Search - Sergey Rachmaninov, Bernard Haitink, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra :: Rachmaninov: The Four Piano Concertos

Rachmoninoff and Ashkenazy at their best

Benjamin M Smolen | Charlotte, NC United States | 07/31/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The first recordings of Rachmoninoff's Piano Concerti that I ever heard were with Ashkenazy and the London Symphony Orchestra. After many years and hearing many different pianists perform these pieces, I am still convinced that Ashkenazy is the greatest living interpreter of these concerti. His touch, startlingly fiery at times and lovingly tender at others, suits these works perfectly; Ashkenazy captures all of the Slavic fury without losing touch with the intense musicality that is needed to perform Rachmoninoff. Despite this, my favorite recordings of these pieces are not of Ashkenazy with the London Symphony Orchestra, but rather of Ashkenazy with the Concertgebouw Orchestra under Haitink. In these concerti, the orchestra plays a pivotal role along with the piano, often times playing the melodies while the piano accompanies. For this reason, the orchestra that is playing on a recording of these pieces is almost as important as the soloist, and the Concertgebouw quite frankly blows the London Symphony out of the water. In Ashkenazy's recording with the LSO, the orchestra has a rather thin sound, and the woodwinds don't seem to lock in very well amongst themselves or with the rest of the orchestra. Contrastingly, the Concertgebouw performs the part beautifully, singing out in the melodic sections and taking the background during the pianist's many displays of musical pyrotechnics. These recordings meet all of my expectations for such important works and will, in my opinion, remain in the canon of great recordings for many many years to come."

DO NOT BUY ASHKENAZY/PREVIN!!!

Jon Brodersen | Marquette, MI USA | 08/15/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It should surprise people to hear that Ashkenazy's version with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and Bernard Haitink is far superior to the over-rated recording of Andre Previn and London. The sound quality is so much richer, and much more intense, which is how Rachmaninoff NEEDS to be played.



I got my hands on the Previn/London version, and wanted to turn it off within the opening bars of the first concerto. The horns (with clarinet and bassoon) are weak and not inspiring at all. With the Haitink recording, he masterfully captures the fire that is Rachmaninoff (even for his first-ever published piece, from his early days at the Moscow Conservatory). I was captivated through the ENTIRE first concerto. I absolutely loved it. This is my favorite recording of the concerto. This is even better than the old recording of Rachmaninoff himself at the keys. Though the composer's interpretation is a touch faster than Ashkenazy's, no one can come close to playing the piece at that tempo and not sound awful. After all, this is HIS concerto we're talking about, here.



The Second Concerto is brilliant. The tempi are great throughout, and I liked Ashkenazy's interpretation, especially the opening bars. I've never heard those chords rolled that way. Usually, if the hand is not big enough to play the whole chord at once (like Rachmaninoff's recording), the low F is played as a grace note to the rest of the chord. Here, he rolls the chords. Lots of passion, a superb piano solo, and lots of beautiful, soaring melodies, which is what makes Rachmaninoff so great. This, however was not my favorite recording of the piece. I would reccommend Lang Lang's version (Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 2; Paganini Rhapsody) to Ashkenazy's, though this is a close second.



The Third is probably my favorite of the Four Concerti. If done right, it can be one of the most powerful pieces of music ever composed. If done wrong, it can sound muddled and lifeless, and can seem like Rachmaninoff was just trying to crank out another success, like the Second. I think Ashkenazy did a great job with this piece, but is not my favorite recording. I would highly suggest Evgeny Kissin's recording (Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No.3, etc.). Though the tempi are slower than Ashkenazy's (and the composer's, for that matter), his interpretation is far beyond his years, as a man in his early twenties (if not younger). One recording I would advise to stay away from is Martha Argerich's live recording, the supposed "ultimate Rach 3". She tries to match the composer's tempi, and fails miserably. Her interpetation is sloppy, and lifeless, missing notes everywhere, and constantly hitting wrong keys.



The Fourth Concerto is the unknown child in the Rach Concerto family. There are only a few recordings out there of this concerto (one being the Previn/London version with Ashkenazy at the keys...again, Haitink does much better with it than Previn). This recording is, again, my favorite recording of the concerto. There is so much life to it, and the textures Rachmaninoff incorporates into the piece are really interesting (eg., the winds in the exposition; the high bassoon parts in the first movement). If more people listened to this recording, the work would probably be about as famous as the First Concerto (which still isn't very famous, but still...).



Overall, I love this recording. The First and Fourth have never sounded better than they do here, and the Second is a jewel, and high in the ranks of the best recordings of the piece. And the Third is good, but could have been better in my opinion. I highly reccommend this CD, and is worth the $34 amazon price---a great deal!"

Ashkenazy Delivers Emotional Depth And Magical Imagination

Raymond Vacchino | Toronto, ON. Canada | 11/16/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"For those who consider Ashkenazy's performance of the four Rachmaninov Piano Concertos to be the greatest ever heard only confirms that they haven't had the exquisite pleasure of listening to Latvian born pianist Authur Ozolins, now living in Canada! Nicknamed the "Rachmaninov" pianist, Ozolins has performed all four concertos numerous times around the world. CBC holds the only recording of the four by Ozolins and it defies any sense of reason as to why CBC hasn't offered them to the world?! Ashkenazy was the first important Russian pianist to break from his homeland. He became one of the most popular pianists on the international circut, even though his style changed perceptibly. His repertoire is predominantly romantic, with excursions into such music as the Bartok concertos. His playing of the first concerto in F sharp minor opens with an arresting flourish, including brilliant piano passage-work, which recurs at crucial points. As the second theme enters, Ashkenazy offers playing that is consumed with passionately yearning seamless melodic phrases, and a dazzling cadenza and succinct coda. The finale achieves greater conciseness and rhythmic suppleness. The second in C minor so firmly entrenched in our hearts and souls, emerges with sensitivity, a singing 'bel canto', poetically shaped melodies, and plasticity of phrasing that only Ashkenazy is capable of delivering. In the third concerto in D minor, Ashkenazy allows the large-scale structure time to develop naturally, evloving as it does from the deceptively simple opening melody with impressive cohesiveness, subtle thematic cross-references and a spacious, richly varied design. Ashkenazy plays with such colourful and dynamic resource reaching an amazing climax in the cadenza highliting its bold, chordal character. By contrast to the Second and Third Concertos, the Fourth took a great deal longer to become established. Ashkenazy takes considerable pride in capturing the essential grandeur and vigor throughout. He conveys the harmonic pungency and its inventive interplay of piano and orchestral textures with keen insight. Overall Ashkenazy exemplifies Rachmaninov's characteristic nostalgia presented with the vitality and thrustful passion that fills every thought with excursions of bravura!



Author: Raymond Vacchino M.Mus.(MT) A.Mus. L.R.S.M. Licentiate (honorary)"