Search - Richard Addinsell, Sergey Rachmaninov, Dmitry Shostakovich :: Addinsell; Rachmaninov; Shostakovich

An excellent sampler

grok_ | San Diego, CA United States | 04/24/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I purchased this CD as a sampler (which it is) of piano concertos. As such, I expected to listen to the various selections and then remand it to an unused CD rack. To my surprise, this CD has become one of my favorites. I confess that the Shostakovich concerto is not my cup o' tea, but the rest of the performances are really marvelous. The Warsaw is beautifully performed. The Rachmaninoff concerto (#2) is only the first movement, but is exquisite (get a full copy of this and other Rach concertos by Previn/Ashkenazy), as is the Paganini Rhapsody (also by Previn/Ashkenazy), which is presented in full. The CD concludes with an excellent performance of the final movement of Scriabin's concerto.The sonics of these analog recordings are excellent. I noted an emphasis in bass on the Rhapsody that does not exist on other releases of this same performance (Polygram Records #460632 and #455234). This may be due to the AMSI encoding, although it does not appear to affect the other performances on this CD. Actually, the added bass may appeal to some, and is not a major distraction.I am not an advocate for samplers, but this one is more cohesive than most. At this price, it is worth it just for the Warsaw Concerto and the Rhapsody. For the others (which may include the Rhapsody), you will want the full concertos after being teased by these well-performed pieces. Highly recommended."

Best piano concerto collection I have!

Thomas Mount | Greenville, SC USA | 03/31/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This has to be the best piano concerto CD I have in my collection. Addinsell's Warsaw Concerto rattles the room when I crank up the volume. I bought the CD just for that piece, but everything else grew on me. Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto #2 in C minor is downright awesome, and I love his Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. This is the first time I've seen the full 20-minute version. This was a great buy and I'd highly recommend it for any piano concerto fan."