Krystian Zimerman

Zimerman is the very model of a modern virtuoso. His overrriding aim is vivid projection of character. His quasi-orchestral range of dynamic and attack, based on close attention to textual detail (there are countless felicities in his observation of phrase-markings) and maximum clarity of articulation, is the means to that end. As a result, he draws out the many connections in this music with the romantic tradition, especially in pianistic tours de force such as ''Les collines d'Anacapri'', ''Ce qu'a vu le vent d'Ouest'' and ''Feux d'artifice'', which are treated to a dazzling Lisztian elan the equal of any Debussy playing I have ever heard.

Zimerman is the very model of a modern virtuoso. His overrriding aim is vivid projection of character. His quasi-orchestral range of dynamic and attack, based on close attention to textual detail (there are countless felicities in his observation of phrase-markings) and maximum clarity of articulation, is the means to that end. As a result, he draws out the many connections in this music with the romantic tradition, especially in pianistic tours de force such as ''Les collines d'Anacapri'', ''Ce qu'a vu le vent d'Ouest'' and ''Feux d'artifice'', which are treated to a dazzling Lisztian elan the equal of any Debussy playing I have ever heard.

Everything that Schubert wrote seemed to have melody as its starting point. His piano music, so different from that of Beethoven, pulsates with this innate lyricism. The two sets of impromptus, not fiendishly difficult to play, require a pianist who can make the piano sing. Such a pianist is Krystian Zimerman. Indeed, his use of rubato and minute tempo fluctuations might seem excessive to some, especially in D 899 No 1, but I find them well-judged. Noting also Zimerman's velvet touch, and the warm DGG acoustic as recorded in 1991, I count this CD a total success.

Everything that Schubert wrote seemed to have melody as its starting point. His piano music, so different from that of Beethoven, pulsates with this innate lyricism. The two sets of impromptus, not fiendishly difficult to play, require a pianist who can make the piano sing. Such a pianist is Krystian Zimerman. Indeed, his use of rubato and minute tempo fluctuations might seem excessive to some, especially in D 899 No 1, but I find them well-judged. Noting also Zimerman's velvet touch, and the warm DGG acoustic as recorded in 1991, I count this CD a total success.

This well recorded disc from 1987 delivers truly exciting performances of all three works in typically crisp manner by Zimerman. Ozawa and the Boston orchestra give excellent support. The emphasis here is on excitement largely created by fast speeds delivered with clarity. The more gentler parts of all three works are played with due regard to sensitivity but there is no denying that in these recordings these works are seen as primarily as virtuoso display works and that is what we are given.

Krystian Zimerman, Sir Simon Rattle and the London Symphony Orchestra present Ludwig van Beethoven's 5 piano concertos. The exceptional Polish pianist Krystian Zimerman, together with Leonard Bernstein, presented an outstanding reference recording of Beethoven's Piano Concertos Nos 3, 4 and 5 more than 30 years ago (1989). At the time, both agreed on their commitment to music - in mind, heart and soul - which led to an extraordinary recording. Unfortunately, Bernstein died before the cycle was completed.

This award winning set from 1991 will not be to everyone's tastes. The recording and the playing are perfectly suited to each other being exceptionally clear and precise and with wide dynamic range. The playing on this pair of discs is, as mentioned above, exceptionally clear and precise and came as quite shock to me when I bought it some 20 years ago. Everything is laid out for inspection without the slightest hint of softness or textural shading. It is like going into a room with all the main lights on rather than finding the room lit by numerous lamps on tables and other furniture. There are no subtleties of nuance attempted in the normal way allowing for shadows and half-lights metaphorically.

Krystian Zimerman is getting better as he gets older. He used to be one of a half-dozen great young pianists, a brilliant virtuoso with tremendous expressivity, enormous soul, and a habit of making even fewer recordings than Argerich or Pollini. Over the years of ever-fewer recordings, he's grown into an astounding virtuoso and the emotional power of his interpretations have grown with his technique.

Chopin's two piano concertos have long been admired more as pianistic vehicles than as integrated works for piano and orchestra. But in his revelatory new recording, Krystian Zimerman suggests otherwise: The opening orchestral tuttis have so much more light, shade, orchestral color, and detail, you wonder if they've been rewritten. Every gesture, every instrumental solo is so specifically characterized that by the time the piano makes a dramatic entrance, the pieces have become operas without words.

This well recorded disc from 1987 delivers truly exciting performances of all three works in typically crisp manner by Zimerman. Ozawa and the Boston orchestra give excellent support. The emphasis here is on excitement largely created by fast speeds delivered with clarity. The more gentler parts of all three works are played with due regard to sensitivity but there is no denying that in these recordings these works are seen as primarily as virtuoso display works and that is what we are given.