Customer Reviews

Rachmaninov: Complete Piano Concertos/Rhapsody

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The playing on this CD is worthy of five stars, but Universal gets a one-star demerit for releasing these works too many times. If you want one CD of Ashkenazy & Previn playing a couple of Rachmaninov Piano Concertos, then you buy the Penguin Classics title. If you want two CDs of Ashkenazy & Previn playing all four Rachmaninov Piano Concertos, then you buy the Double Decker. If you want six CDs of Ashkenazy & Previn playing all four Rachmaninov Piano Concertos, plus the Paganini Rhapsody and other works for piano, then you buy the boxed set. And now, if you want Ashkenazy & Previn just playing all four Rachmaninov Piano Concertos and the Paganini Rhapsody, you can get this three disc set. Geez, there is less selection in the grocery store! Some of the Universal Trio releases have been phenomenal -- Dvorak Slavonic Dances/Symphonic Poems, Brahms Concertos/Overtures, Mendelssohn String Quartets, etc. -- but with the combined resources of so many labels surely they could have dug a little deeper into the vaults and found something else that was unreleased on CD. Or, just not bothered with this title at all.

I totally agree with Michael Richman's earlier comments. These are important,perhaps, definitive recordings of Rachmaninov's mighty piano concerti, but how many reissues, in how many different guises do they warrant? I don't believe this "Trio" release (although an excellent value) is even remastered, ADRM or otherwise. Another example of the sad state of the serious music recording scene here and abroad. Thank God for Naxos & its vision, repertoire, and increasingly excellent roster of artists!

Ashkenazy playing Rachmaninov has been always wonderful. Despite

this is a very good cycle, his collaboration with Haitink was more

touching and much more convincent. For Rach played by Ashkenazy, go

for the Haitink cycle in the same label.

This CD replaces a tape cassette of the exact same performance of the 2nd piano concerto that I have had for years, which became unplayable. The CD was derived from the same analog master as the tape, but, of course, is superior to it. I now have all of the Rachmaninov concerti plus the Rapsody and Variations. I am very pleased!