Richter Archive
Daniel HOPE: “For Seasons” = Music of VIVALDI, BACH, RAMEAU, RICHTER, TCHAIKOWSKY, BRAHMS – Daniel Hope (v.)/Zürcher Kammerorchester – DGG
Very creative and highly entertaining but unusual! Daniel Hope, “For Seasons” [Track List follows] – Daniel Hope, violin/Zürcher Kammerorchester – Deutsche Grammaphon DGG 479 6922, 79:33, (3/03/2017) ****: The first – and certainly not even the most captivating – thing that catches your attention about this wonderfully eclectic and entertaining collection from violinist Daniel Hope is his arrangement (a “reimagining”) of Vivaldi’s iconic The Four Seasons. Is The Four Seasons simultaneously the best known and most potentially boring work for violin and orchestra ever? I have heard some say so and I think certainly it can be (boring, that is) but not in this dynamic and even aggressive rendition by Hope. Tempos are extreme, rallantandos and accelerandos are inserted where they do not exist in the original and volumes are exaggerated for effect. Daniel Hope’s playing is spectacular throughout and he makes a strong case to show that just a little (or a lot) bit of liberties taken with this violin icon can bring new excitement and daring to the work. Hope’s rendition will frustrate the purist but would arguably thrill audiences and the uninitiated listener. This whole album is a collection of relatively short works which, collectively, depict or […]
PROKOFIEV: Piano Sonatas 2, 6 & 8 – Alexander Melnikov – HM
Alexander Melnikov delivers his first installment of the tempestuous and alternately lyrical Prokofiev sonata-cycle. PROKOFIEV: Piano Sonata No. 2 in d, Op. 14; Piano Sonata No. 6 in A Major, Op. 82; Piano Sonata No. 8 in B-flat Major, Op. 84 – Alexander Melnikov, piano – Harmonia mundi HMC 902202, 70:05 (11/18/16) [Distr. by PIAS] ****: A complete cycle of Prokofiev sonatas, of which this (rec. 8-10 June 2014 and 3-5 August 2015) comprises the first installment. The 1912 Prokofiev Second Sonata first came to my attention through Jean Casadesus’ Piano Literature class at SUNY Binghamton. Dedicated to Prokofiev’s tragic friend Maximilian Smidthof, the music incorporates Prokofiev’s simultaneous gifts for acerbic percussion and haunted lyricism. The opening movement impressed me – realized by Casadesus at the time – with its multiplicity of moods, themes, and effects, all of which made Casadesus’ hands streak by in blurred, pungent motion. Melnikov – virtually a direct “heir” to Sviatoslav Richter – opts for a decidedly lyrical approach here, softening the percussive episodes so as to allow the polyphony of the five themes to blend, separate, vary, and gain in both ornaments and dynamics. The explosions really erupt from Melnikov in the Scherzo: Allegro […]
Mstislav Rostropovich, cello/ Alexander Dedyukhin, piano/ USSR Radio & TV PROKOKOFIEV: Cello Sonata; Sym.-Concerto; Concertina – Large Sym. Orch./ Gennadi Rozhdestvensky – Praga Digitals
Mstislav Rostropovich showcases three brilliant cello works by friend and colleague Sergei Prokofiev. PROKOFIEV: Sonata for Cello and Piano in C Major, Op. 119; Symphony-Concerto in e for Cello and Orchestra, Op. 125; Concertino in g for Cello and Orchestra, Op. 132 – Mstislav Rostropovich, cello/ Alexander Dedyukhin, piano/ USSR Radio & TV Large Sym. Orch./ Gennadi Rozhdestvensky – Praga Digitals PRD 250 337, 74:01 (9/9/16) [Distr. by Harmonia mundi/PIAS] ****: Praga assembles three seminal 1964 Mstislav Rostropovich (1927-2007) “live” performances of music by his friend and collaborator Sergei Prokofiev, for whom he helped recast the Cello Concerto No. 1, Op. 58. The premiere of the revised Sinfonia Concertante occurred 18 February 1952, with Sviatoslav Richter’s appearance on the podium to lead the Moscow Youth Orchestra. The success of the performance inspired Prokofiev to begin “a diaphanous concertino for cello and orchestra. . .which I intend to complete . . .in 1953.” Prokofiev’s untimely death prevented his finishing the last movement, so Rostropovich, working with Dmitri Kabalevsky, completed the score. The 1949 Cello Sonata came as a product of “formal” criticism by Politburo member Andrei Zhdanov, who had accused Prokofiev – and Shostakovich, Miaskovsky, and Khachaturian – of having become […]
DVORAK: Piano Concerto in g minor; SCHUMANN: Piano Concerto – Stephen Hough, p./ City of Birmingham Orch./ Andris Nelsons – Hyperion
The unusual combination of Schumann and Dvorak concertos certifies Stephen Hough’s mastery in music of the Romantic temperament. DVORAK: Piano Concerto in g minor, Op. 33; SCHUMANN: Piano Concerto in a minor, Op. 54 – Stephen Hough, p./ City of Birmingham Orch./ Andris Nelsons – Hyperion CDA68099, 74:11 (4/1/16) [Distr. by Harmonia mundi] ****: My own familiarity with the Dvorak Piano Concerto of 1876 derives from a recording by Frantisek Maxian and Vaclav Talich – wonderful playing of an edition by pedagogue Vilem Kurz (1872-1945), amending a “concerto for two right hands.” Rudolf Firkusny, too, performed the abridged version, recording it with George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra. So, whatever the innate fluency and often Bohemian charm of the piece, it maintained a reputation for its awkward pianism, its lack of virtuoso bravura, and its rarity in performance. Sviatoslav Richter (1915-1997) altered our perception of the work, reverting to the uncut, original edition and subsequently performing it with Kondrashin and recording it with Carlos Kleiber. Now, the tendency is for pianists to perform the original version as a matter of course, adjusting its idiosyncratic demands to a fluent, poetic realization that makes us question why the work ever fell out […]
ALEXANDER SCRIABIN: The Complete Works (Playlist follows) – Decca (18 CDs)
An amazing collection of his complete works, in mostly excellent versions.
Martha Argerich Vol. 3 = BEETHOVEN: Piano Sonata No. 7 in D Major; SCHUMANN: Kinderszenen; Toccata in C Major; LISZT: Hungarian Rhapsody No. 6 in D-flat Major; PROKOFIEV: Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Major – Martha Argerich, p./ Cologne Radio Sym. Orch./ Carl Melles – Doremi
Doremi celebrates the youthful Argentinian piano virtuoso Martha Argerich with a third installment of unissued radio and studio recordings of significant repertory.
Home Page for July 2014
Our July drawing/giveaway will be for three EuroArts 14-hour-plus Blu-ray Classical Archive Collector’s Editions focusing on Ensembles. These are great video performances by some of the legendary musical artists of the 20th century. Outstanding ensembles of the past show their thrilling artistry in inimitable performances, including concerts, recitals and detailed booklet information. Among the performers are Rostropovich, Richter, David Oistrakh, Both Menuhins, Casadesus, Francescatti, and the Amadeus Quartet. All you need do to be considered as one of the three winners (plus having a Blu-ray deck and being into classical) to be selected is to register using our simple form this month. (Those who don’t completely fill out the form will not be considered for the drawing.) The three lucky winners will be listed on our Editorial Page next month, where this month you’ll find more details on this drawing.
BEETHOVEN: Concerto for Violin/Cello/Piano in C “Triple Concerto” – David Oistrakh, v./ Mstislav Rostropovich, cello/ Sviatoslav Richter, piano/ Berlin Philharmonic Orch./ Herbert von Karajan – EMI/Resonance Recordings Ltd./Hi-Q Records
A super-classic recording from 1969 with four of the biggest names in classical music at the time, now in super-fidelity (for a price).
BEETHOVEN: Triple Concerto; BRAHMS: Violin Concerto; Double Concerto – David Oistrakh, violin/ Mstislav Rostropovich, cello/ Sviatoslav Richter, piano/Berlin Philharmonic/ Herbert von Karajan (BEETHOVEN)/Cleveland Orch./ George Szell (BRAHMS) – EMI Classics (2 discs)
The first of our reviews of the initial batch of EMI Classics Signature SACD Collection.
Stereotypes Audio
Cembal d’amour
Pure Pleasure / Speakers Corner
Cedille
