and frenetic excitement which one finds in the great Liszt
records of Krystian Zimmerman.
This criticism does not extend to the other
Liszt works. This is playing of the highest order, dazzling, poetic
and insightful. From the magically evocative Sonetto 104 del Petracha,
to the sheer virtuosity of the concert etudes, Perahia is consistently
fresh and spontaneous, never looking at these favourites through
clichéd eyes. The 'Waldesrauchen', in particular, shows
the outstanding range of sonority and keyboard palette that Perahia
has at his command.
My highlight of the disc must be the Rhapsodie
espagnole which I never weary of listening to. Lightning-fast,
dazzling and coruscating, Perahia is all this and more in this
cheerful and charming work.
Sony's engineers have done full justice to
the recording this time. Suffice to say that this is a recording
of great distinction and merit and Perahia fans will be glad to
know that his form in the recording is very, very good indeed.
Highly recommended.
Written by Melvin Yap
Copyright © 1997 Lionel H Y Choi, Melvin J Yap, Robert Cummings, Rajeev Aloysius
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