Rachmaninov Piano Concertos

In what used to be called the West, Sviatoslav Richter's best-known and best-loved recording of Tchaikovsky's First Piano Concerto was the 1962 recording on Deutsche Grammophon with Herbert von Karajan conducting the Vienna Symphony. In what used to be called the East, Richter's best-known and best-loved recording of Tchaikovsky's First was this 1958 recording on Melodiya with Yevgeny Mravinsky conducting the Leningrad Philharmonic.

Vladimir Ashkenazy's way with the Rachmaninov Second Piano Concerto noticeably mellowed in the years between his blistering 1963 premiere recording on Decca with Kirill Kondrashin and this 1986 reading. That's not to say it became mushy or dull, but it is certainly heavier, characterized by a prevailing darkness that calls to mind Stravinsky's description of Rachmaninov as a "six-foot scowl." Ashkenazy's rich tone and emphatic phrasing assures an overall somber cast, while Bernard Haitink draws similarly-countenanced playing from the Concertgebouw Orchestra–the low strings especially. However, there is a respite from the gloom in the quite touching rendition of the lyrical slow movement.

Concerto No. 4 is supposedly a lighter work, but it's hard to tell in Ashkenazy's equally stern reading. Again he summons robust tone from his instrument and manages to make the first movement's main theme sound uniquely grim. For his part, Haitink heightens the drama with threatening horns in the second movement. Even so, the performers render the brighter finale with the requisite zest. Decca had only recently begun recording in the Concertgebouw, and it shows in the sound's abundant reverberation and early digital glare. Still, the sense of space and sonic bulk communicated by the recording matches the performances, and for some listeners this will be preferable to the dynamically limited sound of Ashkenazy's interpretively superior 1970s renditions with André Previn.

Victor Carr, Jr., Classics Today

Rachmaninov: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 3
EAC Rip | FLAC, IMG+CUE, LOG | 318 MB | MP3 CBR 320 Kbps | 108 MB | NO BOOKS NO COVERS |
Classical | CD | Label: EMI | Catalog Number: 2282792 | RAR 1% Rec. | RS.com
EMI 2282792 | Release Date: 2008

Sergey Rachmaninov (az emigrációban általa választott írásmód szerint; oroszul Сергей Васильевич Рахманинов, melynek magyaros átírása: Szergej Vasziljevics Rahmanyinov; Onyeg, Oroszország, 1873. április 1. (március 20.) – Los Angeles, USA, 1943. március 28.) orosz zeneszerző, zongoraművész és karmester.
Bár zeneszerzőként való elismerése váratott magára, zongoraművészi teljesítményével, legendás technikai tudásával és ritmusérzékével hamar tekintélyt szerzett, nemzedéke legnagyobb zongoristája volt.
Művei többsége Csajkovszkijéval rokon késő romantikus stílusú, bár jelentős mértékben érezhető Chopin és Liszt hatása is.

Though the works of Russian composer Rachmaninoff are often appreciated for their ardent passion and overflow of emotions, pianist Cho Jae-hyuck aims to examine a more reserved, thought-out side of the Romantic composer’s works with his latest recording of his piano concerto pieces.

Sergei Rachmaninov - Piano concertos Nos 1-4, Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini
Earl Wild / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra / Jascha Horenstein
EAC+LOG+CUE | 2xWV: 585 MB | Full Artwork | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: Chandos # CHAN X10078(2) | Country/Year: UK 2003, 1966
Genre: Classical | Style: Early 20th Century

…Jascha Horenstein's incisive, colorful support is a major asset, and the Royal Philharmonic plays beautifully for him. If you don't mind the Third Concerto cuts (or already have Martha Argerich's landmark third), these classic performances only get better with age, and the sonics are still terrific. Go for it, piano fans

Sergei Rachmaninov - Piano concertos Nos 1-4, Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini
Earl Wild / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra / Jascha Horenstein
EAC+LOG+CUE | 2xWV: 585 MB | Full Artwork | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: Chandos # CHAN X10078(2) | Country/Year: UK 2003, 1966
Genre: Classical | Style: Early 20th Century

…Jascha Horenstein's incisive, colorful support is a major asset, and the Royal Philharmonic plays beautifully for him. If you don't mind the Third Concerto cuts (or already have Martha Argerich's landmark third), these classic performances only get better with age, and the sonics are still terrific. Go for it, piano fans

Very much an artist of the twenty-first century, Ukranian-born Lisitsa secured a vast global audience purely through social media. She quickly became one of the most viewed pianists on YouTube with over fifty million million visitors to her videos. Lisitsa has recorded all four Rachmaninov piano concertos and the Paganini Rhapsody with the London Symphony Orchestra and Michael Francis.