Claudio Arrau

[Mandryka]

I love this pianist -- but I am conscious that I have heard very little by him.

I know and enjoy the Chopin (preludes)  in his Prague spring concert -- though I enjoy the Schumann (Etudes) less.

In Beethoven, when he  is at his best, there's a sort of inevitability about the music making -- a flow. I rate highly his PC4 with Haitink and his Diabellis and his Opus 109 -- all late Philips studio performances. And there are some nice early Beethoven recordings -- a BBC disc of Sonata 27 for example and a DVD of him in Opus 111.

And I enjoy his Liszt Transcendental Etudes. For my part, I like the way he brings out the poetry and underplays the bravura.

Anyways, suggestions much appreciated for the best Arrau recordings.

[rondos]

His Philips recordings of the Mozart piano sonatas are the best that I have ever heard.  Slow, but beautiful and deep.  I can listen to any one disk again and again and again...

[Gabriel]

Being myself a Chilean, I grew up with Arrau's recordings, so I feel as "natural" many of the features of his playing that could be described by other terms by other listeners. This situation changes, of course, when comparing directly his playing with other great performers.

I find many of Arrau's recordings to be outstanding. Among my favourites:

• Beethoven: the sonata cycle of the 60s for Philips, Concertos 3-5 with Sir Colin Davis, the Diabelli variations.
• Chopin: Nocturnes.
• Liszt: Sonata in B minor, Ballade n. 2, Études d'exécution transcendante.
• Mozart: Sonatas KV 570 and 576, Adagio KV 540.
• Schubert: Sonatas D. 664 and 960.
• Schumann: Carnaval, Fantasia op. 17.
• Weber: Konzertstück.

It is really a pity that he recorded just a bit of Bach (the Goldberg variations and a couple other works when he was around 40 years old, then the Partitas shortly before his death) and almost no Haydn (the F minor variations, an old recording that I haven't heard).

He recorded another Beethoven cycle in the 1980s, almost complete (excepting the Hammerklavier and the Moonlight sonatas). It is an irregular cycle, with really great moments (for example, I find the last three sonatas to be very beautifully played) and some others not so great (v. gr., op. 2 n. 3). But what is remarkable of this cycle, beyond the specific performances, is that it shows Arrau's magnificent tone most vividly than, for example, the previous Beethoven cycle.

His Mozart recordings, on the other hand, are to be explored with care (in all the senses of this word). They are not precisely HIP in the way we understand it today, but Arrau deliberately recorded them trying to make the piano sound as cantabile as possible, considering that Mozart was eminently a vocal composer.

If we are writing about the same performance, Mandryka, the DVD of Beethoven's op. 111 was, if I'm not mistaken, recorded in 1970, so it is far from being "early".

Anyway, I'm sure that our keyboard specialists of GMG will have a lot more to say than me in this thread. And most of all if some of them had the opportunity to hear him performing live, a joy I never had, for when he visited Chile for the last time in 1984 I was a small boy not yet interested by these events of great music. But I remember very clearly when he passed away in 1991, when his body was brought back to Chile to be honoured with national hommages and finally buried in his native city of Chillán. He will be forever one of our musical glories.

[jwinter]

I didn't know about this -- is it available anywhere?

The 60s Beethoven set is the one that's commonly available -- personally I've never seen the 80s set.  The 60s set is currently in this box, along with the Haitink PCs, and some variations etc. -- a great box.

[Todd]

The 80s cycle is around.  Amazon has it for a paltry $250.  It's much cheaper in Japan.  I'm contemplating getting it.  This reminds me that I should revisit the 60s cycle.

I must confess that I've listened to relatively little Arrau outside his Beethoven.  I'm thinking some Schumann might be the way to go.

[George]

Arrau's Chopin Nocturnes are wonderful, very romantic, syrupy performances.

His Liszt Etudes are surprisingly powerful and impressive. I later found out that his teachers lineage extends directly back to Liszt himself.

His Beethoven sounds too mature for me, not youthful enough. The 4th concerto with Haitink is superb though, fingernail accompaniment and all. 

[dirkronk]

Early Arrau is superb and his playing then was very much in the virtuoso vein--he became famous as a young man for his interp of the Balakirev Islamey...and it still impresses today, but almost anything before 1960 or 1962 is well worth a listen. His Liszt piano concerto #1 with Ormandy's a classic, as are some of the live sonata recordings he did with Szigeti. Both EMI and U.S. Columbia put out retrospective box sets of early recordings for Arrau's 80th birthday and they are treasures; these were LP only...not sure what corresponds in CD.

After the early 1960s, his approach and style changed drastically, and whether you respond favorably depends strictly on your own taste. I waver myself. In live performances, I never count Arrau out, but in the studio it's a different story and not always a happy one for my ears. In general, he slowed down a good deal, and many fans like to tout this as profound, grand, etc., and in truth SOMETIMES it is.

Liszt is a good example. Arrau has Liszt down beautifully in his stereo Philips recordings of assorted Annees de Pelerinage, etc., where charm and eloquence work extremely well IMO. And his concert performance of the Transcendental Etudes is pretty spiffy. (In other Liszt repertoire, I tend to prefer Richter, Cziffra, Berman and others.)

The Chopin nocturnes that George mentioned are certainly worth listening to, though I'm personally less enamored of them than I once was. (Rubinstein and Moravec are the preferred pianists for me in these works.)

Beyond these, later Arrau isn't usually my cup of tea.

Example: while there are some positive exceptions, I generally do NOT care for Arrau's Beethoven sonatas from the mid-1960s. I had a particularly negative reaction to his Waldstein, which critics generally gush about but which I find hard to even listen to. Compared in this piece, say, to Solomon, Arrau's phrasing is more mannered without being more convincing, his fingering in fast sections seems less secure and his segues are downright awkward. But as I say, my opinion runs counter to the critics and, as always, YMMV too.

FWIW,

Dirk

[Holden]

I love this pianist -- but I am conscious that I have heard very little by him.

I know and enjoy the Chopin (preludes)  in his Prague spring concert -- though I enjoy the Schumann (Etudes) less.

In Beethoven, when he  is at his best, there's a sort of inevitability about the music making -- a flow. I rate highly his PC4 with Haitink and his Diabellis and his Opus 109 -- all late Philips studio performances. And there are some nice early Beethoven recordings -- a BBC disc of Sonata 27 for example and a DVD of him in Opus 111.

And I enjoy his Liszt Transcendental Etudes. For my part, I like the way he brings out the poetry and underplays the bravura.

Anyways, suggestions much appreciated for the best Arrau recordings.

You seem to have a similar take on Arrau that I do - the LvB Diabellis, Op 111 on DVD (which one) the Chopin Preludes from Prague and the Liszt TEs. The other recordings I'm happy to leave to others. I'd be interested in the early 50s Diabellis just for a comparison. Arrau is the only pianist I've heard who truly makes the variations sound like an integral set as opposed to 33 disparate works based on the same theme and key.

[Herman]

I'd be interested in the early 50s Diabellis just for a comparison. Arrau is the only pianist I've heard who truly makes the variations sound like an integral set as opposed to 33 disparate works based on the same theme and key.

Same as with the Chopin Preludes.

[Coopmv]

Here is an excellent recording I have owned for many years.  It may be OOP ...

[Mandryka]

I know those -- I think he is great in the Dante sonata.

The Chopin/Liszt I need to listen again; I remember not being much taken by the music in the past, but maybe I will think differently now. Thanks for the prompt.

Other nice Arrau Liszt besides the Transcendental Etudes -- Ballade 2 (v good on his 80th birthday DVD) and the B Minor sonata in a live version from the 70s (I think it's his earliest recording of it) -- it's on his GPOC.

Somehow, more than anyone else I know, Arrau makes the banal passages in Liszt sound interesting -- all the repeated chords and tremolos.

[Coopmv]

I know those -- I think he is great in the Dante sonata.

The Chopin/Liszt I need to listen again; I remember not being much taken by the music in the past, but maybe I will think differently now. Thanks for the prompt.

Other nice Arrau Liszt besides the Transcendental Etudes -- Ballade 2 (v good on his 80th birthday DVD) and the B mainor sonata in a live version from the 70s (I think its his earliest recording of it) -- it's on his GPOC.

Somehow, more than anyone else I know, Arrau makes the banal passages in Liszt sound interesting -- all the repeated chords and tremelos.

Garrick Ohlsson also happened to be a student of Claudio Arrau ...

[MN Dave]

http://arrauhouse.org/

[ccar]

One of the "big" recitals I vividly remember from my late teens was Claudio Arrau playing the Liszt's Sonata. From his big name status and dashing photos I imagined a grand figure. But coming into the stage was that very frail man, walking with some difficulty towards the piano.  He bowed slowly and seated lowering his head. Nothing was preparing us for what it was to come. Those doomed first notes and silences of the Sonata were like gigantic waves in that big concert hall. Rarely I heard such opulent piano tone and "sound". Every note had life and each phrase was full with keen dramatic expression.

We all know the experience of listening to a live musical performance is unique. We are not only listening to a record of what we didn't really live. There we feel the risk and frisson of an unpredictable moment. We connect (or not) with the interpreter and in a way we also help to create the humane ambiance that makes the performance. And after we may recollect it from our memory.

This is to say that my first remembrance of Arrau does not come from the record. His live imprint is always in my mind when I (re)discover his legacy. And during these years I always keep looking for the magic sound and intensity of that Liszt's Sonata. Below are some memory aids I use.

[The new erato]

This is now being reissued; I think it must be the Philips recording being reissued on DG due to the expiry of the rights to the Philips name.

Piano Sonata No. 8 in C minor, Op. 13 "Pathétique"
Piano Sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57 "Appassionata"
Piano Sonata No. 14 in C sharp minor, Op. 27 No. 2 "Moonlight"
Rondo in G major, Op. 51 No. 2

A generously-filled disc (75') in which the great Chilean pianist Claudio Arrau performs three popular Beethoven sonatas taken from his complete cycle recorded in the 1960s; also included is Arrau's recording of the rarely-heard Rondo, Op. 51 No. 2

[Mandryka]

His Columbia recordings have been issued on CD and are really interesting I think. The Chopin Preludes -- studio from the 1950s -- may well be his best performance of Op 28 on record. And there is an excellent Kreisleriana too.

Other material is less successful. There is a relatively mainstream Waldstein which doesn't approach the profundity and originality and sweep of his 1963 one. IMO that Waldstein is ne plus ultra.

And there is a particularly spooky Le Gibet.

Anyway -- the Columbia box is well worth hearing IMO.

[Scarpia]

His Columbia recordings have been issued on CD and are really interesting I think. The Chopin Preludes -- studio from the 1950s -- may well be his best performance of Op 28 on record. And there is an excellent Kreisleriana too.

Other material is less successful. There is a relatively mainstream Waldstein which doesn't approach the profundity and originality and sweep of his 1963 one. IMO that Waldstein is ne plus ultra.

And there is a particularly spooky Le Gibet.

Anyway -- the Columbia box is well worth hearing IMO.

I'd be very interested, based on my experience, derived from the 10" lp shown, which is superb.

[Herman]

His Columbia recordings have been issued on CD and are really interesting I think. The Chopin Preludes -- studio from the 1950s -- may well be his best performance of Op 28 on record. And there is an excellent Kreisleriana too.

Eh, you're familiar with the 1960 Prague performance of Chopin's Preludes? On APR?

If you are, and you still prefer the 1950 studio recording, that would be a first.

[Mandryka]

Eh, you're familiar with the 1960 Prague performance of Chopin's Preludes? On APR?

If you are, and you still prefer the 1950 studio recording, that would be a first.

Well, the question prompted me to check.

The Columbia one is good,  but the Prague one is superior in every way, including the recorded sound. The Prague one is livelier and more intense. It flows better from one prelude to the next and each prelude is better shaped.

So you were right to pick up that point.

[ongakublue]

Hi all,

I have a question for all those Beethovenians... not unlike the one I asked about Gould and Bach's WTC recently

Is this version of the Beethoven sonatas :

http://www.amazon.com/Beethoven-Complete-Piano-Sonatas-Concertos/dp/B0017P4C9W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1282235121&sr=8-1

the same as this:

http://www.amazon.com/32-Piano-Sonatas-Eroica-Variations/dp/B00000E4TV/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1282235398&sr=8-9


I think Arrau recorded them twice but info online is skimpy in these matters. The later set from the 80s seems to be another CD set with a grey cover from 'Heritage' ?

Thanks for your help.

J