Search - Sergei Rachmaninoff, Edvard Grieg, Leopold Stokowksi :: Grieg: Piano Concerto in a Minor/Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto 2/Grainger: 'In A Nutshell' Suite (all cond. Stokowksi)

Neither Artur Rubinstein nor Leopold Stokowski approved their only recorded collaboration for release, yet here it is. The experimental mike use places the piano way up front in the mono mix, while soloist and conductor are not always together. Fortunately, Rubinstein rerecorded the Rachmaninoff three times. Percy Grainger, on the other hand, begged record companies to preserve his interpretation of the Grieg Concertos, to no avail. Thank goodness for this 1945 air check. At 63, Grainger flails away with unbridled vigor and restless passion, in a way that mirrors what we know of Grieg's own playing: Damn-the-wrong-notes, full speed ahead. Grainger's colorful, slithering on In A Nutshell makes a welcome filler. --Jed Distler