telynor's Full Review: Rachmaninov, Tchaikovsky: Piano Concertos / Martha...
I'm a big fan of certain cop shows. In one of my favorites, one detective looks at another co-worker in some perp's apartment, and comments, "How many copies of Don Giovanni does this guy need?"
For me, it's the works of Rachmaninov that do it to me. I'm always hunting for a new performance or something that will shock me out of system and I end up placing yet another order at Amazon. Thanks to Tlmjoco here at Epinions, I'm learning that I simply do not have enough Martha Argerich in my life.
With some effort, I managed to get my hands on this jewel, and I've been wearing out my cd player with it, and no doubt driving my SO nuts.
Piano Concerto No 3 in D Minor, Op 30
Riccardo Chailly is the conductor of this one along with the RSO Berlin to give the backup. But the real star here is Argerich and her playing. It's furious, passionate and never fails to intrigue me. This particular concerto is probably the most difficult one to master, with the quick pacing and tempo and mood changes. Recorded in Berlin in 1982.
Allegro ma non tanto Starting off in a very stately manner, then it breaks out into a set of sweeping credenzas that require the listener to pay attention as it all starts to come together in a sweeping romantic pitch. At times Argerich's playing gets just a touch muddled, but the emotional impact more than balances it as we come to the one of the most gorgeous passages that I can think of. Let's just say that if this wasn't a family website, I'd go on ahead and say that it was perfect music to make love to.
Intermezzo, Adagio This is certainly a more gentle passage than the previous movement. It's lyrical and with plenty of sadness, exquisitely given by the oboeist at the very start. When we get to Argerich's solo work, it's moving, and done with such a delicate touch that it will strike right at your heart. By the time it moves into the Adagio section, it has an almost spanish flavor to it, then subsides back down into the lush romantic section and that oboe.
Finale: Alla breve This one is a fast, energetic section that demands the most of both soloist and orchestra, and moves at a lightening fast pace. Elements from the previous two movements are here, but now reworked and rebalanced into a more completed, mature whole.
Piano Concerto No 1 in B flat Minor, Op 23
I have a certain weakness when it comes to Russian conductors leading the works of Russian composers. Maybe it's the shared culture or the fact that they can tweak a bit more out of it than most others. Who knows? All I can say here is that Kirill Kondrashin and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra manage to balance Argerich in a near perfect performance. My biggest complaint about it is that the sound sometimes gets so soft that it nearly drifts out of the listeners' range, but then, that's just my personal beef.
Allegro non troppo e molto maestoso - Allegro con sprito Opening up with a blare of trumpets and piano, this is easily one of the most recognizable bits in classical music. To be honest, it's been done to death in film and concert halls, and I think everyone of those 100 classical hits must have this on it. Ignore all that, and just listen.
Andantino simplice - Prestissimo - Tempo I This has almost a crystalline quality to it. Argerich is fairly careful in her handling of this piece, keeping it light and fairly clean in the performance.
Allegro con fuoco To wind it all up, we get exactly what the composer's tempo notes says, quickly, with fire. And oh boy, what fire it is! This is why it's so enjoyable to find different performers and orchestras performing the same pieces -- each interpetation is ever so slightly different than the other, and that's why a lot of us can bear to sit through the same music over and over again.
PS -- really go take a look at tlmjoco's classical music reviews, they are worth the trip.
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