Customer Reviews

Arthur Rubinstein - Chopin 19 Nocturnes (Vol. 49)

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Arthur Rubinstein's pianism was as noteworthy for what it lacked as for what it featured. One of the many factors (aside from the obvious technical and tonal ones) which made Rubinstein's Chopin so compelling was his refusal to cross the line separating sentiment (epathy) and sentimentality (schmaltz).

The performances in this, Rubintein's third -- and final -- traversal of Chopin's Nocturnes are remarkably straightforward and direct. Each of the performances starts out simply, with natural phrasing and tactful, unobtrusive use of rubato. The structure of each piece is clear, and Rubinstein resists the temptation to linger over this-or-that phrase for "added emotional effect." Far from draining the emotional impact of these miniature masterworks, Rubinstein's performances actually heighten the impact of each piece, especially those in minor keys. Perhaps the greatest tribute to Rubinstein's treatment of these pieces is that even the most well known Nocturnes emerge as totally fresh works. The pianist, by the 1960s considered the "elder statesman" of Chopin, gives faithful renditions of these works, and this is the set I would recommend to someone hearing the Nocturnes for the first time.

Yet it must also be stated that while Rubinstein's approach makes this an excellent reference set, I would not want to be without the more imaginative Nocturnes he recorded in the 1930s, which I frankly turn to more often for enjoyment. Another issue is that Rubinstein, whose hearing was failing by the 1960s, almost never plays a true pianissimo.

RCA's excellent remastering of the mid-1960s stereo tape gives an accurate idea of the gorgeous sound Rubinstein could get from a piano.

I owned this recording of the Nocturnes on vinyl many years ago and have just got around to purchasing it on CD. I presently own many, many wonderful recordings of Chopin's Nocturnes. However, listening to the Rubinstein's recording again, after so many years, was like going home (in the best sense of the phrase). I love the Nocturnes; they are my favorite works of Chopin. All I can say is that Rubinstein's recordings are, indeed, the best! I love all my recordings of the Nocturnes; but the Artur Rubinstein's recording, of them, sooth my soul and emotionally move me down to the very marrow of my bones. The recording, honestly, moves me to tears.
If you love Chopin and love his Nocturnes, as I do, buy this recording; there is none better!

This is a lovely recording by Rubenstein, played with great sensitivity and emotion, while never overindulging in the sentimental. Of course, I am biased. I am huge Chopin fan, and nobody has ever played it better than Rubinstein. I daresay few would disagree with me on that point. I like to listen to this CD at work - it has an instantly calming and uplifting effect - makes you forget the mundane - instead you are reminded of the sublime. Some say Bach was closest to God, I tend to disagree -

This is must-have for any classical music lover's collection. I am so inspired I am going to learn a few of these pieces myself.

Sometimes we feel we're unspeakably down: nights when you're exhausted by your daily routines and the dreamer in you wakes up in vain. Some people read romantic short stories. Some go to have long walks on the beach. When I'm blue, I either go running or watch Wong's "Chunking Express", some Tarkovsky or listen to the saddest music. To music most divine. That's this Rubinstein's interpretations of Chopin are high on that list, as they are on every other best-of list I've yet compiled.

Simply put, this is a masterly artist interpreting the most masterly artist of our time.

Chopin is, to me, the epitome of an artist who invests his whole soul to his music. A poet whose own poems start to shape his heart. Others can comment (and have already done so) on the technical aspects of either Chopin or Rubinstein's skill, but I merely wish to articulate how shocking his music is in how it bares the soul, how naked it is. In modern rock music, I've found Peter Gabriel to work this way, at least the Peter Gabriel of the untitled era, up to the album "Us". This is the greatest of commitment, almost a secret made between the composer and listener. The music approaches the listener in such a direct way not from the outside but from within. And this has nothing to do with who's playing the piano. There are simply passages that are larger than either the player or our comprehension. The silences, the rubatos, the relation of the notes to the mood of the thing, to the heart of the matter. Rubinstein just happens the most open-hearted, as one of the editorial reviews points out.

About Chopin. He's not like Bach in my books, whom I've found to appear emotionally majestic yet who's more like the Peter Greenaway of classical music; more showy and mathematical, calculating. Adhering to a certain cosmology rather than inventing and investing straight from and to the soul. Whereas Bach relies on framework in which he fills his music (this is, of course, the Zeitgeist of his time and style of music and in itself nothing remarkably revealing) with the finest of contrapuncts, Chopin's method is to create a free flow of melody, harmony, tempo and dynamics. It's organic and it's fluid. I don't think I should even mention Mozart's badinage. Rubinstein uses the rubato of Chopin to a great extent, which makes for some of the most breathtaking passages ever played on a piano. I play piano so badly I'll never have the possibility to play Chopin properly, but I've done the 'next best thing', that is, I've played him as transcribed for the guitar by Franscisco Tárrega. Those transcriptions, in my mind, contain that bittersweet chance of rubato, and that nakedness translates to the guitar quite well. But that's not the real thing.

This is. Of course, the best thing is to get all of Rubinstein's recordings, but if I was to make the hardest decision and choose only one, this would be it. Very close would be the Preludes as well as the Mazurkas, but this is perhaps the most heavenly music. Only Pärt's "Alina" continually reaches me on such a personal level. These songs made me believe that music can change your life.

Now I'm going to try and sell this item to you. Thus I'll have to ask that particular question: what is it about Rubinstein? We know him as the mastermind, the giant interpreter, who revolutionized how we listen to Chopin. But this isn't just merits, or otherwise he wouldn't be celebrated today for anything else than just showing a different path at the time. And this is a sad destiny some other artists share. Where Rubinstein triumphs is that his playing is much like what Chopin's music is like: it's a rare gift for us to find two artists with the same soul. This is why I think Rubinstein continues to be important and these records even life-altering. That's not in his technical skill, per se, it's in his ability to channel something from within, lift up something from the notes that can only be read between the lines. He's intimate, much like the music, and that's why I let him come close and do his best. Most beautiful music, most uplifting music; the saddest music in the world.

I do not understand how people can not just love this CD set. I found the sound quality as good as any of the best Deutche Grammophon recordings I own. Rubinstein's interpretation of Chopin is, to my ear and musical sensibilities, just perfect. He is very nuanced in his every note without subjecting you to an over stylized interpretation. His performance is consistent, clear and overall the music makes sense, from the beginning to the end of each piece, his stylistic interpretations "fit" with each other. The "story" of each nocturne flows easily and effortlessly. I feel that Rubinstein's interpretation of these pieces presents them with the greatest focus on the music and not the musician, that I have ever heard. If you are a Chopin fan, or if you are totally new to classical music, this CD set is the one for you. If you wanted to have a classical music collection of only one "album", this one would be it!

Other reviews eloquently make the case for this recording. Just wanted customers to know that amazon offers the 11cd Rubinstein Chopin box for the same price. Includes a booklet with notes and 9 other fine CDs... an excellent bargain.

Let's talk about what a real artist can do with great, sublime music. It should be an effortless rendering that the heart hears now and the mind contemplates later. Give this CD to your lover or your dad, to your daughter or special friend. Anyone who can hear will thank you for this gift.

Still my favorite piano album of all time. I moved a few years ago and lost all my CD's, and because of financial problems have only recently begun to repurchase many recordings. When I bought this again and listened to it after a few years away, I could have cried. It was like meeting an old love, and none of the thrill was gone. She was as beautiful as ever. Rubinstein's sense of rubato is perfect; affective and full of rhythm within rhythm, yet only consciously noticeable when you carefully examine the playing. Totally natural. Like Liszt said of Chopin's rubato, "See that tree? See how the leaves move yet the shape stays the same?" The tone is bold and sharp, proving that Chopin's music was not to be maudlinly caressed as the stereotype of a weak, tubercular genius has perpetuated. This is music to lay in the dark with, not to sleep, but to ride the night blanket away in.

Arthur Rubenstein interprets Chopin beautifully with great emotion. It would have been interesting, were it possible, to have him play these great works in the presence of Chopin to get his reaction. The "Red Seal" RCA label lives up to it reputation for having made some of the very best quality recordings ever made. The crisp, clear and true to the original sound makes you feel as though you were in the studio while the recording was being made.

When I first heard the Moravec disk, my first reaction was like everyone else's - wow! But after repeated listenings, I began to realize that Moravec, while playing absolutely beautifully, was bringing out more than what Chopin put in, with sudden and uncalled for changes in tempo which go far beyond rubato. Rubinsten, by contrast, plays what is there, with tasteful and unobtrusive rubato, and produces music which is just as beautiful, but I think more of what Chopin intended.

I have the same issue with Claudio Arrau. Every grace note becomes a quarter note. Both of these fine pianists have somehow become composer as well as pianist, and I don't think this is the way to go about it.

Stick with Rubinstein. There's a reason why he is considered by most of us to be the best at Chopin - he plays the music the way it should be played, while producing an unmatched silky smooth sound.