Customer Reviews

Rachmaninov: Piano Concertos No. 1 & No. 4

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

 

 

I hope those of you who have seen the movie "Shine" will explore more of Rachmaninov than just the third concerto. This CD is definitely an excellent buy--you don't have to worry about pianists not playing the works correctly; by listening to this disc we know how the music was supposed to be played. If you are worried about good sound quality, however, this disc is not for you. Recorded in the late 30's and early 40's on record, it had to be taken and recorded to CD. Even though the quality is not the best, you have no problem hearing the music. A great CD and a great buy!!

How amazing would it be to actually listen to Beethoven play piano, or Bach play organ? Well, on this Naxos recording you can lsiten to Rachmaninoff play his own piano concertos! While the first and fourth concertos are not nearly as popular as the second and third, they are still very interesting pieces. To hear the composer himself explore them, and "Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini," is truly special. The only shortcoming of these recordings is they were made in the late 30s and early 40s, and the sound quality, while it was state of the art in its time, does not measure up to today's standards. This recording is not for classical audiophiles whose number one criteria is high fidelity. But if you place importance on empathetic playing and are intrigued at the prospect of hearing the music from the master composer himself, then this is worth it.

It's great hearing the historical recordings of Rachmaninov. I also own the other Naxos CD of PC 2 & 3, and I have to say that the sound is much clearer on this CD; less hiss and the piano is brighter and more prominent. I also enjoyed the Themes on Paginini. For the price, these two Naxos CDs definitely shouldn't be missed for a fan of classical piano and particularly for fans of Rachmaninov.

I still don't understand why this historical CD's are so cheap.To me Rachmaninoff is one of the greatest pianists of all times, and listening him play his own concertos on this wonderful recordings is fantastic.Thank you very much Naxos!

I am really glad that I purchased both CDs (Piano Concerto No.1 & No.4 etc., Piano Concerto No.2 & No.3). I do have ones played by Rubinstein, but still, these two CDs are very special. The music is alive, and the hissing makes the music so real that sometimes I appreciate those 'noises'.

Music is different than most art forms that both composition and performance are vital to the creation of the final product. Listen to the composer himself to play the music is always a nice experience, no to speak Rachmaninov himself was a great pianist.