Search - Rachmaninoff, Cliburn :: Piano Sonata 2

Stephen T. from ASHLAND, OR
Reviewed on 11/18/2009...

Only Richter can compare with the scope, breadth, and power of Van Cliburn's playing of these pieces.

A genial mastery of sound, polyphony and power

07/21/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I just LOVE this CD. I listened to many recordings of Rach 2nd sonata. This one is a great one. First of all, I am a fanatic of the original version, because of the fantastic fugato in the first movement and the reminiscence of Chopin 4th ballad in the middle of the second which disappeared in the later version. Van Cliburn has all the extraordinary power that is needed to play this work, you feel you are in the Russian churches evoked along the piece, and the constant use of the rubato does not feel exaggerated, but perfectly natural. Van Cliburn's playing is passionate and exciting. He keeps building and building until the fantastic climaxes of this piece with perfect mastery of sound and technique. The polyphonic work is great too and Van Clibrun plays as a conductor performing a highly symphonic work."

I bought this CD for the Prokofiev Sonata

Robert L. Berkowitz | Natick, MA United States | 01/13/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I grew up with Cliburn's recording of Prokofiev's sixth sonata. I have since acquired several other recordings including Ivo Pogorelich, Yefim Bronfman, Sviatoslav Richter, Barbara Nissman and Willis Deloney.I find something magical about Cliburn's performance that no other performance quite re-creates. Cliburn is among the most lyrical pianists of the 20th Century. His sense of timing is unmatched. Although the sixth sonata is the first of the "war sonatas", and one can make a case for taking a brutal and percussive approach, Cliburn manages to bring his ever-present lyricism and pianistic color to every phrase. He plays with such heart! Sometimes his tempos are a little slower than other recordings, particularly in the second and third movements, but through these slower tempos he is able to turn phrases with such thoughtfulness and loving attention to the developing musical line. In the last movement, he has an uncanny way of separating voices, and the return of the first movement's opening theme is a revelation filled with poignancy and wisdom. I often feel Cliburn is telling me a detailed story through this music and, if I could penetrate just a little deeper, I would be able to translate this story into words. I cannot think of any other piece of recorded piano music that prompts that kind of response from me.The stereo sound is fully acceptable, though not state-of-the-art. I do not find myself distracted by the stereo sound given the superb quality of the playing.The Rachmaninov pieces are a wonderful addition to this disc. I'll leave it to the other reviewers to comment about the Rachmaninov 2nd sonata, but I will add that the shorter Rachmaninov pieces are beautifully played."