Arturo Michelangeli

In this edition Deutsche Grammophon brings together for the first time all the performances by pianist Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli that have appeared on the "Yellow Label" as well as the legendary early recordings of Beethoven and Scarlatti made for DECCA. Excellent documentation includes numerous rare photographs and a new appreciation of the enigmatic pianist by DG producer, conductor and longtime Michelangeli collaborator Cord Garben.

In this edition Deutsche Grammophon brings together for the first time all the performances by pianist Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli that have appeared on the "Yellow Label" as well as the legendary early recordings of Beethoven and Scarlatti made for DECCA. Excellent documentation includes numerous rare photographs and a new appreciation of the enigmatic pianist by DG producer, conductor and longtime Michelangeli collaborator Cord Garben.

In this edition Deutsche Grammophon brings together for the first time all the performances by pianist Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli that have appeared on the "Yellow Label" as well as the legendary early recordings of Beethoven and Scarlatti made for DECCA. Excellent documentation includes numerous rare photographs and a new appreciation of the enigmatic pianist by DG producer, conductor and longtime Michelangeli collaborator Cord Garben.

Considered one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century, Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (1920-1995) nevertheless left only a small body of recordings due to his perfectionism. Nor did he give live concerts often, frequently canceling them at the last minute for flimsy reasons. Still, his playing was prized for its clarity, directness, and unique interpretations.

The legendary Italian pianist Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (1920 - 1995), playing at the height of his powers, performs two Beethoven sonatas in an historic recording now digitally restored and re-mastered. He also plays earlier sonatas by Scarlatti and Galuppi. Michelangeli's fine control and perfect clarity - always present in his playing - have positioned him as one of the most outstanding recording artists of any generation.

If you take it for granted that Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli was the greatest pianist of the twentieth century and that his performances of Beethoven's "Emperor" Concerto were the greatest of the twentieth century, then you'll probably want to pick up this disc containing Michelangeli's fabled May 29, 1957, performance in Prague with Vaclav Smetacek and the Prague Symphony Orchestra. Although Smetacek is not the deepest, the greatest, or the most sympathetic accompanist Michelangeli ever had, and although the Prague players are not always quite on their best behavior, Michelangeli is as he always is in this work: absolutely definite.

A tribute to Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, a veritable mythic and unpredictable Italian pianist,; a perfectionist with a carefully chosen repertory in which Scarlatti's works joined those of Debussy and Ravel, while the great German romantics, from Beethoven to Brahms, were magnified and exalted, showing the soundness of their construction. The number of his recordings is limited, with mostly works by Debussy and Ravel and a few by Beethoven. He used to buy pirate live discs of his concerts as presents for his friends instead of his 'official' recordings! Here is a French anthology collecting legendary renderings of his inimitable touch easy to recognise by its ductile nature and the purity of his style. A revived masterpiece.

Im Nachgang des 100. Geburtstags von Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli veröffentlicht Deutsche Grammophon einen Meilenstein seines Katalogs: die Aufnahmen der Debussy-Zyklen Images, Préludes und Children’s Corner wurden bereits von Zeitgenossen als überragend empfunden und haben auch heute nichts von ihrer Faszination eingebüßt. Michelangelis Debussy sei “die stärkste, farbigste, musikalisch und poetisch beste Debussy-Interpretation, die ein Pianist hervorgebracht hat” (Gramophone).

These recordings were unearthed from the BBC archives. All the restoration work has been done from the original analog tapes. The works presented here are from a historic session in the London studios on June 30, 1959.