Recordings That You Are Considering

Started by George, April 06, 2007, 05:54:08 AM

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Madiel

Quote from: mc ukrneal on January 23, 2020, 03:34:28 AM
Brendel or Kempff will be better than Schiff (in my opinion), though since you seem to like Brendel in this music (and are not crazy about Kempff), Brendel would seem to be the way to go (of the three and in general). I am not always a fan of Brendel, but I think he has a good feel for Schubert and I like it much more than his Beethoven (for example). But there is some great Schubert out there performed by Ashkenazy, Lupu, Lewis, Pires, and Kovacevich just to name a few should you want to explore.

Well, it's Schubert that Brendel has impressed me in from the Philips Duo that I have. And it does seem to be a composer he's particularly well regarded for.

Lewis is another one I'm inclined to try out as his name keeps popping up.
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Florestan

Can someone please explain me what's wrong with Schiff? I have heard only some early sonatas and liked them. What is it that he gets wrongly?
Every kind of music is good, except the boring kind. — Rossini

vers la flamme

Quote from: Florestan on January 23, 2020, 02:49:09 PM
Can someone please explain me what's wrong with Schiff? I have heard only some early sonatas and liked them. What is it that he gets wrongly?

I was wondering the same. Schiff is a great pianist. Speaking of, I am vaguely considering going for this recording:



... but probably not just yet, as I've just ordered two other CDs of the Schubert impromptus: Alfred Brendel (on Philips), and Radu Lupu (on Decca "Legends"). I don't know why I ordered two at once. I'm sure I will end up liking one over the other, different as they are... but both are great pianists, and I am curious to explore their Schubert further.

Furthermore, does anyone have an opinion on the following Decca 2CD?

[asin]B00004TTIL[/asin]

I do not have any of the Schubert violin sonatas in my library, and I want to change that.

San Antone

These Schubert recordings by Schiff are excellent, IMO



I think his ECM recordings are almost always better than his previous Decca releases.

mc ukrneal

Quote from: Florestan on January 23, 2020, 02:49:09 PM
Can someone please explain me what's wrong with Schiff? I have heard only some early sonatas and liked them. What is it that he gets wrongly?
He makes choices that I don't think bring out the best in the music sometimes. I really enjoy his discussions (for example Beethoven), but when he plays I sometimes feel he doesn't always get me to connect with the music. He is obviously a talented musician. I actually feel somewhat the same about Richter.
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JBS

Quote from: Florestan on January 23, 2020, 02:49:09 PM
Can someone please explain me what's wrong with Schiff? I have heard only some early sonatas and liked them. What is it that he gets wrongly?

I don't think anything is wrong with Schiff, in either his Beethoven or his Schubert.

As for Brendel,  I would suggest this
[asin]B000BYNC28[/asin]


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Madiel

Quote from: Florestan on January 23, 2020, 02:49:09 PM
Can someone please explain me what's wrong with Schiff? I have heard only some early sonatas and liked them. What is it that he gets wrongly?

Have you heard Decca or his later ECM?

My issue with him on Decca is that he uses a fairly mellow approach AND he uses a mellow, muted piano. The results are sometimes dull and boring.

Schubert is inherently a composer that tends towards mellow. It does not help to emphasise that even further. In my view, when Schubert supplies an opportunity for a bit of drama or it's worth taking it.

It was D850 that I lost patience with the other night. It's one of Schubert's showier and extroverted pieces, and with Schiff/Decca I just didn't feel any extroversion. Everything was just too well-behaved.

It was then that I tried Uchida in the same piece and could immediately hear that yes, she made D850 sound like it was at least a bit bright and showy.

Obviously it's not correct to make everything in Schubert sound like a heavy drama either, but it requires some sense of action.
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Madiel

#15627
After rapidly sampling half a dozen recordings of the same thing (the opening of D850) on my headphones, the biggest issue with Schiff isn't actually his playing.

It's the recording. It's distant and muted, of a mellow Bosendorfer.

It stands out against other people's recording (Uchida, Cooper, Endres, Lewis) for all the wrong reasons. Thoroughly disengaging.

Just tried Lewis for the first time and it's a dramatic roar in comparison (you can even hear Lewis' grunt at one point).
I am now working on a discography of the works of Vagn Holmboe. Please visit and also contribute!

Madiel

While I'm discussing recordings and pianos... Schiff ECM and Badura-Skoda are complete non-starters for me. However authentic their instruments are I can't stand the sound.
I am now working on a discography of the works of Vagn Holmboe. Please visit and also contribute!

Mandryka

#15629
Quote from: Madiel on January 23, 2020, 07:55:57 PM
After rapidly sampling half a dozen recordings of the same thing (the opening of D850) on my headphones, the biggest issue with Schiff isn't actually his playing.

It's the recording. It's distant and muted, of a mellow Bosendorfer.

It stands out against other people's recording (Uchida, Cooper, Endres, Lewis) for all the wrong reasons. Thoroughly disengaging.

Just tried Lewis for the first time and it's a dramatic roar in comparison (you can even hear Lewis' grunt at one point).

Maybe you'll like Zilberstein's 850.

I'm looking for the exact opposite of you, I want to find a performance of 840 (the unfinished one) with absolutely no drama, no contrasts, no forward movement. Stillness. Like plainsong. Let me know if you find it.
Wovon man nicht sprechen kann, darüber muss man schweigen

Madiel

#15630
Well as previously mentioned, Schiff/Decca in 840 was thoroughly boring to me so maybe you'll like it.

Edit: Zilberstein's start of 850 is plodding. It's allegro vivace please.
I am now working on a discography of the works of Vagn Holmboe. Please visit and also contribute!

amw

Quote from: Mandryka on January 23, 2020, 08:21:04 PM
I'm looking for the exact opposite of you, I want to find a performance of 840 (the unfinished one) with absolutely no drama, no contrasts, no forward movement. Stillness. Like plainsong. Let me know if you find it.
Sounds like you're looking for Sviatoslav Richter or maybe Vladimir Feltsman.

Jo498

Quote from: vers la flamme on January 23, 2020, 03:53:28 PM
Furthermore, does anyone have an opinion on the following Decca 2CD?

[asin]B00004TTIL[/asin]

I do not have any of the Schubert violin sonatas in my library, and I want to change that.
I have not heard but read criticism that these recordings were too late for Goldberg. The violin/piano masterpiece is the C major Fantasy, the 4 sonatas are charming pieces but not essential for me. Faust/Melnikov has a very good disc with the most important pieces. Kremer (DG) also played all of them, including the 3 early ones, maybe a bit too weighty for the music. It's been a while that I heard it but Laredo has also a complete 2-disc-set (Brilliant, originally Dorian?) that I liked well enough.
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Mandryka

#15633
Quote from: amw on January 23, 2020, 09:25:48 PM
Sounds like you're looking for Sviatoslav Richter or maybe Vladimir Feltsman.

Richter's second, the one on Philips, is the closest I've managed to find; haven't heard Feltsman.
Wovon man nicht sprechen kann, darüber muss man schweigen

Florestan

Quote from: Madiel on January 23, 2020, 07:34:28 PM
Have you heard Decca or his later ECM?

Decca but only a few early sonatas. I have the ECMs posted above by San Antone but haven't listened to them yet.

I have often read this criticism about Schiff, that he takes a mellow approach which to some people borders on blandness/dullness. Even his Mozart PCs set --- which I haven't listened to yet --- has been described thus. Personally I don't mind a mellower approach so I should be listening to those ECMs asap.
Every kind of music is good, except the boring kind. — Rossini

Florestan

Quote from: mc ukrneal on January 23, 2020, 04:37:58 PM
He makes choices that I don't think bring out the best in the music sometimes. I really enjoy his discussions (for example Beethoven), but when he plays I sometimes feel he doesn't always get me to connect with the music. He is obviously a talented musician. I actually feel somewhat the same about Richter.

What are these choices? Would you agree with Madiel about being too mellow?

I am not very familiar with his style, so I should add him to my list of performers to explore.
Every kind of music is good, except the boring kind. — Rossini

Mandryka

#15636
Quote from: vers la flamme on January 23, 2020, 03:53:28 PM.

Furthermore, does anyone have an opinion on the following Decca 2CD?

[asin]B00004TTIL[/asin]

I do not have any of the Schubert violin sonatas in my library, and I want to change that.

Some of these performances are extremely still and introspective and reticent.

I'll speculate that this was a joint decision probably, but the cause wasn't Goldberg's senior years, but Lupu's disposition.

Let me give you an example. The first movement of 379 takes 9½ minutes; when Goldberg played it with Lily Kraus they took 7 minutes.

Wovon man nicht sprechen kann, darüber muss man schweigen

Mandryka

Quote from: Florestan on January 24, 2020, 01:00:26 AM
What are these choices? Would you agree with Madiel about being too mellow?

I am not very familiar with his style, so I should add him to my list of performers to explore.

I must say, I listened to Schiff's 850/i and it was too dramatic for me, not mellow enough.
Wovon man nicht sprechen kann, darüber muss man schweigen

Madiel

Quote from: Florestan on January 24, 2020, 12:49:07 AM
I have often read this criticism about Schiff, that he takes a mellow approach which to some people borders on blandness/dullness.

As I said in a further post (sorry, it's all a bit of a mess because I was using my iPhone), it's not entirely his approach. The recording is distant and... well, to me it's distancing. I find it really gets in the way of being engaged. Not in every work by any means but there are definitely some sonatas where I find it's a struggle to care about what I'm hearing because he's off somewhere at the other end of the hall.
I am now working on a discography of the works of Vagn Holmboe. Please visit and also contribute!

Florestan

Quote from: Madiel on January 24, 2020, 01:27:45 AM
As I said in a further post (sorry, it's all a bit of a mess because I was using my iPhone), it's not entirely his approach. The recording is distant and... well, to me it's distancing. I find it really gets in the way of being engaged. Not in every work by any means but there are definitely some sonatas where I find it's a struggle to care about what I'm hearing because he's off somewhere at the other end of the hall.

You're talking about the ECM, right?
Every kind of music is good, except the boring kind. — Rossini