The Virtuosity of Earl Wild

Earl Wild (Performer, Composer), Tchaikovsky, Dohnanyi, Moszkowski, d'Albert, Schumann, Paganini, Mendelssohn, Verdi, Chopin, Schubert, Wagner Liszt (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Earl Wild, Tchaikovsky, Dohnanyi, Moszkowski, d'Albert, Schumann, Paganini, Mendelssohn, Verdi, Chopin, Schubert, Wagner Liszt
• Composer: Earl Wild
• Audio CD (January 10, 1999)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Ivory Classics
• ASIN: B00000HY82
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #87,395 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #30 in Music > Classical > Opera & Vocal > Vocal Non-Opera > Caprices

Editorial Reviews

Fanfare, May/June 1999

Few pianists can claim such precision of touch, astringent clarity, wide range of color, or ability — at his most dazzling.

Product Description

Scintillating – Exciting – Riveting – Powerful – Awesome – Stupendous performances of some of the most difficult piano showpieces ever written. Earl Wild bedazzles with his keyboard pyrotechnics, charms us with his musicianship and always impresses us with his élan. The virtuosic Liszt, Dohnányi, Tchaikovsky, Moszkowski, Chopin, Mendelssohn, and d’Albert compositions come alive in this 2 disc collection that every piano enthusiast will want to own! (ADD & DDD)Recorded: 11/63, 10/64, 1966, 4/67, 4/68, 6/69, 1976, 10/78 and 12/85. Mastered using 20-Bit State-of-the-Art Technology — HDCD Encoded

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sensational pianistic fireworks, June 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Virtuosity of Earl Wild (Audio CD)

Ivory Classics are now releasing a series of the veteran American piano virtuoso Earl Wild's recordings, upon which his reputation as a super-virtuoso rests. These superbly refurbished recordings date from the 1960s to 1980s and mostly capture Wild at his technical and interpretative best. Take the fiendish Liszt Mephisto Waltz No. 1 for example. Even in the light of Wild's three other recordings of this piece, and other famous ones from Kapell, Horowitz, and Cziffra, this version is a spine-tingling diabolic ride at a staggering basic tempo. Other high-lights include Liszt's Grand Galop Chromatique (better balanced and controlled than Cziffra's), Gnomenreigen, and a stunning Dohnanyi pairing. Many other adventures await the listener - snap these discs up, a bargain at the price.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sorcerer's Apprentice, April 28, 2005

By 

John M. Cook (Astoria, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Virtuosity of Earl Wild (Audio CD)

It's almost comical, the embarrassment of riches one finds on this 2-CD set. Each performance here stands as its own jewel. Each interpretation is carefully mapped out and flawlessly executed. One gets the feeling with Wild that seldom does he walk away after a performance not having done at least 99% of what he set out to do.

In the difficult(although rather silly)Grand Galop Chromatique of Liszt, Wild's touch is light but solid all at the same time. Very few pianists get to the end of this piece without sounding like their hands are going to drop off from fatigue. Yet Wild never gives a sense of this.

Having listened to perhaps fifty different recordings of the Mephisto Waltz #1 over the last twenty years, I still prefer Wild's. More than anyone he captures the sense of hallucinogenic sexuality that's heavily laced into this piece. Even with the brisk tempo he takes, the playing never loses its creaminess, it's seductiveness; it's dangerous allure.

There's nothing more satisfying than to be able to return to favorite pieces of music throughout the years and constantly find new things about them you never discovered before. So to with these interpretations, you'll find many reasons to keep coming back again and again, to savor the superb artistry of Earl Wild.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Late Earl Wild: Virtuoso Pianist, December 5, 2010

By 

J. L. Vosser "key man" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Virtuosity of Earl Wild (Audio CD)

These two disc show what a wonderful pianist Earl Wild was. They cover a wide range of virtuoso piano works he plays with consummate ease. A terrific set for those who like romantic piano muisic