Horowitz

Vladimir Horowitz confined himself mainly to the Romantic repertoire of the nineteenth century, particularly Schumann, Liszt, Mendelssohn and Chopin (in whose music, especially perhaps the mazurkas, he was held by many to be peerless). Horowitz recorded for RCA from 1927 to 1962 and for Columbia/CBS/Sony thereafter. The repertoire of this release includes Bizet’s Carmen variations, his arrangement of Sousa’s Stars and Stripes Forever, the Rákóczy March, Scarlatti and Clementi’s sonatas, as well as works by Mozart, Beethoven, Rachmaninov and Moszkowski.

This is an extremely famous recording by Vladimir Horowitz who brings out the tenderness and madness of his subject, Schumann being one of his favourite composers. In here we can hear Schumann remembering his happy childhood, yearning for love, and aching for a peace away from the torment of his mind.

Other than Rubinstein, there is no greater Chopin interpreter than Horowitz, and in his single greatest work – the second sonata which is the highlight of this disc – I find Horowitz preferable because Rubinstein takes the great funeral march of the third movement too slowly, whereas Horowitz' direct approach conveys an even deeper sense of melancholy and tragedy. That said, this is a superb sampling of Horowitz' art, even better than the first volume of this series, with unworldly playing and fine sound quality for an analogue recording. The second sonata is second to none, and the shorter pieces are all very familiar and superbly played.

After the overwhelming success of Vladimir Horowitz live at Carnegie Hall, Sony Classical presents Vladimir Horowitz: The Unreleased Live Recordings 1966 1983. This edition takes you on tour with the legendary pianist from his home town of New York to the great halls of the USA, from New Haven to Chicago, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, Boston and beyond. This special collector's set features 13 programs recorded at 25 solo recitals in 14 different concert halls.

This three-CD package from Sony Classical consists of Vladimir Horowitz's studio recordings of the piano music of Alexander Scriabin, recorded between 1950 and 1976 and previously issued by RCA Victor and Columbia Masterworks, along with several live recordings.

Horowitz proves on this CD why he was/is recognized as one of the greatest performers of all time. This CD has a collection of music that ranges from soft and serene to vigorous and powerful. Horowitz himself adds more emotion to each piece, and this CD displays both his talent as a piano player and Chopin's wide variety of composition. Chopin wrote some of the hardest music to play, and very few people can play it well and consistent. Horowitz does both at an extraordinary level. If you like either Chopin or Horowitz, this is a MUST.

This is the Rachmaninov Third to end all Rachmaninov Thirds, a performance of such super-human pianistic aplomb, pace and virtuosity that it makes all comparisons, save with Horowitz himself, a study in irrelevance.

This feast for the ears almost defies classification. Richard Horowitz is probably best known for his award-winning score to the Bernardo Bertolucci movie, The Sheltering Sky. Featured on the album is Tehran singer Sussan Deyhim; her voice is extremely expressive in an "x-tatic" Middle Eastern style, with its distinctive embellishments and phrasing. Horowitz takes recordings of her voice and layers it in subtle yet exotic tapestries and harmonies. This is not the ripoff sampling done so often on ambient dance albums. Deyhim's voice is the center of the compositions, and her artistry is always honored. At times, her combined voices sound like the Manhattan Transfer, but when the title track features 84 recombined samples of her voice, the result is very unique. Although the sound processing is important, the album features many live musicians, including world music expert Jaron Lanier and members of the Moroccan National Radio and Television Orchestra. Majoun offers layers upon veils of mysteries and never stoops to trite Middle Eastern musical clichés. Highly recommended.