Superb Shostakovich
klavierspiel | TX, USA | 05/15/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Vladimir Viardo, one of the 1973 Van Cliburn Competition winners, in common with several other laureates seems to have settled into a university teaching career in Texas. While this is undoubtedly a boon for his students, it is a pity for concert audiences. The piano music of Shostakovich can seldom have been better served than on this CD, which pairs the twenty-four Preludes in all major and minor keys Op. 34 with the grandly tragic Second Piano Sonata. Viardo's infallible technique makes each tiny Prelude spring instantly to life, whether the mood be wistful, brilliant, satirical or epically tragic. The Second Sonata's three movements can easily seem sprawling, particularly the final set of variations, but the pianist's control pulls the disparate elements together into a most moving musical statement. With the centennial of Shostakovich's birth year coming up in 2006, let's hope this wonderful recording is made widely available again."
A Recording that will remain in our minds...
MJRP | Portugal | 01/30/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The best performance that I ever heard. Each Prelude has a meaning, a mood and an history.I don't have enought words to describe the feelings that we can have with this recording."