Rachmaninov - 24 Preludes

[Thropplenoggin]

Because I didn't feel either of them got anywhere near the heart of this music like the Ashkenazy and Richter performances I have. My hopes are high for Peter Katin's set.

Richter didn't record all the preludes.

[Pianorak]

I have got and would recommend the Rach Preludes played by Nicolai Lugansky and Dmitri Alexeev, as well as Moura Lympany.

[Nick Armstrong]

Richter didn't record all the preludes.

True. I've just found I have Alexeev as well Great stuff!

[umslopogaas]

I'll savor the thought of Peter Katin playing these wonderful pieces, but until I get my hands on his recording, I'll be very satisfied with my LPs of Ashkenazy. Vintage Decca and wonderful sound.

[akiralx]

Hayroudinoff on Chandos is also very good.

[BBMmk2]

Ashkenazy and Howard Shelley?

[Barbirollians]

Moura Lympany on Testament.

[rauschwerk]

Hayroudinoff on Chandos is also very good.

No, Hayroudinoff is not very good at all! Having bought a copy and not liked what I heard, I did a detailed comparison of his and Ashkenazy's versions with the aid of a score. I know these pieces well, having performed a few and played through a good many of the rest. Suffice it to say that Ashkenazy is head and shoulders above Hayroudinoff. The latter's most consistent fault is taking little or no notice of the composer's dynamic markings, but too often his playing is pedestrian.

I sold that CD.

[gurnemanz]

The Santiago Rodriguez recordings licensed from Elan are a highlight of the already very good Brilliant Box

[Pianorak]

The Santiago Rodriguez recordings licensed from Elan are a highlight of the already very good Brilliant Box

Thanks for that! Now ordered from Amazon marketplace (£35.16 incl. p&p).

[Pianorak]

Thanks for that! Now ordered from Amazon marketplace (£35.16 incl. p&p).

It's just arrived. Goes to show it doesn't have to take several weeks or even months . . .

[Keraulophone]

Richter didn't record all the preludes.

...but the handful (13?) he did record, display incredible emotional intensity and an almost transcendental quality that no other pianist seems to (or even aims to) achieve. It's not pretty, but nor were the times he lived through.

e.g. Op.32 No.10 in B minor - I need at least five minutes of silent contemplation after listening to this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h51zhv3T6Mk

[Thropplenoggin]

...but the handful (13?) he did record, display incredible emotional intensity and an almost transcendental quality that no other pianist seems to (or even aims to) achieve. It's not pretty, but nor were the times he lived through.

e.g. Op.32 No.10 in B minor - I need at least five minutes of silent contemplation after listening to this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h51zhv3T6Mk

Agreed. But you wouldn't by an incomplete set for someone discovering them for the first time, as the 'BaL recommendation', as it were. Richter would be an ideal complement (historical recording?)

[Keraulophone]

Clearly.

Ashkenazy, Katin, Lympany, Osborne... in that order.

There are several complete sets listed on the Presto site that I'd like to hear...

http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/search.php?searchString=rachmaninov+preludes+complete&page=3

[BBMmk2]

Clearly.

Ashkenazy, Katin, Lympany, Osborne... in that order.

There are several complete sets listed on the Presto site that I'd like to hear...

http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/sea...omplete&page=3