Search - Franz [Vienna] Schubert, Claude Debussy, Maurice Ravel :: Friedrich Gulda, Piano

Rare Gulda Recordings (& Repertoire) from Austrian Radio

J Scott Morrison | Middlebury VT, USA | 04/05/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"When people think of the great Austrian pianist Friedrich Gulda (1930-2000) they tend to think of two things: the classic and romantic Austro-German repertoire, and jazz. Gulda was a child prodigy who came to fame early and whose reputation was made playing Bach, Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert. He recorded the complete Beethoven sonata cycle three times. In his mid-twenties he discovered jazz and from that point on his career combined both the European classics and jazz gigs in places like Birdland in New York. At one point he even had his own big band. He made relatively few recordings and this 4 CD set gives us an opportunity to hear performances never widely available before. It includes some repertoire he certainly is not usually associated with, namely that of the 20th-century French piano giants, Ravel and Debussy. Indeed the set is preponderantly drawn from the French. Since Amazon has not yet listed the contents of the four CDs, let me do that work by work.



CD1: Schubert: Piano Sonatas in A minor, D845 and in B flat major, D960, recorded in 1967. These are straightforward, exceptionally clean performances whose primary strength is their sense of architecture and line. I love how he emphasizes in Mvt. IV of the A minor that little figure that presages the famous Paganini Caprice that has been used so many times as the basis for sets of variations. His emphasis here is a sly homage to those few notes that are so beloved by composers subsequent to Schubert. Of course, Gulda was a master Schubertian and these are masterful performances start to finish.



CD2: Schubert: Four Impromptus, D899; Moments musicaux, D780, also recorded in 1967. Debussy: Pour le piano, and Suite bergamasque, recorded in 1957 as are the rest of the works here. (All these 1957 recordings are in mono, and strangely, their sound is marginally clearer and warmer than those for 1967.) Gulda played a lot of Schubert in his earlier years, but less and less of it as time went on. These performances are not as nuanced as some I prefer, such as those of Perahia. They sound more like Brendel, say, in their clarity and reticence. The Debussy, on the other hand, is light in spots, warm in others, and entirely idiomatic. Gulda, not a pianist one associates with humor, has tongue in cheek in the Toccata in 'Pour le piano.' Who knew that Gulda would be a terrific Debussyan? I certainly didn't.



CD3: Debussy: Prludes, Books I & II; Reflets dan l'eau; L'Isle joyeuse. Gulda's Debussy is a big surprise to me. It partakes of his usual clarity but it also is more than usually romantic in tone. Just listen to No. 8, 'Ce qu'a vu le Vent d'Ouest' ('What the West Wind Saw'); this is a big-boned, ultra-Romantic reading. Whatever the West Wind saw it was more than a little scary! Wow! This is exciting stuff! And it is followed by one of the sweetest and most innocent readings of 'La fille aux cheveux de lin' ('The Girl with the Flaxen Hair'). In 'La puerta del vino' from Book II one feels the languor of the Iberian summer. 'Hommage à Pickwick Esq. P.P.M.P.C' is a chuckle.



CD4: Ravel: Sonatine; Gaspard de la nuit; Le Tombeau de Couperin; Valses nobles et sentimentales. This is patrician Ravel. Again, Gulda's clarity--his chord voicings are remarkable--is completely appropriate for this most classical of the modern French composers for piano. In 'Gaspard,' 'Scarbo' could be a bit more reckless, but 'Le gibet' is breathtaking. The 'Rigaudon' from 'Tombeau' is cheeky, as it should be. And the 'Toccata' takes one's breath away. The Noble and Sentimental Waltzes are excitingly rhythmic. People don't often comment about Gulda's way with rhythm, but he was a master whom we perhaps took for granted.



So, why only four stars for this set? It's the sound. I hate to say it, because these are radio tapes that have clearly been cleaned up nicely, but there still is a bit of compression and at fortissimo there is some clangor. It is distressing in a few spots -- like that first rat-a-tat in the first section of the Waltzes. Is this enough to put you off? Only you can tell, but I confess I've been listening to this set off and on for a couple of weeks and I've not been put off in the least. Perhaps, though, I am, because of my interest in historic recordings, less distracted by not quite modern sound. You'll have to decide for yourself. Chances are, though, that you're not likely to ever hear much of this repertoire played by Gulda and if that's a magnet for you I'd say go ahead and get the set.



TT=ca. 5 hours



Scott Morrison"

Great musicianship - not to be missed

Antonia Brentano | Leiden, The Netherlands | 03/17/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Austrian pianist Friedrich Gulda may not be as well known as his compatriot Alfred Brendel, but man, what a pianist! And more importantly: what a musician! Since I received this 4cd-set (which is, by the way, comes with some good liner notes) I have listened to it everyday.



His Schubert-playing is more classical than romantic. Very rhythmic and clean. The same goes for his playing of Ravel and Debussy. At this point I wanted to write that I especially like the Suite Bergamasque, however, at the moment I am listening to Ravel's Le Tombeau de Couperin which is also staggering.



In short, this is musicianship of the highest level. Not to be missed. Highly recommended."