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Scriabin: Complete Sonatas
Michael Ponti, Scriabin
Scriabin: Complete Sonatas
Genre: Classical
 
  •  Track Listings (14) - Disc #1
  •  Track Listings (20) - Disc #2


     
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CD Details

All Artists: Michael Ponti, Scriabin
Title: Scriabin: Complete Sonatas
Members Wishing: 0
Total Copies: 0
Label: Vox (Classical)
Release Date: 12/10/2002
Album Type: Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered
Genre: Classical
Styles: Chamber Music, Historical Periods, Classical (c.1770-1830)
Number of Discs: 2
SwapaCD Credits: 2
UPC: 047163518423

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CD Reviews

Sloppy, bombastic, and with poor sound quality
SRS | Ohio | 06/10/2005
(2 out of 5 stars)

"I can't accept wrong notes unless the performance is live, even though his crazed performance of the youthful E flat minor sonata (with the wrong final movement, by the way) is interesting, although ultimately unsatisfying. There are two sets of the Scriabin sonatas to avoid. Ogdon's and Ponti's. Like Ponti, Ogdon seriously lacks polish and hits some wrong notes, too. His performances are coarse, harsh, and difficult to listen to at all. Of the two sets, I'd rather listen to Ponti's.



Here's a breakdown for my suggested recordings of the sonatas, based on those I've heard:





G#m posthumous: Hamelin.



Ebm posthumous: Glemser.



No. 1: Kocyan, then Ashkenazy, then Taub. Kocyan tells a story. Ashkenazy is passionate. Taub is darker.



No. 2: Kocyan, then Glemser or Sofronitsky, then Ashkenazy. Kocyan's fluidity takes it, but Sofronitsky is artistic. Glemser's first movement is beautiful.



No. 3: Laredo or Horowitz. Then Glemser or Taub. Then Ashkenazy or Sofronitsky.



No. 4: Taub or Sofronitsky. The latter has more artistry, the former a more coherent and appropriate tone.



No. 5: Horowitz or Taub. The former has electric genius, the latter has wonderful refinement. Hamelin's is excellent (definitely his best Scriabin performance). I've heard that Richter's is great, but I don't have it.



No. 6: Richter (genius but bad sound quality), then Taub. Hamelin's is athletic and precise, but there is little mystery.



No. 7: Glemser, then Laredo. The former brings out all the complexity with precision, the latter is sharp and clear. I have not heard Richter's.



No. 8: Ashkenazy. Then Szidon or Laredo. I've read that Sofronitsky's is good, but I don't have it.



No. 9: Sofronitsky, then Horowitz (all versions), then Glemser, then Szidon and Taub.



No. 10: Horowitz or Taub. Same contrast of styles between the pianists as the fifth sonata. Like the fifth, this is Taub's other brilliant performance.



Other pieces:



Fantasy in B minor: Glemser

Vers la flamme: Sofronitsky or Horowitz, then Laredo.

Piano concerto: Ugorski/Boulez, then Ashkenazy/Maazel. Both are excellent, but I give the edge to Ugorski.

Poem of Ecstasy: Maazel

Prometheus: Ashkenazy/Maazel"
Idiomatic and expressive Scriabin
Hiram Gomez Pardo | Valencia, Venezuela | 06/10/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)

"Mr. Ponti reached a high peak with these set of Scriabin Sonatas. It's very difficult to find out the set as a whole. In this sense we must recognize the huge effort for recording these works, are decissive if you want to know the intimate world of Alexander Scriabin a passionate and troubled musician.
The wide frequency of emotions covered in these Sonatas are showed by Ponti, with flowness , deep honesty an conviction.
Acquire this set if you really love Scriabin piano music."
Lean and mean Scriabin ... you know you like it!
Classic Music Lover | Maryland, USA | 05/06/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)

"The wide divergence of review comments about this CD reflects the difference of opinion and preference for how Scriabin's music should be played. As a member of the Scriabin Society of America, I've personally seen and heard many different interpretations of many of these sonatas ... along with strong opinions voiced both pro and con.



In the end, it all comes down to whether you like your Scriabin lean and taut ... or prefer him broad and expansive. I come down on the "lean" side, which is why I enjoy these performances. Michael Ponti misses some notes here and there, but when your Scriabin is almost going off the edge, that's what happens. Scriabin should never sound "pretty" -- especially in the Sonatas. Yes, there are moments of sheer exquisiteness to savor, but ultimately this is music that stretches the bounds of tonality and rattles the structural cage, trying to break free.



Once you've heard Ponti's take on Sonatas 4 and 5 -- or the Black and White Mass Sonatas for that matter -- you'll never again be satisfied with a merely "correct" or "poised" reading. That's selling Scriabin WAY too short ... but it's what 80% of the other pianists do. Oh yeah, but they might get all the notes correct."