Rachmaninov's Piano Works

[George]

Thanks George. I'll give it a shot. And looks like a Berman version must be on the horizon as well.

I did some reading last night and apparently the DG never made it to CD. There is another one on Aura or Ermitage, from a live recital. I snagged a copy last night from amazon, as it was the last one and I didn't want it to get away. I will report back when I have heard it.   

There's some info here.

[rubio]

This set seems quite interesting for the Moments Musicaux. Anybody heard about the pianist Mordecai Shehori?

http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2008/Mar08/Shehori_CD128.htm

http://www.amazon.com/Celebrated-New-York-Concerts-Vol/dp/B000XXW9LW/ref=wl_it_dp?ie=UTF8&coliid=I1KEIDAGJ60392&colid=1L61W0MN46OUE



Has anyone here heard the same pieces by Ashekenazy?

[Holden]

Anybody heard about the pianist Mordecai Shehori?

Yes, I have his disc of Scarlatti sonatas which is excellent and well worth getting if you like Scarlatti

[George]

I would recommend this version of the elegiac trios, also. Despite the fact that I find the works themselves somewhat derivative, they're still worth hearing; especially in a rendition full of fiery poetry and heartfelt emotion such as this.

Now I'm really happy that I finally ordered this. Thanks Tasos! 

[George]

Got this one today:



Here's a review:

The Rachmaninoff Etudes-Tableaux have not been as well served as the preludes, but there are some outstanding modern recordings that have become benchmarks for new talent to challenge. Collard's recordings on EMI from the 70s remain definitive, though on re-listening to them and comparing them to more recent ones, I find him to be more elegant than passionate; but he is still a very convincing proponent of these enigmatic masterpieces. I consider Idil Biret and Nicholas Angelich emotionally more compelling than Collard, though they approach these masterpieces quite differently. Why Angelich isn't better known puzzles me, because his Rachmaninoff is passionate, thoughtful, and unique. I must, however, place these reissues of the complete Etudes-Tableaux as my recent favorite. I somehow missed these recordings when they initially came out in 1991, though I was familiar with Ovchinnikov and dismissed him as one of those Russian pounders when I first encountered him as a Silver Medal winner at the Tchaikovsky Competition in 1982; he shared second place with Peter Donohoe. His performances of the Etudes have everything: passion (controlled), tenderness, terrific detail, and conviction. Try not to break down when listening to No. 8 in G Minor, op. 33. I can think of no other performances that have moved me so deeply.

Patrick Meanor, FANFARE

To me, this sounds very nice indeed. The pianist's dynamic range, intensity and poetry are all impressive.

[orbital]

Got this one today:

To me, this sounds very nice indeed. The pianist's dynamic range, intensity and poetry are all impressive.

I've had this one for a while and I haven't felt the need to get another complete set. He is indeed very good. Frankly, I have a difficult time differentiating Rachmaninov's etudes from his preludes (particularly the op.32 set), so some added poetry into these pieces sound good to my ears.

[George]

I've had this one for a while and I haven't felt the need to get another complete set. He is indeed very good. Frankly, I have a difficult time differentiating Rachmaninov's etudes from his preludes (particularly the op.32 set), so some added poetry into these pieces sound good to my ears.

To mine as well. Ogdon's set on Testament is a good deal more energetic and equally essential, IMO.