Nice sound, performances that hit and (more often) miss
John Grabowski | USA | 12/01/2007
(3 out of 5 stars)
"It's hard for me to imagine a set of Rachmaninoff Preludes--these most emotional of piano works--that illicit no emotional response from, but that's how I'd describe Ashkenazy's amazingly banal interpretations. Technique is decent, though tested in some places (vs. Richter, who plays these as though they're childishly easy), such as No. 1 of Op. 32, but worse is his seeming lack of understanding of the emotional highs and lows of this music. In the second prelude of Op. 32, for example, he doesn't find the tension and release that's there; it all gets rather repetitive. He's best where he can just bang the hell out of the piano without having to produce much in the way of colors, ie, No. 3 of Op. 32. But even here, at the key transitional point (at 1:18 in), there isn't a bit enough change--no difference in color, phrasing, line. This is the big plateau, the payoff moment, but he does nothing special, just plays it like he's been playing till now. And that's the main problem with most of these, come to think of it: great pianists like Richter find mini dramas in them, short one-act plays. Each piece, despite being only a few minutes in length, goes through a metamorphosis. With Ash, it does not--we come out the other end in the same state we went in. Just compare Richter's No. 1 of Op 23 with the present performance to see what I mean.
Nowhere is this more evident than in Rachy's own favorite Prelude, the B minor of Op. 32. Richter tells a story. Ashkenazy plays the piece. When the main theme returns in the coda, it's undergone a change under Richter, gaining wistfulness and that fleeting feeling, because Rachmaninoff knew "the Return" (privately the called this "the Return" prelude) would never come. Ash just recaps it. The great upheaval has no meaning. On the positive side, Ashkenazy gets a wonderful rich sonority in the lower register in the transition before the coda recap, starting around 3:07, and he plays the part just before that recap beautifully and with high polish.
If you're looking for a *complete* set of these works, I'd still stick with this one, just because there are so few others out there, and all are as bad or worse. At least Ashkenazy has the sound right: Weissenberg and Howard Shelley don't even get that, Weissenberg hurries through them so fast he destroys the very structures he creates. (His handling of No. 4 in D baffles me to no end; did he have to pee?) Moura Lympany is scattershot with no imagination. I have to admit I've never heard (or even heard of) Rustem Hayroudinoff. I also see Lugansky has done an Op. 23, and while this isn't "complete," I'd love to hear it and have high hopes, based on other performances I've heard from this artist.
Still, for a complete set this may be on the "better" side of the spectrum, compared to the competition. I wish Richter had recorded them all, because frankly he has no peer. Look for his incomplete set on Olympia, and make do with these for the rest. There is no complete definitive version out there--odd, considering how popular these works are with audiences. --Oh, and do try to hear the composer's own performances of the Preludes he did record--far from complete, but wonderful.
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A good start, but there are much better "complete" sets out
Michael Black | Detroit, Michigan | 01/01/2008
(3 out of 5 stars)
"Just for the sake of completeness, you may want to try the full set of recorded Rachmaninoff preludes by Alexander Budyonny, a Russian pianist with the right "feel" and absolutely superb technique. I agree with the previous reviewer that no one can compare to Sviatoslav Richter in this category, but the reviewer seems to overlook (other than Shelley, Weissenberg, etc.) other important artists who have contributed to this important ouevre by Rachmaninoff."
Get a remastered version
Michael Hayes Music | Nashville | 10/07/2008
(3 out of 5 stars)
"These original recordings are excellent preservations of the artist's performance; however, you would think the record companies would spend $1000 to get the recording remastered and remove the tape hiss. Try to find a remastered or enhanced version if you can."
Track Listings (24) - Disc #1