BaL 20.04.19/11.01.20 - Schumann: Piano Concerto in A minor

[Barbirollians]

Perahia/Abbado? Hmmm !

Three weekends three twofers - for crying out loud .

[BBMmk2]

Three weekends three twofers - for crying out loud .

Agreed! I wished they’d stop!

[Mal]

.

I like the Lisiecki/Pappano reading among recent recordings.

Also the two 'winners' when the French critics tackled the work in the Tribune des Critiques programme a couple of years ago: first place went to Perahia/Abbado, with Andsnes/Jansons not far behind (both with the Berlin Phil). They restricted their survey to 6 recordings from the last 20 years.

Melnikov with the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra under Heras-Casado was mentioned favourably too, I recall.

Andsnes/Jansons was given a rosette by Penguin, although Perahia/Abbado was chosen as one of the five (!) key recordings of this work. Rough guide plumped for Kovacevich/Davis with Perahia/Abbado in close second place. I've just listened to Andsnes/Jansons, again, and (for me) it is rather special. It combines the power, intensity and romance of Kovacevich's Beethoven and the classical precision and crystalline beauty of Perahia's Mozart. So I'll need some heavy persuasion to supplement this!

[Barbirollians]

Andsnes/Jansons was given a rosette by Penguin, although Perahia/Abbado was chosen as one of the five (!) key recordings of this work. Rough guide plumped for Kovacevich/Davis with Perahia/Abbado in close second place. I've just listened to Andsnes/Jansons, again, and (for me) it is rather special. It combines the power, intensity and romance of Kovacevich's Beethoven and the classical precision and crystalline beauty of Perahia's Mozart. So I'll need some heavy persuasion to supplement this!

The Perahia/Abbado is not on Alpie’s estimable list but it is available in 6CD set of Perahia’s Schumann.

[Mal]

The Perahia/Abbado is not on Alpie’s estimable list but it is available in 6CD set of Perahia’s Schumann.

That looks like a real bargain, it's on my "to buy" list already - my library is lacking in solo Schumann. The "usual" critics rate Perahia very highly, mostly, for his solo performances and I listened to a few on Amazon Unlimited and he did sound very good.

[underthecountertenor]

Three weekends three twofers - for crying out loud .

I’m beginning to wonder if we’ll ever again hear a onesie.

[visualnickmos]

I’m beginning to wonder if we’ll ever again hear a onesie.

Indeed; I find myself not listening to the dialogue, but only the extracts! Loving the Perahia/Davis extract.

[Barbirollians]

As expected Lucy Parham preferred pretty Schumann to anything more muscular.

Fan as I am generally of Schiff I found that recording a bit tame in the 1980s when I borrowed it from the library and plumped for the Kovacevich the now seemingly forgotten favourite of the late Joan Chissell.

What was the point of that twofer ? All it meant was a great deal of unnecessary prompting from McGregor which restricts the time for extracts ?

The recordings I wanted to buy from that BAL were the Staier and Fischer . I thought the Argerich sounded fabulous but I already have her recordings of the piece.

[Ein Heldenleben]

Apologies if I've missed something but have we witnessed the once in a lifetime phenomenon of the winner not being on the list of available versions so lovingly and painstakingly compiled above ?

[zola]

I’m beginning to wonder if we’ll ever again hear a onesie.

I think this is the format now. It has just been said that next week, Edward Seckerson "joins me". This had been consistently the case ever since the half hour was sheared off to accommodate the Gillam program. I found today particularly irritating, possibly since I never seem to be on the same wavelength as Lucy Parham when considering pianism anyway, as evidenced by the Leeds competition and her contributions on Medici last year.

[Barbirollians]

I think this is the format now. It has just been said that next week, Edward Seckerson "joins me". This had been consistently the case ever since the half hour was sheared off to accommodate the Gillam program. I found today particularly irritating, possibly since I never seem to be on the same wavelength as Lucy Parham when considering pianism anyway, as evidenced by the Leeds competition and her contributions on Medici last year.

How grim but it does not seem to make sense this BAL lasted over 45 mins the usual time for a recorded BAL

[Mal]

And we're off, with Lucy Parum and AM hosting the race. I'm comparing to my current library copy (Andsnes/BPO/Jansens).

Pollini/BPO/Abbado to start. The BPO seem determined to own this work! They sound on form here, as they do throughout with Andsnes. But is he too clinical? Too detached?

Schiff/CGB/Dorati isn't on Alpie's list... delicate, chamber approach.

Krystian Zimerman/Berliner Philharmoniker/Herbert von Karajan sounds on form. AM suggests he's the right kind of pianist for this piece (BPO again!) I agree... he's very good in Chopin and Liszt. Perahia's live recording is chosen for "poetic insight" in a more refined moment and he does sound transcendental... my first shiver down the spine in this BAL... it floats for AM. Actually maybe floats better than Andsnes, for me, I sense a purchase approaching.

Argerich is "super virtuoso", but LP says, "harsher than Perahia", "ahead of my listening ear"... not exactly heaping praise... but I'm afraid I agree. Harsh.

Annie Fischer, Philharmonia Orchestra, Carlo Maria Giulini sounding wonderful in a singing style, my second favourite clip after Perahia, but lots of coughing.

LP said she wasn't going to choose any HIPP recordings until few weeks ago until hearing Andreas Staier, Orchestre des Champs-Élysées, Philippe Herreweghe on forte-piano Streicher 1855 who "gets into the heart of the piece".

She likes Zimerman "buliding layers" and "seamless dialogue" but it sounds a bit halting to me... like his second take on the Chopin Piano concerto... though I loved his first take. She's playing a lot of Zimerman, enough to take him off my "maybe buy" list.

Then she brings in Schiff by comparison and suggest he "really dances" in the third movement, "voicing exquisite... I just want to smile". I agree. For me, this pulls him up level with Perahia. But Andreas Staier is also generating smiles, not because it's a plonky forte-piano (it isn't), but for the right reasons.

Now she's playing a lot of Schiff... having only eight performances and playing a lot of the front runners is a great idea. Really give you a feel for the performances. I'm really loving Schiff now, as is Lucy, and it's the winner, with Staier a close second (and not just best of HIPP...)

No Andsnes or Kovacevich; maybe were considered as being too much in the same school as Perahia and Zimerman and Schiff... she was aiming for variety and only covers eight recordings. Fair enough, really, it was good to hear so much of her winner, and other main contenders.

[LeMartinPecheur]

How grim but it does not seem to make sense this BAL lasted over 45 mins the usual time for a recorded BAL

Barbs: years ago 45 mins was rigidly adhered to, but more recently it's been 'about 45 mins' but often more. Sometimes substantially more when it's opera or Bruckner/ Mahler!

[Mal]

Fan as I am generally of Schiff I found that recording a bit tame in the 1980s when I borrowed it from the library and plumped for the Kovacevich the now seemingly forgotten favourite of the late Joan Chissell.

Hardly forgotten, Kovacevich is the Rough Guide top choice and Penguin guide second choice. I thought Schiff's performance did sound "very smiling" in the third movement, as LP and AM pointed out, More so than Andsnes, who does seem more of a "power" player, like Kovacevich. I prefer his first movement to Schiff who did sound a little tame in comparison..

[LeMartinPecheur]

And we're off, with Lucy Parum and AM hosting the race. I'm comparing to my current library copy (Andsnes/BPO/Jansens).

Pollini/BPO/Abbado to start. The BPO seem determined to own this work! They sound on form here, as they do throughout with Andsnes. But is he too clinical? Too detached?

Schiff/CGB/Dorati isn't on Alpie's list... delicate, chamber approach.

Krystian Zimerman/Berliner Philharmoniker/Herbert von Karajan sounds on form. AM suggests he's the right kind of pianist for this piece (BPO again!) I agree... he's very good in Chopin and Liszt. Perahia's live recording is chosen for "poetic insight" in a more refined moment and he does sound transcendental... my first shiver down the spine in this BAL... it floats for AM. Actually maybe floats better than Andsnes, for me, I sense a purchase approaching.

Argerich is "super virtuoso", but LP says, "harsher than Perahia", "ahead of my listening ear"... not exactly heaping praise... but I'm afraid I agree. Harsh.

Annie Fischer, Philharmonia Orchestra, Carlo Maria Giulini sounding wonderful in a singing style, my second favourite clip after Perahia, but lots of coughing.

LP said she wasn't going to choose any HIPP recordings until few weeks ago until hearing Andreas Staier, Orchestre des Champs-Élysées, Philippe Herreweghe on forte-piano Streicher 1855 who "gets into the heart of the piece".

She likes Zimerman "buliding layers" and "seamless dialogue" but it sounds a bit halting to me... like his second take on the Chopin Piano concerto... though I loved his first take. She's playing a lot of Zimerman, enough to take him off my "maybe buy" list.

Then she brings in Schiff by comparison and suggest he "really dances" in the third movement, "voicing exquisite... I just want to smile". I agree. For me, this pulls him up level with Perahia. But Andreas Staier is also generating smiles, not because it's a plonky forte-piano (it isn't), but for the right reasons.

Now she's playing a lot of Schiff... having only eight performances and playing a lot of the front runners is a great idea. Really give you a feel for the performances. I'm really loving Schiff now, as is Lucy, and it's the winner, with Staier a close second (and not just best of HIPP...)

No Andsnes or Kovacevich; maybe were considered as being too much in the same school as Perahia and Zimerman and Schiff... she was aiming for variety and only covers eight recordings. Fair enough, really, it was good to hear so much of her winner, and other main contenders.

Mal: useful summary and LP was quite clear that she'd restricted choices to her Top Eight for the programme.

What do others think? This seems to match the format of the French programme that some boarders follow. There'll always be arguments if a favourite has been left out but at least the field is made absolutely clear from the start.