Chopin - 24 Etudes [Tomassi] 

Now here's something very special, i bought this disc in a second-hand record shop in London ages ago, it's lain in my collection for a few years, yes i actually do this!, i buy discs, then get round to listening to them years later!, i don't know why it took me so long, on all accounts this is a tremendous disc of the Chopin Etudes, by a Pianist who is simply unknown, but on a well known label.

Giorgia Tomassi is an Italian, born in 1970, she is now still only 40, but she hasn't gained worldwide recognition, she won the prestigious Arthur Rubinstein prize in Tel Aviv in 1992, but since has not become a household name, this recording was made in 1997, but it hasn't really led to a solo recording career either, which is a shame because she's really talented, the booklet front cover [photo by Gian Luca Liverani] is really nice, a cute pose, the coloured lettering well laid out, i like it!.

This is the very first time i've listened to this disc, so it's hard to form a definite opinion, but here are my thoughts, first off it's recorded well, nothing detracts my listening experience like a poorly recorded disc, i noticed nothing, so this is a plus point, Tomassi is young here [27 years old], but she's a mature Pianist, if i were to categorize her playing, i would say she plays faster than usual, but not overly so, certainly not rushed, she's midway between staccato and legato playing, nice and average, she seems a bit 'jerky' in her playing, possibly due to rubato, or volume, there isn't a smoothness in transition at times, but she uses this 'jerkiness' to great effect, i like the way she subtly [and not so subtly] says things, she's worth listening to as she has things to say, which aren't the usual things of other Pianists, she searches out new things, but this doesn't mean her playing is controversial or wrong, one very important thing about the recording, each of the tracks are cued a split second into each Etude, so that you miss a slight sliver of the beginning if you play the set on random mode, this is annoying, the only way to get around this is to listen to them all chronologically, which is what i did today.

Well in listening to these 24 'titanic miniatures' today, i was very impressed with 4-5, 9, 12-13 & 22, especially under the hands of Tomassi, and her interpretations have real insights, the two Etudes which i feel come off best of all are 4 & 9, the Ninth Etude is a jerky study which suits Tomassi, at the start there's slight hesitations, a nice use of rubato, it's in the key of F Minor, and there's a troubling undercurrent to the piece, the left hand accompaniment really doesn't belong to the piece, it clashes with the right hand, like two people singing from the same hymnbook, but singing different verses!, Tomassi's rendition / interpretation of this piece nicely explains her pianism, as her tendencies are perfectly exaggerated in this Etude, she uses hesitations expertly, holding back notes for a split second, or coming in too early for a split second, the piece itself is jerky, but she makes it all the more so, she also expertly uses staccato / legato to her advantage, at times becoming spiky and separate, other times becoming smooth and gummy, and jumbling up the same phrases differently for variety, and then there's loud and soft, little differences in volume can make such a dynamic difference, i like the soft galloping in the left hand [0:05 & 0:18], and the right hand treble outbursts near the end [1:23-1:53], she seems to paint Chopin with a different brush, and creates new colours, this is a great addition to my growing Chopin Etude discography. 

Here's Valentina Lisitsa playing the Ninth Etude [Op10] on YouTube.

 Beethoven - Piano Concerto 3 [Arrau/ Davis-Staatskapelle Dresden] 

Another truly wonderful complete Beethoven Piano Concerto cycle, housed in a triple disc fatbox, this is now extremely rare and highly desirable, i haven't had this set for very long, and actually this is the first time i've got round to playing it, the Third Concerto used to easily be my second most favourite Concerto by Beethoven, but now the Fourth is vying for that place, again i'm wowed by the genius of Beethoven.

Claudio Arrau was born in Chile in 1903, he lived a long and productive life, and died in 1991 at the age of 88, he recorded this Third Concerto in 1987, only 4 years before his death, the photography for this box set [by Christian Steiner] is very nice, a fairly soft glow picture of Arrau in bow tie, with the piano behind him, the white lettering nicely stands out, a treasured box set already, and hard to get hold of, i only see these original sets on Ebay very rarely, just a note about this box set, the Third Piano Concerto is split between discs two and three, this is absurd, it can easily fit on the second disc with the Fourth Concerto, i haven't a clue why they did this.

The slow movement of this Concerto is one of the most favourite things i like about Beethoven, it has a dreamy lyrical romanticism about it, 

Here's Paul Lewis playing the second movement on YouTube.

Schubert - 8 Impromptus [Brendel] 

Here is a tremendous set of the Schubert complete Impromptus, long regarded as the definitive set by the worlds foremost Schubert interpreter, this is Brendel's analogue version of the Impromptus, recorded i believe in the early Seventies, very nice believable sound, Brendel also recorded these Impromptus digitally in 1988, and it's this digital version that remains my all time No1 favourite recording by far, the analogue set is not actually that much different, some may say there's a degree more spontaneity there, for me the digital set brings out the dance rhythms better, maybe there's more poise and authenticity in the analogue set, but just sheer joy in the digital, my recommendation is to buy both sets!.

Alfred Brendel is an Austrian Pianist, now 80 years old, and retired from the concert stage, i believe these Impromptus were recorded in 1972 [D899] and 1975 [D935], the front cover of the booklet is excellent [photo by John Hedgecoe], showing Brendel with his piano, the dark side of the piano has the lettering overlaid in light blue, a nicely composed / balanced picture / title.

Well this was my 'Sunday morning walk' listening experience, i really loved listening to these pieces again today, maybe it was the walk in the brisk spring morning, but the rhythms of the piano went well with the rhythms of walking, all of these wonderful 8 pieces reveal inspirations galore, but especially 1-2, 5 & 8, with track 1, Impromptu D899/1 the most mesmerizing of them all, there was a certain feeling of wave upon wave of lyricism that just lifts and lifts me, everything is natural, what goes on before just inevitably flows into what goes on after, and i love being in the perfect moment of the now, 

Here's Alfred Brendel playing the first Impromptu of the first set [D899/1] on YouTube.

Wagner - Orchestral Works [Barenboim-Orchestre De Paris] 

Here's something different for me, a disc dedicated to the Orchestral parts of Wagner's Operas, unlike say Rossini and Beethoven, who both had well defined Overtures to the start of certain works, and nicely fit onto a disc or two, Wagner's orchestral works are cut from bits all over the place in his Operas, of different lengths and different pigeon holes you would place them in, this makes it harder to create a satisfying recital of his orchestral music, but here certainly is a very nicely chosen bunch of excerpts, maybe Barenboim leans too much on Tristan Und Isolde, and a bit more variety would have been very welcome.

Daniel Barenboim is an Argentine Conductor and Pianist, very much straddling two jobs, he still records new solo Piano recitals, but i guess his main job is Conducting, he is now 68 years old, and this disc was recorded in 1982 & 1983, the front cover booklet illustration is by Victor Vasarely, called 'Cheydt', a really nice geometric design of blues and reds, and the red lettering very much fits into this theme, i like these 3D Classics by DG.

I really enjoyed all of these pieces, of course the last piece on the disc is the most famous, and a real barnstormer, no wonder it's left to last, it makes a rousing finale, but the piece i liked the most is actually track 5, the Prelude to act 1 of 'The Mastersingers Of Nuremberg', i guess in essence it's very much an Overture, 

Here's Daniel Barenboim conducting the Prelude to Act 1 of the Mastersingers Of Nuremburg on YouTube.

Anti-Flag [For Blood And Empire] 

This was a disc i saw on Ebay going cheap, i regularly search through the cheap discs [£1 and under], and anything that looks good i listen to on Amazon or YouTube, to get an idea if it's something worth buying, and this caught my eye, and the sound clips sounded excellent and thrilling, and so i bid, this is the first time i've listened to it, it's fast Punk Rock in the vein of Green Day and Offspring and such, but Anti-Flag as their name suggests are very political, and it only takes one look at the cover of the booklet to see what i mean.

Anti-Flag are an American Punk Rock band formed in 1988, they have released 9 albums, and this is their seventh album released in 2006, i bought this on the strength of the front cover of the booklet, a controversial collage of a picture of the Presidential White House, with rows of grave markers on the lawn out front, and a formation of jet fighters roaring above, you get the picture!, war = death, and the government is in the middle of it all!, i just love the tri-colour-ness of it all [red, black, and white], plus it's the symmetry of it that catches the eye too, lots of Punk Rock albums are let down by almost home made cut and paste, lacking real professionalism, but this cover is just great.

Well like i said before, this is only my first listen to the album, and first feelings are it's very good indeed, but an album usually hits home on roughly the third listen for me, well the two track that really caught my eye / ear, were 4 & 6, and it's track 6 'This Is The End' that i got a real buzz out of, 

Here's Anti-Flag singing 'This Is The End' on YouTube.

Eric Alexander [Straight Up] 

Roughly 13 months ago i played this album [11th February 2010], and its turn has rolled around again, this disc resides at No10 in my all time favourite discs, now that's high considering i've got over 1600 discs!, i bought this in the early days of falling in love with Jazz [1994], back then i would just stroll into a music store, browse around, pick a disc that i thought looked good, and just buy it, and that's the way i got into Jazz, i bought loads of duds, but then i also discovered discs like this, that at that time i would have discovered no other way.

Eric Alexander is an American Saxophonist, now 42 years old, he cut this record in 1992, the front cover is what first attracted me to this disc, a monotone photograph [by Eric Futron], with Alexander in blue, and the background in green, the lettering is all over the place, with 4 different fonts!, and yet it somehow gels together, i still feel that it's a very pleasing booklet cover.

Well in listening to this today on random play, the first three tracks to roll off the disc were the best, tracks 1, 6 & 8, and it's track 6 'An Oscar For Treadwell', it has very much a big band Fifties feel to it, at least in the opening theme [0:00-0:34], mainly because Rotondi uses a mute, but it's a cleverly executed theme tune, very brisk and snappy, then Alexander gets a shot at a fairly long solo [0:35-3:24], good straight ahead Jazz here, he doesn't do anything really noticeable, but certainly well worth listening too as well, next up is the Trumpeter Jim Rotondi [3:25-4:32], and now he's minus the mute, very much in the same vein as Alexander, but quite a short solo, Harold Mabern comes in next, and he just can't do anything just straight [4:32-5:37], and he tries some fancy stuff, and he has a jittery section up in the treble [5:04-5:16], very inventive and inspiring, but on the other hand you feel that Mabern is trying too hard, and then for the next minute the Drummer George Fludas has a bunch of 4 second solos, interspersed with a 4 second solo from the saxophone, and then the trumpet in a constant order, very exciting indeed, after the last drum solo, all the instruments sing out the opening theme, returning right at the end in reprise glory [6:45-7:20], the track ends abruptly as the theme ends, a nice way to finish.

Eric Alexander - Tenor Saxophone

Jim Rotondi - Trumpet

Harold Mabern - Piano

John Webber - Bass

George Fludas - Drums

It's a Charlie Parker song, so here's Charlie Parker playing his own song on YouTube.

Brahms - Violin Sonata 3 [Frank/Serkin] 

Only a few days ago i played Brahms's Third Sonata with Znaider / Bronfman [5th March 2011], and this is quite a different reading indeed, and recording soundwise as well, Znaider is sweet, Frank is sour, the recording for Znaider is bright, Frank is dull and blunted, Znaider's tempos are slightly slow, but near ideal, Frank is all over the place with extreme speeds and ideas, the Frank / Serkin version sounds a recipe for disaster, so why do i like it so much?, maybe it's because they're both trying to be revolutionary, purposely trying to say something different from what everyone else is saying, well there's gains and losses, but never boredom or indifference.

Pamela Frank is an American Violinist, now 43 years old, she made this recording in 1996, the booklet has the colour theme of orange and black, and Serkin is photographed in monotone brown and orange, but Frank is photographed in colour, with deep blacks throwing the lighted areas into focus all the more, notice the highlights in the hair [photo of Frank by Julian Barton, and Serkin by Carol Weinberg], i like the lettering too, well laid out, black for Brahms, orange for the christian names, and white for the surnames, very nicely laid out and pleasing to the eye.

This is my second favourite disc of the Brahms Violin Sonatas [the first is Perlman / Ashkenazy], just a word about the recording, the piano is recorded in a very dull acoustic, the bass end of the piano sounds 'plomb plomb' instead of 'pling pling, dull and stunted, the treble end can be quite reverberant and ring in your ears, especially in fortissimos, the violin seems more suited to the recording, Pamela Frank seems to play with the idea of historical performance in mind, i don't know if it's some sort of gut strings, or the bow or her approach or what, but her playing can sound less sweet and singing, more sinewy and the tone dies quicker, plus she's very much a staccato player rather than legato, but in saying all of that, you still gotta hear these two, and what they bring to the table, oh and by the way, this very work by these two appeared in my Blog at the beginning of last year, i very much notice how my reviews were a lot shorter then! [19th January 2010].

On this listen, their interpretation of the first movement was fantastic, a nice gentle violin opening, high and sweet [0:00], yet sad too, i like the gentle rumblings on the piano, and both partners explode loud [0:35], and they create a nice intensity here, both of them get into the emotion under the skin of the notes on the page, there's a degree of respite to this forte [1:08], and yet both Serkin and Frank want to emphasize the turbulence of the music, with some odd sticky staccato endings [1:59], and they can plumb the murky depths [2:02], it's so nice the way they find deep emotion in the pages that Brahms wrote, they create a darker and quieter variation of the opening of the movement [3:14], which transitions in very nicely, and then the explosion again is also so intense [3:49], there's an anger there, it's very compelling indeed, Serkin again plumbs the bass depths [4:36], and Frank's playing can have a certain whine to it, right near the end there's a lovely coda-esque-ness! to Frank, and i like the way Serkin can plink those treble keys just so!, the closing section is sad [6:33], but there's a nice resolution to it all, and a feeling of acceptance and surrender too, there's is an intense reading i love.

Here's Itzhak Perlman and Daniel Barenboim playing the first movement on YouTube.