Mazurkas – Rubinstein

This 15-disc set, recorded from 1990 to 1992, is a truly complete survey of Chopin's piano music, including juvenilia and the works for piano and orchestra. It may not be quite the triumph of Biret's Brahms set, in which the performances are competitive with the best to be heard anywhere. But all of this playing is thoroughly worthy of the music, and Biret's technique is strong enough to deal with such hurdles as the Études and Scherzi without flinching.

The master of the piano must surely be Frédéric Chopin. Every one of his compositions includes the piano in some form, yet within his oeuvre there is still an exciting variety of music to be found. Chopin made the solo piano form into an art, extensively developing various styles – including the piano sonata, waltz, polonaise and impromptu – and heavily popularising others for the first time, such as the Polish mazurka, the form he often chose to express his nationalism.

Des enregistrements historiques fabuleux qui auront marqué l'évolution du piano, de l'enregistrement et de la lecture de chopin. Des interprétations globalement bonnes en ce qui concerne l'intégrale et, surtout, une classification qui permet d'ordonner aisément le répertoire de Chopin. Alors, bien sûr, il existe des interprétationsplus brillantes, plus prestigieuses mais ne dit-on pas aussi qu'il y a une certaine forme de subjectivité qui détermine un jugement? Ce coffret est un bon reflet de l'oeuvre de Chopin, honnêtement interprétée.

Karol Szymanowski spent his early years in Ukraine (where many affluent Polish families still owned land at the time). An injury to the leg forced young Karol into a life of relative inactivity, and, from age seven on, attendance at school was replaced by rigorous musical studies (first under his father's tutelage, and then, from 1892 on, at Gustav Neuhaus' music school in Elisavetgrad). Although early training focused on the piano, Neuhaus was quick to observe his young student's potential as a composer. While in Elisavetgrad, Szymanowski was introduced to the German classics as well as to Chopin and Scriabin. After studies with Noskowski in Warsaw from 1903 to 1905, Szymanowski lived for a time in Berlin, helping to found ……

All Music Guide

This 9-disc set pulls together Chopin recordings made between 1972 and 2008 by Maurizio Pollini. Works included are the etudes, the two familiar sonatas, the ballades, the scherzi, the preludes, the polonaises, and the nocturnes. Please note that this is far from a complete set of Chopin's piano works - missing are the concertos, most of the waltzes, most of the mazurkas, and most of the impromptus.

Karol Szymanowski spent his early years in Ukraine (where many affluent Polish families still owned land at the time). An injury to the leg forced young Karol into a life of relative inactivity, and, from age seven on, attendance at school was replaced by rigorous musical studies (first under his father's tutelage, and then, from 1892 on, at Gustav Neuhaus' music school in Elisavetgrad). Although early training focused on the piano, Neuhaus was quick to observe his young student's potential as a composer. While in Elisavetgrad, Szymanowski was introduced to the German classics as well as to Chopin and Scriabin. After studies with Noskowski in Warsaw from 1903 to 1905, Szymanowski lived for a time in Berlin, helping to found ……

All Music Guide

Karol Szymanowski spent his early years in Ukraine (where many affluent Polish families still owned land at the time). An injury to the leg forced young Karol into a life of relative inactivity, and, from age seven on, attendance at school was replaced by rigorous musical studies (first under his father's tutelage, and then, from 1892 on, at Gustav Neuhaus' music school in Elisavetgrad). Although early training focused on the piano, Neuhaus was quick to observe his young student's potential as a composer. While in Elisavetgrad, Szymanowski was introduced to the German classics as well as to Chopin and Scriabin. After studies with Noskowski in Warsaw from 1903 to 1905, Szymanowski lived for a time in Berlin, helping to found ……

All Music Guide