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Egon Petri Plays BRAHMS: Violin Sonata; Viola Sonata; Rhapsodies and Ballades – with Joseph Szigeti, Samuel Lifschey – Pristine Audio

Egon Petri Plays BRAHMS: Violin Sonata; Viola Sonata; Rhapsodies and Ballades – with Joseph Szigeti, Samuel Lifschey – Pristine Audio

by | Aug 12, 2018 | Classical Reissue Reviews

Producer Mark Obert-Thorn provides the complement to the recorded Petri Brahms legacy, 1937-1955. BRAHMS: Violin Sonata No. 3 in D minor, Op. 108; Viola Sonata No. 2 in F minor, Op. 120, No. 1; 2 Rhapsodies, Op. 79; 3 Intermezzi, Op. 117; Ballades, Op. 10: No. 1 in D minor; No. 2 in D Major; No. 3 in B minor and No. 4 in B Major (the latter two as a FLAC download) – Joseph Szigeti, violin/ Samuel Lifschey, viola/ Egon Petri, piano – Pristine Audio PAKM 076, 76:59 [www.pristineclassical.com] ****: Dutch pianist Egon Petri (1881-1962) may well endure more as a pedagogue than brilliant virtuoso, since his teaching, first in Berlin and then both at Cornell University and Mills College, includes a host of luminaries, including Earl Wild, Gunnar Johansen, John Ogden, and Ruth Slenczynska. But Petri’s advocacy of his mentor, Ferruccio Busoni, for example, led to his collaboration in the 1941 Memorial Concert in New York led by Dimitri Mitropoulos.  Between 1935-1938 he recorded for English Columbia, and his recordings of Chopin, Liszt, Tchaikovsky, Franck, Beethoven, and Brahms won high praise. Recording engineer and producer Mark Obert-Thorn has assembled the Petri Brahms legacy from several sources, 1937-1955, including […]

BRAHMS: Theme and Variations, Op. 18b; Ballades, Op. 10; 7 Fantaises, Op. 116 – Denis Kozhukhin, piano – Pentatone

BRAHMS: Theme and Variations, Op. 18b; Ballades, Op. 10; 7 Fantaises, Op. 116 – Denis Kozhukhin, piano – Pentatone

by | Apr 6, 2017 | SACD & Other Hi-Res Reviews

A distinguished set of Brahms works by Denis Kozhukhin affords us passion and poetry, at once. BRAHMS: Ballades & Fantasies = Theme and Variations, Op. 18b; Ballades, Op. 10; 7 Fantaises, Op. 116 – Denis Kozhukhin, piano – Pentatone SACD PTC 5186 568, 57:01 (3/31/17) ****: Denis Kozhukhin (b. 1986) proves himself a passionate devotee of Johannes Brahms on this fine disc, recorded in the Netherlands, March 2016. Kozhukhin opens with a gift Brahms made for Clara Schumann of an arrangement from the d minor Andante from his String Sextet in B-flat Major, Op. 18 (1860), his first chamber work without keyboard. The variation form would become a visceral aspect of the Brahms ethos, here (1860) likely obligated to his thorough knowledge of the Bach Chaconne in d minor. Brahms creates a 16-measure in a melancholy hue, and he accelerates the note values in the manner of a Baroque dance, like La Folia. If the first three variants exhibit disquiet and solemnity, the fourth in D Major, permits a degree of repose and consolation. Something of a folk element appears in Variation Five, which imitates a bagpipe, also in D. Opening the last variation in its original minor key, Brahms […]

CHOPIN: Etudes Op. 10 Nos. 4, 10, and 11; Etudes Op. 25 Nos. 5, 8, 11, and 12; Ballades Op. 23, 38, 47, and 52; Nocturne No. 1; Nocturne No. 2; Polonaise No. 7, “Polonaise-fantaisie” – Sviatoslav Richter, p. – Praga DigitalsRAVEL: Gaspard de la nuit; Piano Concerto in G; Valses nobles et sentimentales; DEBUSSY: Children’s Corner – Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, p. – Praga Digitals

CHOPIN: Etudes Op. 10 Nos. 4, 10, and 11; Etudes Op. 25 Nos. 5, 8, 11, and 12; Ballades Op. 23, 38, 47, and 52; Nocturne No. 1; Nocturne No. 2; Polonaise No. 7, “Polonaise-fantaisie” – Sviatoslav Richter, p. – Praga DigitalsRAVEL: Gaspard de la nuit; Piano Concerto in G; Valses nobles et sentimentales; DEBUSSY: Children’s Corner – Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, p. – Praga Digitals

by | Mar 27, 2013 | Classical Reissue Reviews

Both of these recordings offer valuable insights into the artistry of legendary pianists. For me, though, the Richter is a far more appealing artifact. (Note: these are SACDs.)