Post by julesd68 on Nov 3, 2014 11:31:49 GMT
Rachmaninov Piano Concerto no 2 - Vladimir Ashkenazy, London Symphony Orchestra with Andre Previn Decca Records 1972.
** PLEASE NOTE** The YouTube link has the first and second concertos - the second I am discussing here starts at 28:35 and finishes at 51:40 - the link above should make it start in the right place. Be sure to listen to it at the Full HD setting and turn up loud for best effect!
play.spotify.com/album/0U6UXujSwhnRazdDWUbz0Y
Yes folks it's a bit of 'classical' this month, and what can I say about this master work that hasn't been said already?
For me, it is the greatest piano concerto of them all and this is the finest version I have heard. I am often moved to tears by its beauty and will try to briefly say why it is so powerful.
The first thing is that all too often Rachmaninov is dismissed or pigeon-holed as being just 'romantic'. Well I guess this music being featured in David Lean's 'Brief Encounter' didn't help … Even Celine bloody Dion ripped it off for 'All by Myself'!! But I have never ever seen it as 'romantic', I just see it as music about feeling and living. It's about being human.
And there is nobody for me that gets you closer to that inner experience than the stellar combination of Ashkenazy and Previn. From those famous, ominous opening chords you know you are in for something special here … As with a great deal of Rach, you'll experience jaw dropping drama, from Previn tightly marshalling the orchestra at full tilt, to moments of very hushed musing and introspection. This concerto has it all and if you have not heard it before, I hope you enjoy all the memorable themes and melodies for which it is so rightly famous. What I adore about Ashkenazy's playing here, and elsewhere, is that he has huge reserves of power without ever sounding bombastic, and an affinity for great sentiment, without sounding sentimental … His wonderfully judged and nuanced phrasing always keeps me engaged at all times; nothing seems ordinary … The pace is just right and I never questioned it - this year I had the misfortune to hear somebody play it at the Proms and go for a world speed record, which totally destroyed the integrity of the work for me. The support Ashkenazy receives from Andre Previn is also exceptional. You always have the sense as the orchestra playing as one, as they are all so totally secure in their individual roles. It's a legendary recording as well, with a great balance and a warm and seductive string tone with that famous Decca glow, which is so very alluring …
I have the Decca narrow band box set of all the concertos - SXLF 6565-7 which also contains the great 'Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini' … You can also buy the concertos on separate lps - SXL6554 contains the first and second.
Here is a useful guide to various other recordings over the years -
www.classicalnotes.net/classics2/rach2.html
Some further reading -
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piano_Concerto_No._2_%28Rachmaninoff%29
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sergei_Rachmaninoff
inkpot.com/classical/rachpfc2.html
** PLEASE NOTE** The YouTube link has the first and second concertos - the second I am discussing here starts at 28:35 and finishes at 51:40 - the link above should make it start in the right place. Be sure to listen to it at the Full HD setting and turn up loud for best effect!
play.spotify.com/album/0U6UXujSwhnRazdDWUbz0Y
Yes folks it's a bit of 'classical' this month, and what can I say about this master work that hasn't been said already?
For me, it is the greatest piano concerto of them all and this is the finest version I have heard. I am often moved to tears by its beauty and will try to briefly say why it is so powerful.
The first thing is that all too often Rachmaninov is dismissed or pigeon-holed as being just 'romantic'. Well I guess this music being featured in David Lean's 'Brief Encounter' didn't help … Even Celine bloody Dion ripped it off for 'All by Myself'!! But I have never ever seen it as 'romantic', I just see it as music about feeling and living. It's about being human.
And there is nobody for me that gets you closer to that inner experience than the stellar combination of Ashkenazy and Previn. From those famous, ominous opening chords you know you are in for something special here … As with a great deal of Rach, you'll experience jaw dropping drama, from Previn tightly marshalling the orchestra at full tilt, to moments of very hushed musing and introspection. This concerto has it all and if you have not heard it before, I hope you enjoy all the memorable themes and melodies for which it is so rightly famous. What I adore about Ashkenazy's playing here, and elsewhere, is that he has huge reserves of power without ever sounding bombastic, and an affinity for great sentiment, without sounding sentimental … His wonderfully judged and nuanced phrasing always keeps me engaged at all times; nothing seems ordinary … The pace is just right and I never questioned it - this year I had the misfortune to hear somebody play it at the Proms and go for a world speed record, which totally destroyed the integrity of the work for me. The support Ashkenazy receives from Andre Previn is also exceptional. You always have the sense as the orchestra playing as one, as they are all so totally secure in their individual roles. It's a legendary recording as well, with a great balance and a warm and seductive string tone with that famous Decca glow, which is so very alluring …
I have the Decca narrow band box set of all the concertos - SXLF 6565-7 which also contains the great 'Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini' … You can also buy the concertos on separate lps - SXL6554 contains the first and second.
Here is a useful guide to various other recordings over the years -
www.classicalnotes.net/classics2/rach2.html
Some further reading -
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piano_Concerto_No._2_%28Rachmaninoff%29
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sergei_Rachmaninoff
inkpot.com/classical/rachpfc2.html