Nikolai Lugansky was the favorite pupil of the late Tatiana Nikolayeva, the great Russian Bach player at the Moscow Conservatory. At the age of 16, he took second prize in the 1988 Leipzig Bach Competition; two years later... more », second in the Rachmaninov Competition; and, in 1994, first prize in the Tchaikovsky Competition. The man knows how to play. The difficult Étude in Thirds (Opus 25, No. 6) takes off at something like the speed of light; the hazardous right-hand entries are unerring in their accuracy; and Lugansky makes it all sound easy. The B Minor "Octave" Étude (Opus 25, No. 10) receives one of the best performances on record. Despite the Herculean octaves in the opening and closing sections, Lugansky still manages to suggest power in reserve, and his disciplined, dignified approach never permits the luscious middle section to lapse into sentimentality. But, while some of Lugansky's Études touch greatness, too many of them amount to little more than a blueprint of the music--clear and exact, but without the flair, color, and flexibility (not to mention the poetry) that characterize the great versions by Vladimir Ashkenazy, Juana Zayas, and Maurizio Pollini. --Stephen Wigler« less
Nikolai Lugansky was the favorite pupil of the late Tatiana Nikolayeva, the great Russian Bach player at the Moscow Conservatory. At the age of 16, he took second prize in the 1988 Leipzig Bach Competition; two years later, second in the Rachmaninov Competition; and, in 1994, first prize in the Tchaikovsky Competition. The man knows how to play. The difficult Étude in Thirds (Opus 25, No. 6) takes off at something like the speed of light; the hazardous right-hand entries are unerring in their accuracy; and Lugansky makes it all sound easy. The B Minor "Octave" Étude (Opus 25, No. 10) receives one of the best performances on record. Despite the Herculean octaves in the opening and closing sections, Lugansky still manages to suggest power in reserve, and his disciplined, dignified approach never permits the luscious middle section to lapse into sentimentality. But, while some of Lugansky's Études touch greatness, too many of them amount to little more than a blueprint of the music--clear and exact, but without the flair, color, and flexibility (not to mention the poetry) that characterize the great versions by Vladimir Ashkenazy, Juana Zayas, and Maurizio Pollini. --Stephen Wigler
"Where did he come from?! One of the best Etudes preformances I'd ever listened to. For Lugansky the technical difficulties don't seem to exist. His reading is poeticly sensitive (listen to op.10 no.3 and op.25 no.7). Though Pollini is every bit as brilliant technicaly,he doesn't have the inner fire that Lugansky has. You can feel the explotions and the inner fire coming out (op.25 no.11).As much respect as I have for Pollini and Ashkenazy, Piano playing in the last decade has been (in MY opinion) conquered by young russian pianists (Demidenko,Berezovsky and Volodos).Their advantage is the fact that they are not afraid of expressing themselves,and that they get full support from their recording companies. We need new heros in the piano playing Pantheon, and if these pianists are an example of what we are heading to - this should be a great century for the piano.By the way the recording quality is top notch."
Virtuosity and Rare Understanding
Alex Serrano | Perrysburg, Ohio United States | 07/01/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Recently i got a hold of this recording more out of curiosity than with a favorable impression of Lugansky (previously i had been quite dissapointed by his rachmaninov preludes and moments musicaux recordings which to me seemed to lack in spirit and strength). But, having heard quite favorable comments of this recording, in spite of my initial reaction to his playing i went ahead and put this on my stereo.
This time I am quite impressed - favorably. Lugansky recognizes the virtuosic character of these works and his technique is always more than suited for this display, and then he treats every work with care and attention and delivers them splendidly. To be honest, it is unfair to compare this performance with the likes of cherkassky, berezovsky, pollini, freire, as each sizes these works in their own unique way. What is interesting is that Lugansky delivers a performance that can be spoken of in the same breadth as the these by other pianists who may be the top choices for the chopin etudes.
Lugansky plays with a degree of clarity and articulation that almost reminds of mozart rather than chopin, but in doing so is able to expose these works open and show details that most of the time go unnoticed. This is indeed a revelatory performance - one that hopefully will be a distinct prelude to a superb career."
Chopin Played with Virtuosity and Spirit
Grady Harp | Los Angeles, CA United States | 09/06/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Warning: Nikolai Lugansky can be habit forming! Having been favorably impressed with his recordings of Rachmaninov brought me to this recoding of the Chopin Études. While there are many pianists able to convey the poetry inherent in Chopin's works, few are able to match the sheer virtuosity of this magic-fingered Lugansky. His technique is simply astonishing and he is able to traverse Chopin's diabolically difficult passages a though they were simple nursery rhymes.
While some my quibble that Lugansky elects keyboard facility over drama, those listeners need to spend more time with his style. Entirely in keeping with the Romantic period of pianism, Lugansky plays all the notes correctly but infuses his passages of liquid speed with artful phrasing. There is all the poetry others have achieved but with seemingly less work: it just flows out of the music with ease. This is a pianist whose career, though firmly established, is destined to flourish. Highly recommended. Grady Harp, September 05
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Technique galore but something is missing; cold and aloof
John Grabowski | USA | 02/20/2008
(3 out of 5 stars)
"Recently, on a Chopin Etude binge, I dove back into my collection and reacquainted myself with the recordings of the great Alfred Cortot (1934) on EMI. Despite a few finger slips here and there (this was before tape editing after all, and Cortot was no technical superman to start with) I'd have to give those readings a high ranking, because they are in fact *readings.* They have personality. Then I put on the present CD. The Etudes here are note-perfect but too faceless, too generic, for my taste. There are fine moments in the Lugansky performances, but overall they're a lot like Americanized Chinese food--not bad at all, but they pass through you and are forgotten. Luggie needs to develop a personality to match his technique, at least in this repertoire.
Chopin Etudes have been a frustration because there are so few complete recordings of them (even such giants as Rubinstein and Horowitz were afraid of them) and those that exist disappoint. Probably the most famous to readers here will be Pollini's, a very rough-and-tumble account with monotonous pedaling and little if any coloration. These works are in many different emotions and hues, but Pollini sees them all as granite.
Other sets are also a letdown. Zayas is bland and middle of the road; Cherkassky is stiff (at least in his GPof20thC series); Samson Francois ditto. Perahia has some strange ideas in how they should be played, and his emotions sound grafted on to me, though some people rave. Browning is just mediocre, with wobbly technique and stale drama. A good set of Etudes is hard to find. The definitive set doesn't yet exist.
Luganksy is a Russian virtuoso who's been taking the world by storm lately. He seems to overcome the hurdles in these works as if they were insignificant. There's no point in even discussing his technique here--it's beyond criticism.
But musical understanding is another matter. In some of these works I feel he skates over the music, nos. 9 and 11 from Op. 10 being two prime examples. In the former he reaches one of my favorite moments in all of Chopin, measure 29--and does nothing with it. The next measure is marked pp, yet he barely goes down to p. A few measures later, at the second statement of the idea in m. 29, the score is marked appassionato. If this is as appassionato as Luggie gets, he must be a cold date. This is one of the most heart-rending moments in all of Chopin, but he glosses over it.
Two Etudes later we have a problem with, to my ears, monotony. I have a sneaking suspicion that's what Chopin was really testing for in this Etude--the ability to play it with variety, even though what must be played is very rigid. An impish sense of humor and a slight feeling of kitsch helps, as Richter demonstrates in a slightly hurried live performance from Prague dated July 1988. At measure 44 the score is marked "dolcissimo," which is "extremely sweetly" for those who may have forgotten their high school Spanish or Italian. I don't hear any sweetness in Lugansky's cool reading. In the great No. 11 from Op. 25, listen to the impetuous drive from Richter again, or even Pollini. Lugansky has more control but less *command.* There is a difference. Again, the score is marked "risoluto," but Lugs doesn't convince me. Just before the recap in that Etude, listen to how Richter handles measures 65-58, compared to Lugansky. Both play the notes as though they were easy (and that in itself is hair-raising) but Richter understands dramatically how crucial this moment is to the successful re-entry of the main theme, so its return sounds like a momentous and inevitable event. Lugansky fails to grasp the drama. The same is true when one compares their No. 12 of Op. 25. Lugansky's phrasing starts to sound monotonous; Richter twists and turns the color, shading and expressivity, revealing many sides of Chopin's marvelous music.
There are some extraordinary moments. One that stands out most in my mind is Op. 10 No. 2, played with more lightness and clarity than I've ever heard before. And his Op. 25 No. 1 benefits from the same magnificent technique. At the same time, to hear an Op. 25, No. 1 that will really make your jaw hit the floor, try to find Arrau's historic 1929 recording. Has it ever been bettered?
There are far worse readings out there, and at some level it's hard *not* to recommend this disc. But something crucial is still missing--the extremes of the Etudes' personality, the storminess, the delicate whispering, the exuberant playfulness. Chopin wrote probably the most richly-colored music for the piano ever, and Lugansky is still painting in pastels. I had the same diappointment with his Chopin Preludes, and for the same reasons. In the Etudes, for example, while he can blaze through No. 12 in C minor from Op. 10, Cortot's reading, though less technically breathtaking, is more *interesting.* It's the difference between a spry young man who's a bit facile vs. a more frail elder who nonetheless is riveting because of his deeper, richer experiences. Listen to Cortot slam down the hammer in the big forte chord just before the last phrase in the aforementioned C minor Etude. Luggie would never think of a gesture like that. (I think he fares best with Rachmaninoff, and is less successful with other composers. His Beethoven struck me, after admittedly just one hearing, as empty.) He's young, however, and could still develop a deeper approach. Until then, I'll stick to Cortot for my top recommendation, even with somewhat limited technique.
(Update July 2009: A new recording of the Etudes deserves attention: Freddy Kempf on BIS. Soud is every bit as good at the Lugansky but the big, outsized personality is there, and despite the fact that these are "miniatures," they are really titanic in conception and deserve treatment with more personality than Luganksy provides here. Another fine recording I've stumbled on is Yukio Yokoyama on Sony...recorded in the early 90s, it apparently went nowhere, and Mr. Yokoyama isn't exactly a household name. Judging by this one disc, he should be. A recording by Elisso Wirssaladze disappointed me--she steamrollers the music, even if she has great power.)"
Masterful technique and musicality
R.S. | 12/10/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"When it comes to Chopin Etudes, I have always been a Pollini fan. I was skeptical that any other pianist could even approach his standard. But having purchased this CD, I will admit to being thoroughly impressed. Lugansky's technique is second to none, but he always puts musicality first. Though some listeners may take issue with some of Lugansky's expressive nuances, this is without doubt a historic recording, well worth adding to your collection. No serious student of the Chopin Etudes should go without this superb CD."