Piano Transcriptions / Arcadi Volodos

Arcadi Volodos (Artist), Vladimir Horowitz (Artist), Sergey Rachmaninov (Artist), Franz Liszt (Artist), Nikolay Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov (Artist), Sergey Prokofiev (Artist), Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky (Artist), Johann Sebastian Bach (Artist), Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Artist)

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 1, 1997)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B0000029T8
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #109,640 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Face it, anyone who can play Horowitz's fabled transcriptions or Cziffra's madcap interlocking octaves Flight of the Bumblebee will get attention. What is most impressive, though, is that Arcadi Volodos replicates the notes, but not the performances. His tempos and voicings are completely different, and just as valid, if not quite as coruscating as the originals. In other words, Volodos makes this repertoire his own, as well as the other selections on this well-recorded debut outing. --Jed Distler

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Heir to Horowitz? No, a Genius in His Own Right, February 17, 2000

By	Sugi Sorensen (La Canada, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This recording is simply stupendous. The accolades heaped here in these reviews and elsewhere are all deserved. Although I guess it's inevitable that he be compared to Horowitz (after all, in both CDs released so far he plays Horowitz transcriptions), I contend Volodos is worthy of praise in his own right. His technique is mind-boggling. Even more stupendous is his phrasing and interpretation. By this measure he departs measurably from Horowitz, who achieved velocity at the expense of accuracy and phrasing. It can even be said that Horowitz lacked warmth in many of his recordings, favoring virtuosity instead. The same cannot be said of Volodos. Consider the Bach Largo on this disc, and the three Prokofiev Cinderella pieces for instance. Volodos uncovers depths previously undiscovered in recordings by Richter, Sandor, Ortiz, Berman, and Chiu, and even in the Orchestral version. That he brings new meaning to 'old' music is testament to his maturity and understanding. That he can transcribe a simple melody such as Mozart's Rondo Alla Turca into a spellbinding yet reverent virtuoso piece is proof he's a genius. I sense this will be forever regarded as one of the greatest debut albums.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Horowitz, Cziffra - and now Volodos., September 16, 1998

By A Customer

Anyone who records Horowitz's "Carmen Variations" and Cziffra's "Flight of the Bumblebee" (after Rimsky-Korsakov) has to be either lamentably deluded or a virtuoso of the very, very first rank. The latter case is breathtakingly demonstrated in this wonderful CD. The Romantic School of Pianism is alive and well, thank you! Volodos also plays transcriptions of his own: two Rachmaninoff songs and the famous Mozart "Rondo alla Turca", both in the best tradition of the giants he is emulating so successfully. Little-known, but fascinating transcriptions by Feinberg (Bach and Tchaikovsky) will probably be new to almost everybody. I am sure we will hear much more of Arcadi Volodos in the future; I can only recommend most strongly that you hear him now.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another praise filled review, but first..., December 19, 1999

By A Customer

...a question. Is there some reason why Maestro Volodos' Carnegie Hall album is impossible to find on this website?

Anyway, about this album, I must admit I probably wasn't one of the first to hear of it. I only became aware of it when it was nominated for a Grammy--perhaps one of the only times the awards show brought anything new to my attention. I was initially most intrigued by the Horowitz transcriptions. Volodos is obviously a big fan of Mr. Horowitz, as he plays many of his arrangements. But he is no Horowitz, which is not necessarily a bad thing. To my ear, no one can approach the mephistophelian quality of Horowitz at his most demonic. On the other hand, Horowitz never had the warmth and evenness that Volodos conjures in the slow pieces, and it is here that I'm most impressed by his musicianship. With Horowitz, I almost always sense a sort of tension when he plays adagio, as if all that energy is struggling to break forth from the restraint. Volodos has no such difficulties; pieces like Rachmaninoff's Utro and the Schubert/Liszt Litanie flow like placid water.

That's not to say that he doesn't possess the Russian musclepower. With the more virtuosic pieces there is a nice sense of weight and digital dexterity. The notes resonate but don't blur, and his dynamic range ranks with the best. And as far as his own transcription of the Rondo Alla Turca, it is on a par with Horowitz's Stars and Stripes forever.

In terms of tone and musical sensibility, rather than making the Horowitz comparison, I'd say he comes closer to channeling Gilels at his very best. And that's my review.