Search - F. Chopin, Janusz Olejniczak, Christophe Coin :: Chopin Vol 5 - At Home

Chopin played on an 1831 Pleyel piano

Janice S. G. | Columbus, OH | 03/18/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"These are truly wonderful performances, played by Janusz Olejniczak of Poland, most famous perhaps for his playing in the film "The Pianist". The star of this CD, however, is most certainly the piano itself.



I ain't no novice when it comes to Chopin recordings; I have well over a hundred. But I have no other that sounds like this, and it's because these pieces were played on an 1831 Pleyel, the same model that Chopin himself banged on (at least when he wasn't banging George Sand). The difference between the Pleyel and a modern piano is the color, the timbre. This old piano is not as "accurate" (whatever the heck that means) as a modern piano but it has character out the ying yang. It shouts, it weeps, it dances around the room, it grabs you by your collar and slaps your face, it revels in life.



This be a must-have for Chopin aficionados. If you are not moved by it, you have no taste, no class, no soul, and you don't really care for music, do you?



My only disappointment is with the "Funeral March," which just doesn't work. The recordings of it by Vladimir "the Impaler" Horowitz are to die for. Here, however, it is but another number, almost a filler. Even so, "Chopin At Home" is still a 5-star disc."