Search - Georges Cziffra :: The Complete Studio Recordings 1956-1986

Complete (++++) Cziffra - A phenomenal tour-de-force for art

R. Lane | Tracy, CA USA | 12/14/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The producers at EMI France have put together one of the most rewarding and intriguing complete artist editions ever to show up on the market. This 40 CD compendium not only includes all of the commercial recordings Cziffra made for EMI, but also a few he made for Philips (now part of Universal), and some private recordings provided by his survivng family members.



Chopin and Liszt figure most prominently in the repertory, and are self-recommending (read other reviews, which can be found aplenty on individual CD reissues). Nine CD s are all, or mostly all, Chopin, and 14 are all, or nearly all, Liszt. There is much repeated material, usually featuring a 1950s mono recording and a later stereo remake. Add in the private recordings and some works, such as the Lizst concerto no. 1, are featured 3 times. Some Mozart, Beethoven, and Schumann are sprinkled in amoung the solo recordings (I've returned a few times to the Schumann Carnaval recording, played faster than most, but not without depth of perception) along with some French standards (Rameau, Lully, Couperin, etc).



The first CD contains some transcritpions by Cziffra himself. One that I particularly enjoy is a transcription of Rossini's William Tell overture.



EMI producer Rene Jacobs has certainly pulled out all the stops with this issue and deserves the bulk of the credit for the release. I am sure the cooperation from the Cziffra family made the thoroughness of the production possible, and I hold them up as a model for the survivors of other great artists. This is a great memorial to Cziffra and a good addition to the CD library of any lover of Liszt, Chopin, and piano recordings in general."

Cziffra's Recorded Legacy is Self-Recommending

Johannes Climacus | Beverly, Massachusetts | 02/27/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Georges Cziffra, the great Hungarian expatriate pianist, belongs in a class of his own. It would not be an exaggeration to say that at least in terms of technical command he had no equal among recorded pianists. His superhuman technique surpasses even Horowitz, Barere, Richter and Hoffman, to name only a few.



That is not to say Cziffra was the greatest pianist of the twentieth century, however. From a broader artistic standpoint, it would be idle to suppose his interpretive insights matched his phenomenal technical abilities. As an interpreter of Liszt, a composer with whom he identified totally, he had few rivals; his traversals of the "Transcendental Ëtudes" and "Hungarian Rhapsodies" are still and rightly counted as benchmark recordings. In Chopin and Schumann he can be both provocative and persuasive--and sometimes maddeningly eccentric. No-one could accuse him of a bland, drawing-room sensibility when it came to early Romanticism; but prospective listeners should be forewarned: expect the unexpected. Cziffra could also be an inconsistent exponent of Viennese classicism. His rendition of Mozart's a-minor Sonata (his single recording of this composer) is exquisite (almost in the Lipatti class); and some of his Beethoven (the showy variation sets and Sonata 22) is exhilarating, though he doesn't offer anything like the insights of a Richter, Gilels, Backhaus, or Kempff. Oddly enough, he is again at his best in early Eighteenth century repertoire--Scarlatti and the French clavicenists occasion some of his most delightful, and disciplined, playing, though the Bach-Busoni transcriptions are not particularly idiomatic either with respect to the composer or with respect to the arranger. Of course, it is to be expected that Cziffra would excel in demanding warhorses such as Balakirev's "Islamey," the Brahms Paganini Variations, and some of the Rachmaninov Preludes. Overall, then, I continue to enjoy the solo repertoire contained in this anthology, not least Cziffra's own "gypsified" (to coin a term) improvisations, variations and transcriptions.



Where I register the most disappointment would be with the many concerto recordings included in this set. The earlier versions of Liszt concertante works and the Chopin e-minor Concerto are quite compelling; but some of the later recordings, especially those made with the Monte Carlo orchestra (hardly a world-class ensemble) in collaboration with his son, lack the flair and fire we might have expected from this incendiary artist. The Grieg, Tchaikovsky First and Rachmaninov Second frankly sound as if Cziffra had played these works once too often. "Blazé" is the adjective that comes to mind in connection with these concerto outings from the late Sixties into the Seventies.



But make no mistake: Cziffra was *sui generis*, and this remarkably comprehensive anthology will afford many hours (maybe more than any of us have in our busy schedules!) of sheer fascination at such a prodigiously gifted, if unpredictable, artist. Despite the inevitably uneven sonics, reflecting four decades of recording technology and the vagaries of diverse venues (studios, churches, concert halls, and the like), and the less-than-ample documentation, this astonishingly inexpensive 40-CD set is unquestionably worth investigating. Strongly recommended, then, to eager pianophiles and the incurably curious."

Fabulous pianism, less-than-stellar production values

pianophile8 | College Park, MD | 12/03/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Cziffra's phenomenal pianism speaks very well for itself, and there is no other pianist remotely like him. A comprehensive CD edition of his recordings is long overdue, and this set, attractively priced, comes close to filling the bill. However, unlike one of the other reviewers, I cannot give credit to producer Remi Jacobs without several reservations.



For one thing, the set is not "complete" as it claims. Through carelessness or oversight, several items are missing. One is Cziffra's earlier version of Beethoven's Pathetique Sonata, even though there is plenty of room for it on disc 23 along with other Beethoven taped at the same time. Furthermore, there is only one version of Chopin's Fantasy in F Minor; Cziffra's first recording, originally on HMV ALP-1713, is not here. His 1978 recording of Chopin's Nocturne Op.9 No.2 is missing, as is his 1969 version of Liszt's Gnomenreigen. (The track that is supposed to be the latter is actually his 1977 remake.) A live "La Campanella" from 1975, previously issued by EMI, has been overlooked. Also not included is the live Bartok Concerto No.2 that Cziffra played only once in his lifetime, on the eve of the 1956 Hungarian uprising. EMI previously issued it (now deleted), but you will not find it here.



With nearly 250 works included on 40 discs, it seems reasonable to expect the booklet to offer some sort of index to the repertoire that would facilitate the location of an individual performance. Nothing of the kind is provided, so you'll have to plow through the pages of disc-by-disc track listings to locate what you want. Further poor judgment is reflected in the cheap, gummed paper envelopes that enclose each disc. After prying open each envelope, the adhesive can easily stick to the disc surface unless you're very careful.



To sum up, Cziffra deserves better treatment, but the color and excitement of his playing throughout the collection compensates for its less-than-impressive production values.



Pianophile 8 (College Park, MD)"