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In Reply to: RE: Not to rain on anyone else's parade. . . posted by Chris from Lafayette on March 19, 2012 at 22:55:11
I'd greatly appreciate a professional pianist's view of any technically weak Schumann performances which have been positively mentioned.
My ego is not at stake here. In fact, if you would be as specific as possible, that would be even better. Thanks.
Follow Ups:
Hi, Michael - In order to quote chapter and verse, it would be necessary for me to re-listen and make notes as to who transgressed where. Unfortunately, my schedule is not allowing for this right now. I listened to three recordings of Carnaval the night before last, but all I can offer is general impressions. Mitsuko Uchida was OK, but no more than that - I feel that her application of rubato does not flow naturally, and in general, I feel that she is one of those "earnest" pianists who should stick with Mozart. With Alfred Cortot, the question as to how many mistakes is too much will surely arise, and, in this work, it's just beyond my acceptability threshold. In addition to some ravishing sections, he's got other sections which sound, frankly, amateurish - he was one of the ones I had in mind when I made my "not technically up to snuff" claim. The other one I listened to was Arrau, in a mono recording in which he shows considerably more energy than he does on his later Philips recordings. Nevertheless, I've never found his articulation to be impressive or ideally clean, and although he's not bad here, he's not the best either.
As I say, I just don't have the time to listen to more right now. If I were trying to choose the best Carnaval among those I've heard, I guess I might choose the live Michelangeli performance on Testament (recorded before his playing had ossified into something considerably less spontaneous). Egorov is pretty good too, but recorded with too much resonance, which inhibits the audible clarity of his articulation. (Too bad!) I haven't listened to Kuleshov's performance in a long time, but I remember that one as being good too. The are a couple I haven't heard which MIGHT be very fine, such as Primakov's. Actually, there are too many to hear - as Rachmaninoff said, music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime isn't enough for music. And BTW, Rachmaninoff's recording is in a class of its own, but you have to put up with the ancient sound quality.
I'm still curious how you rate her Op.9!
I'll try to find her performance and let you know.
might be interesting for me to listen to it since i haven't heard too many Op.9.
Wasn't this recommended by Haggin? Thank you for this.
But good god, it's nice. Her playing just makes me smile.
Only other Op. 9 I have is Moiseiwitsch which does not do a darn thing for me. ( where's that fun spirit?! )
Thanks. Look, I agree that Uchida may not be the most consistently good Schumann interpreter, despite her chops. I have some of hers in Mozart and I like them. I am disappointed by her Schumann Fantasy. I have not heard the work you mentioned.
Cortot? Ok, he is great in some Chopin, but from an era when pianists were not held to the standards that exist today. I have never heard his Schumann.
Arrau, I am not familiar with, only by reputation.
My concerns are with de Larrocha and Kempff. I like their approaches in Schumann, although I can hear some off notes. It is too bad that the recordings I've heard were performed in their later years when their technical facilities were diminished.
I have also briefly heard, but will continue to listen to, both Pollini and Perahia doing their Schumann. I respect their technical facility and taste, although I have some doubts about them overall in Schumann. That is specifically in Op. 17. They are first rate in many other recordings I have of them with other composers.
I will continue on my quest and it will take a lot longer than I originally thought.
My hope is that you will consider this something for the longer term. If you love Schumann music, I hope you will consider continuing to follow up on this whenever you get the chance to post about it.
I'm retired and still quite busy. I can understand how the overload of everyday life can interfere with any commitments that are non essential to every day life.
I appreciate your comments on this.
I'm not retired yet, and moreover, I "moonlight" as a piano accompanist - and this is really a busy time of year, with certificate of merit auditions, local competitions, and teacher recitals. So this situation kind of limits my time. Believe me, I'm looking forward to being retired, but it won't be for a few more years, at which time I'll be able to do a lot more listening than I'm able to do now. ;-)
BTW, Schumann is definitely in my "top ten" of favorite composers.
It might give me a good opportunity to seek out more Op.9s for me to listen to.
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