Search - Olivier Messiaen, Michel Beroff :: Olivier Messiaen: Vingt Regards sur l'Enfant Jésus / Préludes - Michel Béroff

Heaven-Sent Piano Playing

Paul Turner | 04/21/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It's the stupendous piano playing - both virutosic and musical - that puts this classic Messiaen set at the top of the pile (see my update at the end of this review). The pleasingly natural piano sound is captured in a most beautiful recording. The range of Beroff's touch is wonderfully varied, from the gentlest chord to colossal accumulations of sound, yet his tone is never forced. Above all, Beroff is second to none in his ability to let you hear what is going when the music is at its most rhythmically complex and technically demanding. In Regard No 6 ("Par lui tout a ete fait") and No 10 ("Regard de l'esprit de joie"), for example, the strength and clarity of his fingers is miraculous, his agility in covering the entire keyboard in extremely fast and multilayred music breathtaking. These recordings are among the great piano recordings of all time, regardless of repertoire. I originally bought this set, despite already owning Austbo on Naxos, because I was intrigued by excerpts played on BBC Radio 3's Building a Library. The reviewer noted how Beroff captured the birdsong imitations that crop up here and there even in this cycle. I came back to the Beroff set a number of times before I realised that what was drawing me in was the sheer beauty of the piano playing. Beroff puts his virtuosity at the service of the music so successfully that it takes time for you to listen to the music as pure piano playing and to realise how perfectly the artist's technique serves this extraordinarily demanding music. (Update, February 08: This month I had the extraordinary experience of listening to Pierre-Laurent Aimard playing this same cycle live on London's South Bank. It was one the musical experiences of a lifetime. I would now make his recording my top recommendation, but that does not mean I will be parting with the Beroff, only that Aimard has the edge in both quality of recording and performance.)"

Superlative Pianism

Scriabinmahler | UK | 02/11/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"
I regard Messiaen's Vingt regards as greatest piano solo piano work written in modern language and listened to all great recordings of the work including Peter Serkin's indepth interpretation, but Beroff's account surpasses it as far as intensity of virtuoso playing is concerned. In many movements Beroff's playing is more dynamic and exciting, while richness and subtlety of tones he produces is only rivalled by Serkin. The intricate Le baiser de l'Enfant-Jesus is played even better than Serkin, capturing the fragile beauty of the music so vividly without losing inner tension. Preludes are welcome filler and equally impressive."