Abbey Simon, St. Louis Symphony Orchestra And Leonard Slatkin Rachmaninoff: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 4

Noriko Ogawa and the Malmö Symphony Orchestra return to the works of Rachmaninov with a disc featuring his first and fourth piano concertos and Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. Rachmaninov’s first concerto was written while he was a student at the Moscow Concervatory, but underwent considerable revisions up to 1917. His fourth piano concerto was written after a considerable break from composition as he was kept busy as a touring performer in the USA. The unsuccessful first performance again led to considerable revisions.

Bella Davidovich (born in 1928) won the prestigious Warsaw International Chopin Competition in 1949, sharing first prize with pianist Halina Czerny-Stefanska. This is a rare recording of Chopin's two Piano concertos, with a warm sense of music. The piano has a weak presence, as if Chopin himself were playing. The London Symphony Orchestra, under Sir Neville Marriner, is not only an accompanist, but it has a full powerful presence. Enjoy this jewel!

Bella Davidovich (born in 1928) won the prestigious Warsaw International Chopin Competition in 1949, sharing first prize with pianist Halina Czerny-Stefanska. This is a rare recording of Chopin's two Piano concertos, with a warm sense of music. The piano has a weak presence, as if Chopin himself were playing. The London Symphony Orchestra, under Sir Neville Marriner, is not only an accompanist, but it has a full powerful presence. Enjoy this jewel!

This wonderful CD is the product of the Chandos phenomenon; they find a neglected masterpiece that is unplayed and unknown, they record it brilliantly with a top class orchestra and conductor with soloists if appropriate and sell it to people like me, lovers of the English Musical Renaissance of the early part of the twentieth century. This CD contains well over an hour of the most tuneful and innovative music you can buy.

This wonderful CD is the product of the Chandos phenomenon; they find a neglected masterpiece that is unplayed and unknown, they record it brilliantly with a top class orchestra and conductor with soloists if appropriate and sell it to people like me, lovers of the English Musical Renaissance of the early part of the twentieth century. This CD contains well over an hour of the most tuneful and innovative music you can buy.

Erik Chisholm is a Scottish-born composer and friend of Bartók whose music has experienced a substantial revival. It's not quite correct to call him a Scottish composer, for the last two decades of his life were spent outside Scotland (mostly in South Africa), and Scottish nationalism is only one of the unique mix of influences in his music. It's not that he's "eclectic" in the modern sense.

Erik Chisholm is a Scottish-born composer and friend of Bartók whose music has experienced a substantial revival. It's not quite correct to call him a Scottish composer, for the last two decades of his life were spent outside Scotland (mostly in South Africa), and Scottish nationalism is only one of the unique mix of influences in his music. It's not that he's "eclectic" in the modern sense.