Search - Sergey Rachmaninov, John Ogdon :: John Ogdon Plays Rachmaninov

A disgrace to Ogdon's memory

Neil Ford | London | 03/06/2004

(1 out of 5 stars)

"Compare the Etudes on this EMI disc with the Testament release capturing Ogdon on superb form just before his prolonged and debilitating episode of mental illness. The EMI discs should never have been released: Ogdon fumbles and shambles his way through music he'd played much of his adult life with little or no effort. For a man who sight-read the Brahms B flat concerto at a concert (!!!) in his early 20s, to struggle with this repertoire ought to suggest something is very wrong. These recordings were made shortly before Ogdon's death. The old fire rarely returned after his recovery in the mid-seventies. In many ways as tragic a loss to pianism as Solomon's stroke.The release of these discs not only discredits Ogdon's memory but is a cynical expoitation of this great artist's reputation by parties who should have known better.Buy the testament Etudes and the RCA / Great Pianists release of the Sonatas."

Poor Ogdon

Neil Ford | 11/09/2002

(1 out of 5 stars)

"How can EMI release this appalling assortment of Ogdons struggling through rachmaninoff? It is a disservice to his memory - they are recorded post-breakdown, and he just cannot cope with the piano in general any more, whereas pre-breakdown he possessed one of the most formidable techniques in history. He soubds like he is siqut-reading at 3:00 in the morning."

Ogdon Not AT His Best

Mr. Scott L. Leather | Tucson, AZ United States | 10/10/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This CD set is definitely only for hardcore John Ogdon afficianados...and then maybe not even for them. As a pianist myself, I am well aware of the difficulties in this repetoire and can empathize with Ogdon's difficulties with these works as it was post-breakdown. Ogdon, for those who don't know, suffered from extreme schizophrenia and had a complete breakdown and hospitalization in the mid-1970s. He was never the same after that and the medication he took caused severe difficulties with his motor reflexes.



Look, I, for one, am appreciative of having these recordings, as though they may not be the best representation of Ogdon's abilities and prowess pre-breakdown, they still give in many places remnants of his former interpretative and technical greatness.



Please, though, if you are not a die-hard Ogdon fan, don't even THINK about investing in these recordings as they ARE substandard in quality."