CD Reviews (The Straits Times, December 2015)

VLADIMIR HOROWITZ

Unreleased Live Recordings 1966-1983

Sony Classical 88843054582 (50 CDs) 

*****

It has been 26 years since the death of Russian-American pianist Vladimir Horowitz (1903-1989), yet his legend resonates strongly among those who were fortunate to have experienced him live in concert, and those who can only dream. 

This massive box-set brings to the public unedited recordings by Columbia Masterworks and RCA Victor of concerts which have never been previously released in full. These include 25 solo recitals and a sizzling 1978 performance of Rachmaninov's Third Piano Concerto with the New York Philharmonic led by Zubin Mehta (previously only available on DVD). However its contents may only satisfy diehards who must hear every note he played.

Although his repertoire was vast, he only showcased a small segment and had distinct preferences. There are 7 performances of Beethoven's Sonata No.28 in A major (Op.101) alone, which makes for fascinating comparisons. His highly-strung performances of the Second Sonatas by Chopin and Rachmaninov should not be missed for their sheer voltage alone. His love for Schumann was incomparable, as the performances of the Concerto Without Orchestra, Kreisleriana and Humoreske attest. 

Appearing for the first time are two readings of Carnaval from recitals in 1983, by the time his playing had become clearly ragged, erratic and fragmented. The contrast between his peaks and troughs is sometimes distressing to behold. This lavish set tips the scales at almost 2 kilograms, but is well worth its weight in gold.      

ITZHAK PERLMAN

PLAYS FRITZ KREISLER

Itzhak Perlman, Violin

Samuel Sanders, Piano

Warner Classics (3CDs) / *****

Fritz Kreisler (1875-1962) was best known for his Viennese waltz miniatures for violin like Liebesfreud, Liebesleid and Schön Rosmarin, which are all included in this slim-line 3-disc album from Warner Classics' Itzhak Perlman retrospective. Kreisler also wrote plenty of transcriptions of other composers' music, from songs like the traditional Irish tune Londonderry Air to Lehar's Serenade from Frasquita, showpieces by Paganini and Tartini (Devil's Trill Sonata) and dances galore with Dvorak, Brahms and de Falla among them.

More controversially, he had passed off several original compositions in the antique style as long-lost works of long-dead Baroque composers like Couperin, Boccherini and Dittersdorf but eventually owned up to the deception. These are charming works which find veteran American fiddler Itzhak Perlman in the best mood for delightful bonbons. His ever-sweet tone, fulsome yet never cloying, is ideally suited to this evergreen repertoire and favourite encores. Recorded during the mid-1970s, these performances will never lose their shine.

CD Reviews (The Straits Times, August 2012)

RACHMANINOV Symphony No.3

Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini 

YEVGENY SUDBIN, Piano

Singapore Symphony / SHUI LAN

BIS SACD-1988 / ****1/2

This is a rather obvious coupling, of two late Rachmaninov works (his Opus 43 and 44), but one strangely never previously attempted on disc. The Paganini Rhapsody, effectively his fifth piano concerto, is well trodden territory but young Russian pianist Yevgeny Sudbin gives a splendid account, equal to the best in the catalogue. His lightning fast reflexes are put to the test in the mercurial passages, and the requisite element of barnstorming is achieved without trivialising the music. In the famous 18^th Variation, he attempts to put a stamp on it by slowing down the tempi, and why not? A little sentimentality (and Rachmaninov is full of this) should not be considered misplaced.

The Third Symphony is less popular than the Second, but its relative compactness may be seen as an advantage. The hallmark aching nostalgia is still there, but this reading does not have the sense of wallowing that characterised SSO’s recording of the Second Symphony. The second movement is particularly well brought out, telescoping melancholy and the hyperactive central march into a trenchant and coherent whole. Rachmaninov’s hasty conclusion to the finale may be a downer but the orchestra makes the best of it to end on a high. Could recordings of the First Symphony and Symphonic Dances from the SSO be next?  

LIEBESFREUD. LIEBESLEID

Homage to Fritz Kreisler

Deutsche Gammophon 477 9942 (2CDs) / *****

This year marks the 50^th anniversary of the death of great Viennese violinist Fritz Kreisler (1875-1962), whose many delicious original short pieces and transcriptions are the joy of violinists and audiences alike. In 1935, a scandal erupted when it was announced that works by the old masters “unearthed” by him were in fact his own compositions. A number of these, originally attributed to Pugnani (Prelude And Allegro), Martini (Andantino), Couperin (La Precieuse) and Francoeur (Sicilienne And Rigaudon), appear on this budget-priced tribute. Although much his music harked back to antique traditions, Kreisler’s unaccompanied Recitative and Scherzo-Caprice, and its play on dissonance, belonged remotely to the 20^th century.

Deutsche Grammophon’s vast back catalogue ensures that performances by the legendary Ruggiero Ricci (with 14 tracks, the most) and the late Christian Ferras from the 1960s are not forgotten. Even Jascha Heifetz and David Oistrakh get a look in, in very decent 1940s monoaural sound. Six tracks by Kreisler himself, dating back a century, reveal him to be a relaxed player with a natural way that comes as easily as breathing. Never mind the hiss, crackle and pop from the old shellacs.

Shlomo Mintz weighs in with 9 tracks, mostly transcriptions. There are three recordings each of Liebesleid (Love’s Sorrow) and Schön Rosmarin, favourite old Viennese waltzes, by Anne-Sophie Mutter, Ricci and Kreisler himself. In their hallowed company, who are we to complain?