Customer Reviews

Chopin, Liszt: Piano Concertos / Martha Argerich, London Symphony Orchestra

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4 star:		(1)
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In Argerich's selective discography, her Chopin stands out. She has performed this concerto many times, and recently recorded it digitally with Dutoit for EMI. I frankly don't see a whole lot to separate them -- both are infused with Argerich's unique combination of impetuosity and repose. This is a masculine Chopin, not some salon charmer, strongly chorded, and virile and glittering in passage work. I cannot think of any other pianist who has played this work with such individuality. Abbado, too, is an excellent accompanist, alert and intelligent, despite the distinctly minor role he has in proceedings.

The Liszt has similar virtues, with a marvellous sense of ebb and flow. It really stakes out the virtues of this work as an inventive composition of the first-rate, rather than hollow virtuosity. What's so good about the Argerich performance is that although she dominates the work, one still feels acutely a sense of struggle and spontaneity that seems absent from today's young lions. Again, well accompanied. Well recorded, too. If you can't find the Argerich collection, this disk is a mandatory acquisition.

Argerich and Abbado, both recording in their youth, in 1968, have perfectly captured both the majestic grandeur of the allegro movements and the quiet intimacy of the adagios in these two piano concertos. I was extremely pleased at the clarity of the sound, especially given that this is an analog recording made more than 35 years ago. The balance between the orchestra and the soloist is one of the best that I have ever heard on the several versions of the Chopin Concerto that I have. I thoroughly enjoyed the Liszt as well. Argerich's scintillating style is a sheer pleasure to listen to and Abbado brings out the very best of the London Symphony Orchestra. The two, orchestra and soloist, complement each other perfectly. The outstanding sound quality of this recording may in part be due to the fact that it was recorded at Wahthamstow Town Hall, in the outskirts of London. According to the CD notes, this recording location was specifically chosen because the hall's acoustics have a high reputation. Recommended without reservation, and with complete enthusiasm.

I like Argerich's Rachmaninoff, so I thought to try her Chopin, and I was not disappointed. She plays the Chopin concerto with both verve and lilting melody. It is a delight to listen to. The orchestra is up to Argerich's standards, as is the quality of the recording. It was hard to believe that this was an analog recording from the 1960s. The music of the Chopin concerto was more to my taste than the Liszt, but I still liked it very much; they are a good pairing on the CD.

Is the ever comical David Hurwitz doing Argerich any good by saying that a more exciting pianist has never existed (has he heard Liszt in person)? Or that every one of her recordings is a prime recommendation (come now)? We get the idea that he likes her. These relatively early recordings of the Chopin and Liszt First Concertos are a pendant to her Prokofiev and Ravel with Abbado, two other brilliant recordings.

What makes me admire this CD is that neither work is first-rate, and both have achieved the status of tin-plated warhorses. Therefore, it takes something special to hold one's attetnion. Abbado's conducting is fine but not eye-opening. Argerich is a different matter: she plays with wonderful imagination and originality. There's barely a measure of music that doesn't sound new; she has the ability to draw you into her own inner world, making you feel that you are eavesdropping on art in the making. Needless to say, all the essential flash and fire are also in place. Highly recommended.

What a fantastic recording. Marta is such a fine pianist. This recording will drift you to another place, especially the second movement. Bliss!!

Ms. Argerich plays with an energy and understanding of the music almost equal to that of Artur Rubinstein in his most captivating performances. She and the orchestra have a partnership that really give life and excitement to the music. If you do not have these performances, you will certainly have not experienced Ms. Argerich at her best.

Lately, I've been listening to a lot of great pianists: Solomon, Horowitz, Pogerelich, Rubenstein, Van Cliburn, Lupu.

I love Martha Argerich. She is more passionate and flexible with tempi, volume, etc., without it feeling like she's doing it just to be different, which I sometimes feel is true of Pogorelich.

She's great at Chopin (although for some things I prefer Rubenstein and for Beethoven, gimme Solomon (although he does tend to rush a bit.) For Schubert, I love Radu Lupu. But you'll never hear better Liszt and Ravel than from the great (and still sexy after all these years) Martha Argerich.

My single favorite performance of classical music is Argerich playing Ravel's Gaspard de la Nuit--not on this album, but definitely available on Amazon.

Argerich went to Europe when she was fourteen and worked with the great Freiedrich Gulda, Nikita Magaloff and Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli. Her playing can be undisciplined but is always creative and musically interesting. Let us now turn to the Chopin Piano Concerto written just before his twentieth birthday. Argerich's approach is definite and is performed with an unmistakable distillation of style. The playing displays an element of refreshing confidence, an emerging individuality unique to Argerich in which musical content and virtuosic technique are matched. As the performance moves on Argerich defines the harmonic outline, hardened and struck home meaningfully at every modulation; here melody was emboldened and enriched with the perfect fusion of line and embellishment which only Mozart before Chopin could equal. During the appearance of the first-subject material in C major, Argerich magically and beautifully expresses one of most brilliant events in the whole of the work. In the slow movement entitled Romance, Argerich maintains less dramatic contrasts but conveys the greater unity. Her continuous outpouring of melodically shaped phrases are as spontaneous and convincing as Chopin could have ever intended them to be. Argerich, in the rondo, convincingly establishes the themes subtle character with ambiguous accents whose rhythm is not always easy to identify with its shifts of emphasis. In the coda Argerich's use of poetic nuance allows this wonderful piece of piano writing to unfold, wholly consistent with the simultaneous creative work on the Studies, Op.10 and 25.
All Liszt's piano-concerto works are continuous, effectively one-movement structures. Argerich demonstrates his fascination with formal variety within the sonata and variation principles throughout her performance of his first. Due to the innate virtuosic temperament Argerich performs with, she is able to convey the important features both concertos have in common: both contain much thematic cross-reference between their sections; Argerich magnificently highlights the long stretches of delicate, chamber-like orchestration. She expansively incorporates the traditional layout of four symphonic movements in a brief span. In the succeeding development Argerich provides the necessary drama and bravura in the descending string figures of the opening Allegro maestoso. She then rapidly creates the nocturnal Quasi Adagio of Bellini-like ravishment and an Allegro vivace with a 'capriccioso scherzando' character. The finale contains no new themes, but much reflection of earlier ideas. This concerto has frequently been attacked due to an unfortunate tendency of playing it much too fast, however Argerich's performance is a model of dignity and delicate beauty.

Author: Raymond Vacchino M.Mus.(MT) A.Mus. L.R.S.M. Licentiate(honorary)

Everything Martha Argerich does is outstanding. She is the female equivalent of Horowitz

So subtle, so sensitive and so convincing, it's the best recording of Chopin Concerto that ever existed.