The Italian Invasion

Started by Todd, May 30, 2015, 10:20:10 AM

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Todd




OK, the only thing Italian about this disc is that was released by Universal Music Italia, but that's good enough for me.  This is the third recording Michail Lifits has made for the label, and this time around the recording is of lesser known, or at least lesser recorded works, from a Great Composer: Shostakovich's Op 34 Preludes and the Op 57 Piano Quintet.  For the quintet, Lifits is joined by the Szymanowski Quartet in one of its recent guises.  The ensemble appears to have undergone two personnel changes in the last couple years, so the ensemble that appears on the disc is one member different than the current ensemble.  Since this is my first exposure to them, I don't know if they sound any different than before or after this recording.

I can report that Michail Lifits sounds the same.  Masterful control of every aspect of his playing allows him to play gently or ear-splittingly loud, and with a rich tone or a flinty one, as the music demands.  This comes in handy in the Preludes.  Some are thundering and dark (eg, 14th), some are acidic, some are light and fun, and Lifits manages to make each miniature its own little world.  The only other version I've heard is from the likewise extremely talented, but very different Olli Mustonen.  Some comparing and contrasting may be in order.  But Lifits makes the work seem more substantial and meaningful.  The even bigger work here is the Piano Quintet.  Lifits opens with wall rattling left hand playing and establishes a somber tone.  When the quartet enters, they answer with intensity to match the pianist's, but they back off as the movement unfolds.  The dialog between different combos is most effective.  The slow movement sounds powerfully sorrowful, a fugue of not a little emotional impact.  The Scherzo sounds punchy, the Intermezzo searching, with some fine violin work, in particular, and the Finale sounds more energetic, and if not necessarily uplifting, then at least vibrant enough to shed the weight of the preceding movement.  Here's another case where A/Bs are possible, and this time it would be against some heavyweights in the repertoire: Richter/Borodin and Ashkenazy/Fitzwilliam.  Such a comparison could be a bit draining, so I'm in no hurry, but surely one must be done.

SOTA sonics, with some breathing and mechanism noise audible.  The disc sounds fabulous through headphones or speakers, but for full dynamic impact throughout and for maximum scale in the Piano Quintet, speakers are a must.

Now I've heard Lifits in a decent array of both solo and chamber repertoire, so it's about time he records a concerto.  I don't care which one (or more).

A world class release.
The universe is change; life is opinion. - Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

People would rather believe than know - E.O. Wilson

Propaganda death ensemble - Tom Araya

Todd




A retro entry in the parade of Italian musicians.  Dino Ciani, for those who don't know, was a young star of the piano, complete with DG contract, who died in a car accident at the age of 32 in 1974.  His LvB sonata cycle has the distinction of having the worst recorded sound of any yet released, worse than even Artur Schnabel's, owing to the fact that it was made with a cheap tape recorder stuck in the audience during a series of recitals.  There are moments of brilliance, and some sonatas are quite good, but it's a set ultimately suited to collectors like me.  His recording of Debussy's Preludes has long been available on a DG twofer paired with other recordings of Debussy works made by Tamas Vasary.  There are some independent label recordings and pirate recordings, as befits a cult artist.  This handy DG box offers a more formal and solid selection of works to sample from this long lost artist.

Disc one contains Bach's sixth Partita and two Preludes and Fugues from Book I of the 48.  The Partita is a bit leisurely, dark hued, and serious.  To be sure, Ciani plays some music with a nice rhythmic snap and the whole thing works very well, though there are better versions out there.  The two WTC pieces both sound somewhat somber, very clear, and almost devout.  It would have been nice had Ciani been able to record the whole set, and it would have been even better had DG not had to rely on amateur tape recordings.

Disc two is given over to Carl Maria von Weber's Second and Third Piano Sonatas, and two movements from Bartok's Out of Doors, so not exactly core rep.  Ciano plays the Second sonata with enough lyricism and flair to satisfy, and he infuses the Andante with more than mere surface sound, but he doesn't try to make the music more than it is.  The Third probably comes off slightly better, with a slightly lighter touch in the galloping, great fun finale.  The two Bartok pieces are very well done, with the heavily pedaled Night Music very effective.  If only he had recorded more Bartok for DG.

Discs three and four are devoted to Chopin and were taken from recitals, with Ciani providing a spoken introduction.  The Nocturnes, or most of them anyway, start the twofer off.  The amateur recording taken from a recital in the early 70s can't hide its faults, though it sounds much better than his Beethoven cycle.  It's something of a pity that the recordings weren't properly made, because Ciani's playing is excellent.  It's very atmospheric, brooding and dark, yet beautiful, and the flubs are of the sort one expects in live settings.  The recital is filled out with the Barcarolle, Op 61 Polonaise-Fantasie, and an assortment of Mazurkas and Waltzes.  They all sound excellent, the Barcarolle and Polonaise-Fantasie, in particular benefitting from Ciani's approach.

The last two discs contain his well-known Debussy Preludes, and one of the main attractions of the set, Schumann's Noveletten.  The Debussy has always been very enjoyable, if not a first choice for me.  Ciani's tone is generally dark and bass-rich, his tempo a bit leisurely, but his dynamic range superb (capped by a grand La cathédrale engloutie) and the second book ends with dazzling playing in both Les tierces alternées and Feux d'artifice.  The Schumann offers more.  Ciani's temperament seems a perfect fit for the work, with his big sonority and ability to play both a bit broad yet with momentum in the Eusebius passages and an almost nonchalant brilliance that never sounds overwrought in the Florestan passages making the work cohere more than one might think.  The playing really does have it all, and while I don't exactly have an extensive collection of the complete Noveletten, both Michel Block and Yves Nat deliver superb renditions, and Ciani is basically on par with them, and different enough to enjoy for different reasons.  Sound is a bit sub-par for the era, but is more that sufficient to allow near-maximum appreciation of the artistry on display.

There's enough fine pianism here to justify the purchase of the set and to put up with the sub-par sound, but, the Schumann aside (the Debussy has already gotten its due), I doubt any of the pieces get a lot of spins, and I will not go out of my way to buy all of the various other live recordings out there, though if a cheap box with everything became available, I'd bite.
The universe is change; life is opinion. - Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

People would rather believe than know - E.O. Wilson

Propaganda death ensemble - Tom Araya

marvinbrown



A thread entitled "The Italian Invasion" and no opera??

Todd

#103



[This will be cross-posted in Liszt - Annees de Pelerinage]

Enrico Pace's sole solo commercial studio recording to date.  (There's an early solo recording of the Liszt Sonata, Dante Sonata, and Réminiscences de Don Juan, but that was for publication promotion purposes.)  That the 1989 Liszt International Piano Competition winner might have some affinity for Liszt isn't so surprising, and given that Pace has provided world-class piano accompaniment in world-class recordings of core chamber music rep, it is not surprising that this recording ends up sounding swell. 

Pace's way is not one of hypervirtuosic bombast; rather, his way is more lyrical and poetic.  That's not to say Pace cannot play the music with the necessary executive brilliance, because he can and does.  He just focuses on other things.  He'll lovingly attend to each note in some arpeggios, weighting them all equally on occasion, making them sound more important and longer than other takes, though they are not.  He'll lavish attention on upper register playing, with some sounding crystalline and pure.  He'll deliver some of the most beautiful and tender pianissimo playing, as in Les cloches de Geneve, where one can envision Liszt wanting to transcribe the experience of hearing gently tolling distant bells one particularly lovely morning with Marie d'Agoult by his side.  He'll produce rich and weighty lower register playing without drowning out higher registers.  In Eclogue, he creates a dazzling effect with light but insistent and steady left hand playing providing a foundation for the beautiful right hand melodies in a way I've not heard before. 

The pianistic and interpretive goodness carries over to year two.  Each piece is fully characterized, and Pace plays with unique but not overbearing personal touches.  Could some phrases be less clipped in Il Penseroso?  Undoubtedly.  I might like the result more than this, or I might not.  The Petrarch Sonnets are wonderfully poetic and flowing.  Pace doesn't quite play with the same type of delicate and wide-ranging pianism as Julian Gorus, but the aesthetic impact of his playing is similar, and the beauty undeniable.  The Dante is swift and dramatic and large-scale enough to more than satisfy, and if even more powerful versions are out there, there may not be better ones.

It's a pity that Pace did not record the whole set - indeed, he didn't even record Venezia e Napoli.   This is absolutely wonderful Liszt playing, and had Pace included the final year, this might be the Années to own.  At the very least, this stands alongside Rubackytė, Chamayou, Gorus, and Schirmer. 

Sound is fully modern, but dynamic range is not SOTA.
The universe is change; life is opinion. - Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

People would rather believe than know - E.O. Wilson

Propaganda death ensemble - Tom Araya

Spineur

Giovanni Bellucci is starting a new Beethoven piano sonatas cycle

[asin]B00VSHH91M[/asin]

I have been very favorably impressed by his Schubert sonatas interpretations.  I believe, this may well be worth checking.

Oldnslow

Bellucci's first installment is characterized by many hesitations and  slow tempos--a very idiosyncratic start to the 32....

André

Quote from: Spineur on August 12, 2017, 11:47:19 AM
Giovanni Bellucci is starting a new Beethoven piano sonatas cycle

[asin]B00VSHH91M[/asin]

I have been very favorably impressed by his Schubert sonatas interpretations.  I believe, this may well be worth checking.

Any relationship to Monica ?  ;D

Todd









Earlier this year, I was wowed by Trio Owon's Beethoven Piano Trios, making me think it might not be a bad idea to hear more recordings of the works.  I was also wowed by Sonig Tchakerian's Bach Solo Violin Sonatas and Partitas, making me think it might not be a bad idea to hear more recordings from her.  As it happens, in 1994, she recorded the Beethoven Piano Trios as part of the Trio Italiano.  So that seemed like something I wanted to try, and when I found the three discs for old-time Naxos prices, I bought the recordings.  This set is not of the super-complete variety, excluding some early pieces and the Op 11 Gassenhaur Trio, but the Opp 1, 44, 70, 97, and 121a works are all included.

As with almost all good chamber music recordings, there is no true star here, with each musician getting his or her time to shine, and lots of quality work together.  In the early works there's a nice mix of energy, refinement (a Goldilocks amount), youthful vigor, and some actual fun (like in the finale of Op 1/1).  In the Op 70 trios, the players never play with the same level of energy as the Trio Owon, though they still have plenty of energy, but they do play with a sort of rough-hewn elegance.  This is middle period, bawdy joke, rough and tumble Beethoven, but it is classed up enough for salons and parlors.  Good stuff.  The trio sees fit to impart a more romantic tinge to the Archduke, which is quite alright, especially when delivered so well.  The two sets of variations mix the various traits to excellent effect, as well. 

All three artists play very well.  Tchakerian, the reason I bought the set, plays in a more or less conventional way, without the more robust individuality found in her Bach.  That's not at all meant as criticism, and indeed, this is not meant to imply that she plays timidly, because that's not the case for her or her partners.  As performed and recorded, pianist Giovanni Battista Rigon can overpower the other players here and there, but in Beethoven's chamber music, that's not unheard of.

Overall, the Trio Owon are better across the board, but this newcomer to my collection offers another supremely enjoyable recording with enough corporate individuality to warrant multiple listens. 

Sound is very much in line with the audiophile approach common to the Arts label, and sounds very similar to Telarc recordings of the time.  The recordings are a bit more distant than normal, with plenty of natural reverb, and a completely natural level of detail, and phenomenal dynamic range (maybe even too much) and the recordings sound clean, clean, clean.  The very best recordings of today are perhaps slightly better in terms of detail, but the sound more than holds up and can be considered either SOTA or just shy of that ever improving standard.
The universe is change; life is opinion. - Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

People would rather believe than know - E.O. Wilson

Propaganda death ensemble - Tom Araya

Todd




Here's a nice, low-cost surprise.  Thus far, I've only purposely purchased two CPE Bach recordings: Mikhail Pletnev's awesome single keyboard music disc, and Ana-Marija Markovina's hulking complete solo keyboard music box set.  I much prefer Pletnev's superior albeit more idiosyncratic pianism, though some of Markvina's playing is very enjoyable.  (I have a few CPE Bach discs buried in big box sets, too.)  I wasn't in the market for new CPE Bach, but this twofer was under $3 as an Amazon Add-On, so only one good cup of coffee was at risk financially.  Truth to tell, I bought the set with no investigation, and it was not until after I bought it that I learned that it's a HIP set, played on a modern Schwarz reconstruction of a 1749 Silbermann.  I'm generally not a fan of fortepiano recordings, with a few exceptions.  (When it comes to using ancient instruments or reconstructions thereof, I'm utterly indifferent.) 

Andrea Coen himself is an Italian performer and musicologist who has worked with HIP A-listers, put together the first complete critical edition of Domenico Cimarosa's keyboard works, and he is on the scientific committee (?) of the complete works of Muzio Clementi, as well as being engaged in some other major musicological endeavors.  He very clearly has the background for this project.

I didn't feel like doing extensive A/Bs with the music, but one couldn't hurt, so I decided on the first work in the Coen set, Wq 118/4 (H54).  Markovina's playing is generally crisp and light, and while Coen's is, too, it's also a bit more relaxed in overall approach.  Certainly, the more soothing tone of the HIP keyboard contributes to that when compared to a modern Boesendorfer, but so does the over minute longer that Coen takes.  Of course, some specific phrases and arpeggios become a bit clearer as a result.  Call it something of a draw, though being able to just kick back and relax and listen is fun here, in works that are not particularly deep.  Coen's overall approach doesn't change throughout the set.  That is not to say that the music ends up suffering from a "sameness" that can creep into such projects, because the music is nicely varied.  As I listened to the 135 tracks, the music ended up feeling like a lengthy collection of divertimenti.  I doubt I ever obsessively collect or listen to these works or this recording, but this is the type of disc that would make for outstanding background music while one is engaged in other endeavors where it is possible to shift full attention to the music on a whim.  I also suspect that I will, on a whim, just listen to some of the music when I'm in a mood for something a little different but not heavy.

Superb, with even the mechanism noise not detracting from enjoyment.
The universe is change; life is opinion. - Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

People would rather believe than know - E.O. Wilson

Propaganda death ensemble - Tom Araya

Todd




[This will be cross-posted in Schubertiade!]

Michelanagelo Carbonara is a thirty-something pianist born in Italy who studied at both the Santa Cecilia Conservatory and Academy, won or placed in over a dozen competitions, and worked with a variety of more famous names in master classes and the like.  He has done the touring thing, of course, and records mostly for Brilliant Classics, under both the Brilliant and Piano Classics imprints.  This is the first time I've heard anything from him.

The disc opens with D157.  Carbonara's approach in the opening Allegro ma non troppo is direct and unaffected, light and charming, lyrical and clear.  So far, so good, if a bit unmemorable.  The slow Andante contains more pronounced Schubertian lyricism and melancholy, without overdoing it, with left hand playing that sounds both full and light.  Carbonara finishes the sonata off with a quick, cleanly articulated Menuetto.  It sounds quasi-rushed and more stormy-lite than light.  A good start.

D664 follows, and Carbonara goes for endless, flowing lyricism in the Allegro moderato, playing some of the upper register music in a slightly precious way.  Sound is tilted to the middle and upper registers, though that doesn't matter much here.  The Andante is played even more beautifully and delicately than the opener.  The bass-light sound makes the music sort of float, and the very narrow dynamic range makes it fall softly on the ear.  Carbonara then ends with an Allegro that remains lyrical and includes approximations of more robust playing, the bass-light sound depriving the music of oomph, though here, in this sonata, that's not a major detriment.  Indeed, it's an excellent performance, one worthy on inclusion in a shootout, and the best thing on the disc.

D845 closes out the disc.  I tend to prefer an edgier, more intense approach to this sonata, though there are obvious exceptions (eg, Michail Lifits.)  Carbonara's approach is somewhat similar to Lifits in some ways.  He never rushes the Moderato, which is good, and some of the playing is very small-scale, very intimate.  Large dynamic swings sound medium-sized here, and a sense of mystery permeates much of the playing.  The Andante is slow and delicate and deliberate and intimate.  It's drawing room, Schubertiade Schubert, and strikingly effective.  The Scherzo is just about perfectly paced and a bit more robust than the first two movements, but it is still restrained, and the Trio is just gorgeous.  Carbonara closes out with a Rondo that alternates between vigorous passages and gentler passages quite nicely.  Like Lifits, he makes a strong case for a less intense reading of this sonata, though it lacks that some extra that Lifits brings.

Per Carbonara's site, he has all of Schubert's sonatas in his repertoire.  Even if the sonatas are not first choices for me, they are all excellent, and they are all purposely more intimately scaled than normal, though this trait is more obvious through speakers than headphones, strangely enough.  I wouldn't mind hearing a few more at some point.

Sound is close and dry and bass-light, with some pedal stomps audible here and there.
The universe is change; life is opinion. - Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

People would rather believe than know - E.O. Wilson

Propaganda death ensemble - Tom Araya

Mandryka



Giulia Nuti plays Chambonnieres, Louis Couperin, François Hardel etc. Familiar music but the harpsichord she's got is amazing and she knows how to drive it! The recording captures the colours very well. Nuti makes the music into something  tender, sensual, gorgeous. Bauynmanuscriptliscious. I'm posting here because this is a recording which may win over even the most diehard pianophile. She works somewhere near Florence.
Wovon man nicht sprechen kann, darüber muss man schweigen

Todd

#111



Michelangelo Carbonara's Ravel.  Disc one.  This is just about the softest-edged, most Debussyan Ravel I've heard.  As on his Schubert disc, Carbonara uses a Yamaha CF III, and again the recorded sound is bass light, and here it also sounds delicate and sweet and warm.  Those wanting sharper, more linear, cleaner Ravel may want to avoid this set.  Make no mistake, some little felicities are meltingly lovely, and those felicities are not rare.  The delicate arpeggio that ends the Modere of the Sonatine is a marvel.  The Anime closer simply doesn't flow like most recordings, with some stilted left hand playing that nonetheless sounds slightly off-putting but also very intriguing.  Sometimes, things take a minute to get used to.  Jeux d'eau at first sounds too slow and unflowing, but as it proceeds one gets a better sense of what the pianist wants to do, and the right hand playing at the end is just beautiful.  To the extent it is "watery", it is the shimmer of a shallow fountain, some of the light refracting this way and that, at random. Carbonara tends toward hazy and languid playing throughout, but it reaches it's apex in Miroirs, where his timings and style are slow almost across the board.  The heavy dollop of impressionism transforms these pieces, though it won't be for everyone.  Noctuelles has a sort of meandering, flitting feel to it.  Oiseaux tristes, while not absurdly slow in terms of timing, is languid in the extreme, yet lovely.  Une barque sur l'océan has got to be one of the quietest, most relaxed versions I've heard.  Only about five and a half minutes in does Carbonara play with real power and speed.  For the most part, it seems like he cannot find a gentle enough piano or pianissimo note.  This is the antithesis of Schuch or Chamayou.  Carbonara plays Alborada del gracioso with more power, but not great speed, and his gentle playing becomes slightly hardened, but in a muffled way.  Only in La vallée des cloches does the pianist adopt a more or less standard timing, but his style still makes it sound slow, though the sometimes muffled accompaniment and the hazy melody work well together. 

Disc two starts off with Gaspard.  Carbonara's playing stays bass-light, dynamically constrained, with lovely right hand playing, though it's neither seduces nor sounds particularly watery/shimmering in Ondine.  Carbonara's style works superbly in Le Gibet.  The small, soft sound creates a simultaneously haunting and desolate and peculiarly comforting sound.  It's a grim but harmless dreamscape.  Scarbo is too slow and soft-edged to be truly effective, but in its resolutely anti-virtuosic style, it allows the listener to appreciate some passages shorn of bravado and potent dynamics.  It both doesn't work and sort of does.  No way the weak bass playing should work, but at the same time it is appealing.  This Scarbo doesn't menace.  This Scarbo taunts a protagonist rendered immobile by a drug induced haze; the little rapscallion jumps into view, leers nastily, disappears, pops back into and out of view fleetingly to taunt once more, then shuffles off into darkness.  It's definitely not reference level stuff, but it intrigues in its languid, opiated feel. The Haydn, Borodin, Chabrier, and Prelude miniatures come off nicely, in a relaxed sort of way.  The other two big works sound like the others that came before in their softness and smallness.  In Valses nobles et sentimentales, Carbonara is loath to venture beyond mezzo-forte most of the time, preferring to hover between that and piano.  Le Tombeau de Couperin ends the set, and Carbonara's timings are conventional and his overall style is slightly more direct and linear, and less hazy, but he never completely sheds his soft-edged sound. 

Like Tzimon Barto, this Ravel is different, but unlike Barto, it's not different just to be perversely different.  In its more or less impressionistic, hazy, at times anti-virtuosic style, it's definitely not for everyone, and it is hard to see this being a reference set for anyone, but for an alternative approach, this mostly works on its own terms.

Sonically, the sound is softer grained and more intimate through speakers than headphones, as with his Schubert disc.
The universe is change; life is opinion. - Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

People would rather believe than know - E.O. Wilson

Propaganda death ensemble - Tom Araya

kishnevi

Given the many glamour shots in the liner notes, this could easily qualify for the Violin Babes thread as well.
[asin]B075M51L4G[/asin]
The Paganini sounds like...what you expect Paganini to sound like, a warhorse. Couldn't she have picked a less well known concerto. Or at least another Paganini? But my problem lies in the concerto's warhorse status, not the performance itself.
The Wolf-Ferrari makes sitting through the Paganini worthwhile, although I would need to find my other recordings and do an A/B before saying more.

Todd

Quote from: Jeffrey Smith on November 17, 2017, 04:10:53 PMCouldn't she have picked a less well known concerto. Or at least another Paganini?


The disc appears to be sticking with an Italian theme, and she may not have other Italian violin concertos in her repertoire right now.  And, of course, her first DG disc was the Paganini Caprices.  Does the booklet mention her partnership with Versace?  She's the first classical artist I'm aware of that has had such a deal.
The universe is change; life is opinion. - Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

People would rather believe than know - E.O. Wilson

Propaganda death ensemble - Tom Araya

kishnevi

Quote from: Todd on November 17, 2017, 05:40:40 PM

The disc appears to be sticking with an Italian theme, and she may not have other Italian violin concertos in her repertoire right now.  And, of course, her first DG disc was the Paganini Caprices.  Does the booklet mention her partnership with Versace?  She's the first classical artist I'm aware of that has had such a deal.

I made a quick flip through and saw no reference to Versace.

But I did discover the conductor is her husband. The booklet mentions his focus as being opera, which links to the supposed theme:  Paganini as influenced by Italian opera, Wolf-Ferrari as an Italian opera composer.

It wasn't until the applause broke out at the end that I realized the Wolf Ferrari was a live recording.

Todd

Quote from: Jeffrey Smith on November 17, 2017, 05:58:23 PMBut I did discover the conductor is her husband.


Another power couple.  I'm on the fence on buying the disc because I am close to my lifetime limit of Paganini recordings of any type, though my Wolf Ferrari collection is thin.  Of course, this is another case where UMG uploaded the disc to YouTube, so purchasing is not even required.  There are also concert performances of the Sibelius, Tchaikovsky, and Mendelssohn.  I'm hoping for the Brahms and some 20th Century concertos from her at some point, and more with Leonardi (or, better yet, Pace).
The universe is change; life is opinion. - Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

People would rather believe than know - E.O. Wilson

Propaganda death ensemble - Tom Araya

Jo498

The Wolf-Ferrari concerto (I have Hoelscher on cpo) is at least as good as the Korngold and should be known better. I dislike the Paganini sufficiently to not consider that disc above but for those who don't know the Wolf-Ferrari it could be a good option.
Tout le malheur des hommes vient d'une seule chose, qui est de ne savoir pas demeurer en repos, dans une chambre.
- Blaise Pascal

Todd




The second volume of Roberto Prosseda's Mozart sonatas starts off right where the last one left off, with K309, and it displays all the same traits as the first volume.  Interventionist rubato and ornamentation is evident in the very spirited Allegro con spirito and pops up everywhere.  Too, Prosseda displays what his Valotti unequal temperament Fazioli can do, ranging from hefty, warm bass to barely there pianissimo so soft one wonders how the piano emits a tone at all.  The playing veers squarely into trees rather than forest territory, but all the little felicities Prosseda delivers keeps the listener listening most intently.  Prosseda makes sure to open K310 in fast, forceful fashion, with the Fazioli's low registers delivering some rumbly, blurred punch in places.  In the Andante, some of Prosseda's playing offers hints of where Beethoven may have derived some of his ideas, especially in some extended left hand runs.  He also doesn't skimp on the drama, nor does he do so in the finale.  Prosseda then plays a K397 Fantasia that starts off dark and moody and mostly stays that way before transitioning attacca to the opening of K311, which offers a lighter, more refined contrast.  However effective marrying the two pieces might be, the playing in the sonata is just dandy start to finish. 

The second disc starts with a purely delightful K330, with closing Allegretto so lovely and light that one sort of listens entranced.  While I enjoy all of Mozart's sonatas, K331 has slowly emerged as perhaps my favorite, and not so much because of the Alla turca ending - though that is splendid - but because of the opening Andante grazioso theme and variations.  Prosseda plays the theme nicely, and then he imbues each variation with enough individuality, in the form of appropriate and lovely ornamentation, well judged rubato, occasional dashes of drama, and other nice little touches - very slightly shortened note values in some right hand arpeggios, say.  And at just a whisker shy of thirteen minutes, Prosseda's lavish playing offers extended musical satisfaction.  The Menuetto has ample little touches, while the Alla turca displays individual rubato, some moments of notable ornamentation, and large dynamic swings, including some extra-hefty forte playing and a sort of micro-cadenza.  K332 displays Prosseda's same traits, and adds a large helping of forcefulness, though there's still a lot of delicate, precious playing.  Ditto the second and third movements.  Prosseda includes the K400 movement completed by Maximilian Stadler as a sort of encore, and it offers more of the same.

Overall, I dig this set as much as the first one, though this is probably not the best choice for people who want straight-ahead Mozart.

Sound quality is possibly even better than the real thing.
The universe is change; life is opinion. - Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

People would rather believe than know - E.O. Wilson

Propaganda death ensemble - Tom Araya

Todd




I wasn't looking for a new physical copy of Liszt's Études d'exécution transcendante, but when Mariangela Vacatello's popped up for a couple bucks as an Add-On, I figured why not.  Ms Vacatello is not new to my collection.  I've got her twofer of Ginastera's complete piano music, and it is most enjoyable, even if she can't match Michael Korstick at his best.  (That's a pretty high bar.)  Vacatello made her public debut playing a Liszt concerto, so I kind of figured she should have a Liszt style down.  She does.  Vacatello is at her relative best in the most extroverted, unabashedly virtuosic music.  In Mazeppa or Wilde Jagd, she rips right through the bravura music with speed and power and excellent dexterity.  In music where either a lighter, more nuanced, or tonally varied touch might come in handy, like Feux Follets, for instance, others offer more.  Ricordanza shows that Vacatello can play with a gentler touch, though.  Harmonies du soir stands as the highlight, sweeping and romantic and expertly dispatched.  A decent set.
The universe is change; life is opinion. - Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

People would rather believe than know - E.O. Wilson

Propaganda death ensemble - Tom Araya

Todd




Gianluca Cascioli is a pianist of ideas.  Whether considering his Debussy or Mozart or Beethoven Violin Sonatas with Sayaka Shoji, Cascioli plays with individuality.  The results may be too much of a good thing, or not, depending on taste, but nothing he does sounds run of the mill.  When I saw that he recorded Op 106, I knew I would be getting the disc at some point.

The disc opens with Op 78.  Even here, Cascioli plays with distinct personality.  The Allegro ma non troppo starts with a big, bold sonority that almost evokes an organ-like sound, and he plays the whole movement on the slow side, spicing things up with personal rubato, and then after about three minutes, Cascioli splits the volume between left and right hands dramatically, keeping a steady pulse but while hammering out some right hand playing.  The Allegro vivace offers more of the stark, dual dynamic range playing and an exaggerated, puckish sense of humor, though it is entirely calculated.  It sounds like no other version and is packed with more ideas than some complete cycles I've heard. 

Op 81a acts as the bridge between the two sonatas.  Opening quietly and with a rounded tone, it sounds lovely but retains a sense of calculation.  As the movement moves to faster music, Cascioli never quite shakes a calculated feel, with all manner of personal touches, mostly rubato, but occasionally with accents.  The second movement, while not shaking the feel of calculation, does a better job of creating a sense of emotional turmoil, of longing.  Of more interest, though, is the sometimes rock-steady, sometimes purposely uneven bass, the hard-hitting but rounded forte playing, and some especially fine, emphasized arpeggios.  The closing movement is faster and more celebratory, but it, too is chock full of little touches throughout, with accenting just so here, and rubato just so there. 

Op 106 closes the disc.  Cascioli brings the Allegro in at a brief 8'26".  In his extensive liner notes, with fourteen footnotes and extensive quotes from Nikolaus Harnoncourt - the recording is dedicated to the conductor's memory - he states that he thinks the metronome marks are correct for the opening movement and that claims that Beethoven did not know what he was doing or that the composer relied on a broken metronome lack musicological evidence.  I read the notes before listening, and given the timing, I was hoping for a super-fast take.  The brief timing is accomplished by axing the repeat.  That ends up being OK since Cascioli also plays the piece uniquely.  To start with, Casciol's is less grand in conception than other takes.  While not really small in scale, the pianist doesn't use the grandest of gestures.  He also plays the opening chords and all returns at an unremarkable tempo.  He then plays other material in zippy, almost fun fashion, with the right hand playing dominates.  The movement moves forward at all times and is pianistic in conception - no quasi-orchestral sound here.  The Scherzo is fast and zippy and purposely congested.  It's also lighter in overall feel than many versions.  The Adagio comes in at a just slightly quick sixteen minutes and change.  Cascioli makes it sound faster than the timing implies.  He maintains tension throughout, and if the music never takes on an especially deep or desolate sound, the sort of idealized detachment works.  The coda is played very slowly and clearly, with Cascioli savoring the last notes.  The finale movement opens with a slow and precise Largo, with dramatic pauses.  The fugue is played at a reasonable tempo, with Cascioli sort of skating along.  It's often dynamically limited and it is not really clear or even about contrapuntal clarity.  It becomes almost a formal fantasia.  It's not unappealing, but it doesn't make the listener think "holy smokes, that rocks!".  But it doesn't have to.  Truth to tell, I was hoping for a slow, analytical, insanely clear disc more along the lines of his Mozart disc, but Cascioli offers something different.  This is very much a recording about fine and very fine details.

Cascioli has recorded a handful of other Beethoven sonatas.  I'm more than tempted to get my hands on them.  I don't know if he plans on recording a complete cycle, but if he does, it will be of the very idiosyncratic variety, like with Sherman and Pienaar and Heidsieck.

As with some prior Cascioli recordings, this is pretty much all his show.  He's producer, co-engineer, and did some post-production work.  The recording relies on audiophile brand hardware.  This disc sounds exactly the way Cascioli wants it to sound.  It sounds superb.
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