Chopin Year -- The Best Kept Secrets in Germany -- Just

Any classical music lover will know that in this Chopin Year (200th anniversary), new and old Chopin recordings will abound. Who wouldn't make business with the slightest excuse? It's almost like St. Valentine's Day. But does anyone, or at least the recording companies, pay much attention to the fact that 2010 is also the 200th birth-year of Robert Schumann? If you prefer round numbers, it is also the 100th and 150th anniversaries of the birth of Stravinsky and Mahler respectively.

So much for numbers. 

Chopin box-sets and sales will be taken for granted, but even if there are copious choices, we still have to make them. I opt for the box-set from the Eloquence series in Germany. It is a generous box, to say the least of it. It is not the usual box-set that once you've taken a glimpse of the detailed listing of pianists playing the works you'll put it back to the shelf of the shop. Here you can almost have all the top recordings for each particular work, of course among Universal artists and recordings only. I say almost because for example the Nocturnes are played by Barenboim, at least not my first choice. It is unusual to see in a Chopin box-set the first Piano Concerto being played by Arrau, and the second by Pogorelich, and the Preludes by Argerich, etc.

Then the Chopin disc by Olga Scheps, which is on sale only in Germany and not even in the UK or Japan. She has fine pianistic attributes beneath her pretty-looking face. Her touch is exquisite and she dares to take risks too. Not at all a boring debut Chopin disc.

I can envisage that I'll have many evenings bathed in the romanticism of Chopin.

An unexpected enrichment of Sviatoslav Richter's discography

Sviatoslav Richter is a pianist I really adore, and yet he is also a pianist whose art many  may find it difficult to characterise.

I remember very fondly what Artur Rubinstein commented after hearing Richter for the first time, "It really wasn't anything out of the ordinary. Then at some point I noticed my eyes growing moist: tears began rolling down my cheeks..."

I reckon that it is an inevitable paradox on Richter. While his art embraces many strong pianistic attributes, it is precisely the lack of easy characterisation into a certain category that can best summarise his art. For example, some pianists can be characterised or labelled as keyboard acrobats, some as virtuosos, some as poets, or some as iconoclasts. But when you think about it, Richter is none of these but at the time he is all of these. It appears that he can transcend all these descriptions to a higher level where truths are palpably near, or to a deeper level where the heart is touched, be it tenderly or painfully. 

Writing something on the vast discography of Sviatoslav Richter is a daunting task, to say the least of it. The number of Richter's concert appearances is enormous: about 70 per annum from 1960 till 1989. That means, if each concert has been recorded, we can expect to run into more than 2000 concert recordings! This hasn't included his concerts before he began to perform in the West. (P.S. According to Bruno Mosaingeon's chronology, Richter gave 3590 concerts between his first and last recitals.)

Now more than a dozen years after Richter's passing away, when we admirers begin to resign ourselves to the possibility that the best part of his recorded legacy must have already all surfaced, given the numerous CDs issued in the past couples of decades, we are informed of yet another box-set containing many hitherto unissued live recordings. A 14-CD set called "Richter in Hungary" issued officially by the Hungarian Radio Station will soon grace our CD players.

Just before the Chinese New Year, this box-set at last reached my hands. Pictures below:

Apart from the official sources and the time span of 39 years (from 1954 to 1993), mention has to be made that this set includes at this moment the oldest published Richter recording of Prokofiev Sonata No. 8 (on 26 March 1954), and most of the contents have never been issued on CD. I've quickly sampled those pieces previously issued by other companies and compared the sound, and the result shows the new box-set a clear winner.

Previously issued material includes:

1) CD3 tr 01-05 in "Sviatoslav Richter in Budapest" (WHRA-6023): Although this CD sounds OK, the new issue from Hungarian Radio sources has better ambience, body and clarity.

2) CD3 tr 06 in Doremi Vol. 15 (DHR-7940/1).

3) CD3 tr 07-13 in Doremi Vol. 18 (DHR-7959).

4) CD7 tr 01-02 in Doremi Vol. 17 (DHR-7954).

5) CD7 tr 06-18 in Pyramid 13507: The Pyramid disc has a warmer sound and an apparently richer bass but the new issue is more balanced over the full range, with better ambience and crispness in the treble and mid-range, and makes the music sound more urgent. The Pyramid filters out the audience noise and by doing this it also cuts out the liveliness of the music.

6) CD10 tr 01-10 in Doremi Vol. 6 (DHR-7766): Again the new set gives you the impression that the thin veil covering the sound in the Doremi disc has been removed. It sounds fresher and more immediate.

One minor error in the track listing occurs in CD10 track 12 where it is wrongly attributed to Chopin Waltz in G-flat major, op. 70/1, which in fact should be Waltz in D flat major, op. 70/3. I was filled with expectations when I read the track listing because if the former is correct, it would have been a brand new addition to Richter's repertoire. Well, life is  usually adamant in not giving out surprises when you are most desperate for them. 

Here are the pictures of the CDs mentioned above:

 

  

 

The Debussy Preludes Book II on Pyramid needs to be compared with that in the new set. Trovar.com listed it as a 1967 Budapest performance, but the CD listed it as a 1968 Prague performance. However according to the programmes record, the two Chopin pieces on the Pyramid CD were not performed in Prague in August 1968 but in Budapest in 1967, although both recitals featured the same Debussy Preludes.  Maybe comparing with the CD in the new set will solve this query.

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Both sonically and artistically this set is an excellent enrichment of the Richter discography.  Richter fans will need no introduction to it. Those who would like to experience the lure of Richter can certainly derive much pleasure from listening to this awesome set. I'm sure it is an invaluable addition to the Richter discography, however overcrowded it's already been. 

With the release of this set, it will be harder to get away from Richter for a fairly long time. But then, who really wants to?

Memories of the late Sviatoslav Richter (2)

In the first post on memories of the late Sviatoslav Richter, I didn't post the pictures of some CDs of certain labels in my collection. I'll try to include them now. Why now? As a preparation for the new Richter in Hungary 14-CD box-set, I have to take out some discs in my collection for comparison purposes, as a small part of the material in the new box-set has been issued by other companies.

Here are those from Music & Arts, apparently most, if not all, of them have been out of print or withdrawn. 

An enlivening path to re-tread (11) -- Immortal performances

 

Before the close of 2009, I'm more than happy to re-tread the highly enjoyable paths left open by the recordings of Clara Haskil and Dinu Lipatti. If I'm forgiven to exaggerate a little, I'd say Lipatti's music is God-like and Haskil's angel-like.

Lipatti's rendition of Schumann Piano Concerto here has always given me the feeling of being definitive. The colour and perfection he instilled into his playing is something we can only marvel at. An awesome achievement. Simply out of reach of mere mortals.

Haskil is an apt reminder to those who revel only in the external appearance and manners of a pianist, that music as elegant as angels singing can only be found from the pianist with grace in the heart. This is music that plucks your heart strings.

Gifts from Germany

 

Mary sent me a Christmas gift the other day. She ordered two sets of special-edition CDs from the German Amazon, as pictured above. They are very nice in packaging and document Horowitz's "legendary" concert on 18 May 1986 in Berlin. What is special about the first set is that it is packaged with carton papers and includes a replica of the concert poster. The second set is different from the international release found in Hong Kong in that it includes all the commentaries and interviews made during the concert and relayed for broadcast on that day.

Horowitz was said to be very satisfied with his performance, and you can understand why by listening to this recording. A truly legendary figure.

Thank you.

Memories of the late Sviatoslav Richter

Sviatoslav Richter is one of the pianists I adore (therefore in my "A" list).

I started to collect his recordings some 20 years ago, and since then I have collected more than 200 of his CDs. From a mere admirer of his piano playing, I've become a collector of his recordings. But collecting his CDs is a daunting task, to say the least of it. According to the latest estimation, there have been about 800 different CDs of his performance, albeit some are duplicates of the same recording or performance. After cross-checking with his extensive discography, I think I've collected at least 90% of it. Just the collecting exercise itself is arduous toil. But the listening experience is an enjoyable and fulfilling one, and one that will remain in my mind for eons.

The following pictures show part of my collection according to record labels in chronological order of the year of issue.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Need to pick up on this label

 

 

The ephemeral TNC label

 

 

This is a never-ending journey.

One may notice that those common ones from Decca, EMI and DG are not shown. They can be available at cut-throat prices in the recently released box-sets.

My AVID interest in pianists

I was often asked by friends of the pianists I like. On the other hand, some would be interested in those I don't like. As I have an avid interest in pianists, I've devised, for convenience's sake, a classification system of my own called none other than AVID.

'A' is for those I simply adore. 'V' is for those I value much, 'I' for those I feel indifferent to and 'D' for those that are disappointing or those I even despise. Simple enough. At least it serves me right up to this moment.

Here is my very personal list from memory:

A: (in alphabetical order)

Samuel Feinberg,

Clara Haskil,

Constantin Lifschitz,

Dinu Lipatti,

Sviatoslav Richter, and

Grigory Sokolov.

V: (in alphabetical order)

Martha Argerich,

Nelson Freire,

Emil Gilels,

Nelson Goerner,

Friedrich Gulda,

Nikolai Lugansky,

Victor Merzhanov,

Vladimir Sofronitsky,

Emil von Sauer,

and a few others.

I:

Many others.

D:

Don't force me to disclose.

There must be some pianists that I don't know, but I suppose I've known quite a number of pianists from the 19th century till now that I can make an informed choice. That's the reason that many notable names are absent, or at least not revealed, in my list. Such a list is useful to me in housekeeping for my collection which has been scattered among different places.

An enlivening path to re-tread (6) -- Nelson Freire debut concerto recording

Nowadays the term "under-rated" or "under-appreciated" has become nothing more than a cliché, but not so for Nelson Freire. He has my utmost respect.

This recording (22-27 May, 1968 at Burgerbrau, Munich), together with the Tchaikovsky piano concerto no. 1 made around the same time, effectively launched Freire's career to another level. He was not yet 24 at that time. He is now 65. These 2 concertos are among the finest recorded ones I've listened to. I won't say these are the finest because that would be unfair to my favourite ones by Dinu Lipatti, but they are on much the same level of artistic achievements.

Freire's technique is exceptonal, but it only forms the necessary foundation for the layer of subtlety, finesse, poetry and power that steals the heart of many a listener. His technique will never shine through as the only attribute, as keyboard acrobatics, in his artistic interpretations, unlike so many keyboard technicians who have enjoyed star status.

He is best in elusive romantic works.

This Japanese remastering brings out the best sonic fullness and colour so far. I felt lucky that I came across this Japanese local reissue in Tokyo in 2002.