The Last Recital for Israel

Artur Rubinstein (Artist), Ludwig van Beethoven (Composer), Claude Debussy (Composer), Robert Schumann (Composer), Frederic Chopin (Composer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Composer: Ludwig van Beethoven, Claude Debussy, Robert Schumann, Frederic Chopin
• Audio CD (October 9, 1992)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: RCA
• ASIN: B000003F8Y
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #52,811 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #54 in Music > World Music > Middle East > Israel

Track Listings

1. Sonata, Op. 57: Allegro Assai

2. Sonata, Op. 57: Andante Con Moto

3. Sonata, Op. 57: Allegro Ma Non Troppo

4. Fantasiestucke, Op. 12: Des Abends - Evening

5. Fantasiestucke, Op. 12: Aufschwung - Flight Of Fancy

6. Fantasiestucke, Op. 12: Warum? - Why?

7. Fantasiestucke, Op. 12: Grillen - Whims

8. Fantasiestucke, Op. 12: In Der Nacht - In The Night

9. Fantasiestucke, Op. 12: Fabel - Fable

10. Fantasiestucke, Op. 12: Traumeswirren - Tangled Dreams

11. Fantasiestucke, Op. 12: Ende Von Lied - Song's End

12. La Plus Que Lente

13. Pour le piano: Prelude - In A Minor

14. Etude, Op. 25, No. 5

15. Etude, Op.10, No.4

16. Nocturne, Op. 15, No. 2

17. Polonaise, Op. 53 'Heroic'

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Rubinstein at his worst, March 12, 2000

By 

Hank Drake (Cleveland, OH United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Last Recital for Israel (Audio CD)

I cannot imagine Artur Rubinstein ever consenting to the release of this disc, considering how selective the pianist was about his recordings (fans would eat their hearts out if they knew what remains unreleased in the RCA vaults).

The concert begins with Beethoven's "Appassionata" Sonata in a performance so sloppy, disjointed, and filled with memory lapses that one wonders how Rubinstein didn't just give up and go home then. Naturally, the audience goes berserk at the finale's end which is, frankly, banged. Things go downhill from there, including monocrhome Schumann, and unatmospheric Debussy. As he usually did during the last ten years of his career, Rubinstein consistently plays too loudly - a sign of his failing hearing. There is gusto and fire in plenty here, but little in the way of Rubinstein's natural musicality or even technical control. The video has the saving grace of allowing the viewer to actually SEE Rubinstein in action, but the CD lacks that. The CD also lacks the encores - Chopin's Waltz in C-sharp minor and Mendelssohn's Spinning Song - which were, ironically, Rubinstein's best playing that day.

The sound, taken from a videotape (made without Rubinstein's knowledge) of a 1975 recital in Pasadena, California, is very poor mono. RCA has done a grave disservice to Rubinstein's memory by releasing this disc.

7 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ruby's Fire Still Burning, December 26, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Last Recital for Israel (Audio CD)

One has to listen to the last concert for Israel a few times to fully grasp the intensity that Artur Rubinstein put into this album. The frailty of old age doesn't slow him down at all and it is one of his true "live" recordings. You can tell the audience was an awe of the greatest pianist that ever lived.

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars vintage rubinstein, September 18, 2010

By 

piano lover "sviatoslav" (CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Last Recital for Israel (Audio CD)

I marvel at the insensitivity and arrogance of reviewers who make sport of the technical limitations of a great pianist in his late 80s. True, this was not Arthur Rubinstein's best recital. True, he makes a mess of the conclusion of the first movement of the Appassionata. But this dvd is a treasure, not a disservice. What is remarkable is not that there are a few mistakes, but that he was still capable of playing the piano at all. Audiences loved him and this one did too. Attending a Rubinstein recital was always a special event. When I was growing up, my father took me to Carnegie Hall every time Rubinstein gave a solo recital, and every one of them was memorable. I still have the programs. His stage presence was magnetic. His technique was awesome. His posture at the piano was mesmerizing. His programs were long and difficult. He was generous with encores. He truly loved playing the piano. For these reasons, we should be grateful for all of his live performances, however flawed, rather than try to show what sophisticated critics we are.