Customer Reviews

Gyorgy Sandor Plays Prokofiev

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Gyorgy Sandor has been associated with Bela Bartok as Schnabel with Beethoven . In this case the approach given for Sandor making sound the seventh sonata (his best achievement in this interesting set)loaded percussiveness and dark shadows creating atmospheres so eloquent that you woll not be able to believe after you listen it . There is lyricism , sense of the mistery and rage and wildness , specially in that last movement .
The eigth and ninth sonatas are extraordinary .
From the fourth to the sixth go to Richter . He is a winner in these .
Sandor plays a second and third with idomatic language.
These are worthable recordings and considering the ratio prize quality , the reasons for you to acquire this set is almost a duty if you are a fan of Prokoviev.

To start with, I am not a professional music critic. I am just a fan of classical music, piano in specific, from Baroque to Modern. Before I bought this CD, I've never heard Sandor's playing. I heard of the name Sandor, and that's it! Honestly, the economy of the CD (At $15, I can own all Prokofiev sonata!) was one of the most important reasons when I decided on it. But as I hear the CD, I was also deeply impressed by his excellent expression of Prokofiev. As many know, Prokofiev sonatas include many parts that sound ugly unless the details of staccatto/legato, forte/piano and temp are precisely represented. Sandor played Prokofiev just as Ashkenazy did Beethoven or Kissin did Chopin. His excellent presentation as well as the economy of the CD easily compensates for somewhat fair-to-poor recording quality inherent to the analog technology. Excellent buy!

Sandor's performance of Prokofiev's sonatas here pale in comparison with the best performances of Sviatoslav Richter. The best performance in the set is that of sonata #9, where he takes a better tempo in the first movement than anyone else I've heard. In fact, I prefer his #9 to the live Richter I have. Apparently, Prokofiev gave the ninth to Sandor to premiere, and it's clear that it's the piece he understands the most. As for the rest, Sandor's playing is a bit unfocused and/or underwhelming.

Sandor is no Michael Ponti. His performances are more accurate and not bombastic. For serious Prokofiev fans, this collection is worth getting, I suppose. For those new to Prokofiev's sonatas, get Richter's "Great Pianists" performances of sonatas 6, 7, and 8. Horowitz's performance of #7 is fantastic, too. Another pianist to mention is Kocyan.